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I can't believe that Summer is already over and my kids are back to school. Is it just me, or has the length of each month been shortened somehow? I hope you are ready for another busy Fall season. Here at PleaseConvinceMe.com, we're continuing our series on the objections that skeptics make related to the apparent nature of Christians (the complete series of responses will eventually be posted on our Answers4Atheists website).
OBJECTION: If there is one Christian God, why are there so many different denominations of Christians? The existence of numerous (and contradictory) versions of Christianity are proof that Christianity is false. Christians can’t even agree on what they believe.
RESPONSE:Truth, by its very nature, is often elusive and difficult to ascertain. The more hidden or complex the truth claim, the more difficult it is to determine, given our limited capacity as humans. To make matters worse, our innate qualities of pride and independence drive us to disagree and separate from one another along the way. Christians are not alone in their struggle to understand the truth and in their subsequent disagreement and separation:
Human Disagreement is Common to Every Field of StudyVery few fields of study are characterized by uniform agreement. As an example, secular scientists who study the origin of the universe have divided into a number of theoretical camps, including “Big Bang” Cosmologists, “Steady State” Cosmologists, “Conformal Cyclic” Cosmologists, “Ekpyrotic” Cosmologists, “Multiverse” Cosmologists, “Pre-Big Bang Theory” Cosmologists, “Quantum Theory” Cosmologists and many more. These careful thinkers are examining the same set of facts, yet have separated in disagreement with one another, even though they agree on many essential issues.
Human Disagreement is Common to Every Worldview
More expansive worldviews are not immune to this kind of disagreement. A quick search on the Internet reveals (as an example), that those who deny the existence of God have categorized themselves in a number of varying ways, including “Implicit” Atheists, “Explicit” Atheists, “Weak” Atheists, “Strong” Atheists, “Iconoclastic” Atheists, “Pragmatic” Atheists, “Mono” Atheists, “Myopic” Atheists, “Realistic” Atheists, “Scientific” Atheists, “Logical” Atheists and many more. Even people who have examined the same set of facts and hold an atheistic worldview have distinguished themselves as distinct from one another, even though they agree on many essential issues.
Human Disagreement Does Not Negate the Existence of TruthWhile people may disagree about a specific truth claim, this disagreement does not mean that a particular truth does not exist or cannot be known. In every jury trial, two sides oppose one another; one side believes the defendant is guilty, the other side believes the defendant is innocent. There is a truth related to the defendant’s guilt or innocence, in spite of the fact that there is a disagreement. Even though both sides are examining the same set of facts, they have come to two separate conclusions. One of them is right and one of them is wrong. Truth is not negated by their disagreement.
Christians of every denomination have examined the same set of facts from the Biblical text and the First Century evidence. While they disagree about a number of peripheral matters, they agree on the essential issues of the Christian Worldview. As a result, they can accurately call each other “brothers and sisters in the faith.” These disagreements are a reflection of the fallen nature of humans. All of us, regardless of worldview or area of study, are influenced by our pride and independence; we often separate from one another over minor issues that have no bearing on the overall truth of a matter. Christians are no more immune to this tendency than those who deny the existence of God altogether. Read more »
