Atheism: The Ultimate Guide (COMPLETED)

25. Answering Creationist Questions for Atheists

On the Bill Nye vs Ken Ham debate, there was a segment where the audience wrote questions they had for atheists, and I'd like to answer them. 

1. Bill Nye, are you influencing the minds of young children? 

This one is directed specifically at Bill Nye, but I can answer this as well. Yes, I'd say, and thank goodness. He's showing them how science actually works. If they choose to not believe it, that's their decision, but children shouldn't have this information withheld from them simply because parents don't want them to grow up and leave religion, which happens often when one begins to truly study science (especially evolutionary biology). 

2. Are you scared of a Divine Creator? 

No. Why would I be? Worst case scenario, a god is real and I'm going to some hell when I die. Big whoop. It depends though, because not every religion has a "heaven is only for believers" policy. Long story short, I'm not scared of any divine creator or even the possibility of one, that would be silly. 

3. Is it completely illogical the Earth was created mature? i.e trees created with rings, Adam created as an adult, etc.?

I think it is. I mean, it's silly to think that God would create the world to have the illusion of age as it clearly does today when in reality it's supposedly only between 6-10,000 years old. Why bother with making the Earth look old? The facts are the facts. The Earth looks old and mature because it is. It's 4.5 billion years old. 

4. Doesn't the Second Law of Thermodynamics disprove evolution? 

You mean human evolution? No, it doesn't. The sun is the main energy source for the Earth, therefore entropy can be locally lowered in some cases and more order can be created. 

5. How do you explain the sunset if there is no God? 

Perfect face-palm moment. This question is one of the silliest and most illogical questions I've ever seen from a creationist. Well, the Earth revolves around the sun, and the sunset is us seeing the Earth turning away from the sun. No God has to be involved for that, that's just basic science. If you're talking about the beauty of the sun, that's a purely man-made concept for which we also don't need a God. We've evolved to have an appreciation for nature and colors. 

6. If the Big Bang theory is true and taught as science along with evolution, why do the laws of thermodynamics debunk said theories? 

Another common misconception. No, these laws don't debunk these theories. I've explained why before. See answer number four and my chapter on the Big Bang theory. 

7. What about noetics? 

What about it? The mind is complicated, yes, but it certainly doesn't mean a divine creator must be involved. Human evolution is a highly complex and intelligent process. It can do just fine on its own. 

8. Where do you derive objective meaning in life? 

Life has no objective meaning. I have my own personal meaning, but life itself has no objective purpose or meaning. 

9. If God did not create everything, how did the first single-celled organism originate? By chance? 

Yes! One theory, and I quote Adam Rutherford (a geneticist, science author, and broadcaster), "white smoker hydro-thermal vents around four billion years ago, where an energetic disequilibrium provided by proton gradients swirled in and out of porous serpentenized olivine submarine rock". Despite popular belief, the Universe just kind of happened. 

10. I believe in the Big Bang theory, God said BANG and it happened! 

I've heard many Christians say why this belief contradicts itself and how one can't believe in both, but I guess at least accepting the Big Bang as fact is enough. I'd prefer if God was left out of the entire equation, but I digress. Although I don't recall God saying anything about the Big Bang in the Bible.