How to Talk with Atheists

Hi, my name is Matt Slick and welcome to the Karma Answer Desk. I want to discuss the issue of atheists and how they attack Christians and Christianity. This is mainly for the Christians. So if you're an atheist, you know what, turn this off and don't listen to this because this isn't for you.

Okay? I'm going to trust you. Don't listen. Okay? Three, turn it off, two, one, okay. Now that all the atheists aren't listening and the Christians are the only ones listening to this, I'm going to give you some pointers on how to deal with some atheists.

Asking Questions Instead of Making Assertions

Okay, Christians, listen to this. Look, we know that the atheists are constantly attacking Christianity and attacking what we have to say. Well, I want to tell you some basic, basic stuff that you can do to deal with them.

All right? Let's say, for example, an atheist makes an assertion. I'm going to give an overly simplified one. You know, they'll say something like, there is no God. Okay. You know what? Instead of saying, oh, yes, there is, and then trying to prove it, I would say to them something like, well, how do you know that?

Ask questions. If they make an assertion, have them substantiate their assertion. Very, very simple. Have them establish what it is they're saying. They might say, yeah, there is no God. There is no evidence.

Okay. Great. You know what? Show me that what you're saying is true. How do you know there is no evidence? Do you know all things? And I say to them, I don't think you're being very logical here, and let's have a conversation about it.

I would really recommend that you do that. And remember this. Don't try and just simply refute whatever they say whenever they say it. I'm known for saying this great comeback when an atheist says something to me.

Responding to Moral Objections About the Old Testament

They'll say something like, well, you know, the God of the Old Testament is really mean. And I'll say something like, so? What's the big deal about it? You don't like it? Okay. Whatever. And atheists, you know, what are they going to do?

See, let's take that example. You know, God does have people killed in the Old Testament. All right? And atheists don't like it. They'll say, that's evil. And I'll say, it is? How do you know it's evil?

What standard do you have by which you're judging what is evil and what is good? And who are you? I mean, I can understand that you may not like some things, and I can certainly defend your right to have an opinion, but no offense meant, but if you just have an opinion that you don't like what God does in the Old Testament, so what?

So what? I'm not here to have to prove that God is good or bad to you. You've got to demonstrate to me why you think such a statement is bad, why you think it's wrong. And ultimately, all you're going to be doing to me, if you're an atheist, I'd be saying, is giving me your opinion.

Not liking it doesn't mean it's good or bad or true or false. So when an atheist is talking to you, ask those questions and often, seriously, say, yeah, so? What's the big deal about it? Get them to explain more.

And the more they do that, the more you're going to find out that they're going to have holes in their ideas and holes in their statements. It's not that difficult to do. And also try this. Ask questions to find out their presuppositions.

Understanding Different Kinds of Atheists

You see, if they presuppose that there absolutely is no God, that's different than talking with an atheist who says, well, I really don't see sufficient evidence for God's existence. Now those are two different kinds of atheists, though both are atheists.

And one, you would have a much more difficult time talking with than you might have with the other. And so it's really important for you to know who or what you're up against, so you've got to ask questions.

Ask the right kind of questions. You know, why do you say that, or what makes you hold that position, or whatever. And ask. Okay? Now, I'd also say that what you need to do is admit, this is important, Christians, admit when you don't have an answer.

Admitting When You Don't Have an Answer

You know, if I were an atheist and I was talking to some Christian, and this Christian was trying to snow me in trying to give an answer for every single thing, and the answers are falling apart, I'm not going to have any respect for that person.

But I'd have a lot more respect for someone who said, you know what, that's a good question. I'm not really sure. Let me go research it for you and get back with you. That's not a problem. That's intellectually honest.

And you know, I do that. You can do that. And you know what, even when atheists do that, I appreciate that, when I'm talking to them and I ask them a question and they don't have an answer. And they say, well, you know what, it's a good question, I'll have to go back and research it.

No problem at all. And then just follow up and do that. So basically, dealing with atheists isn't that difficult. They're the ones who often make assertions. Ask them to demonstrate the validity of their assertions.

Listen to what they're saying. Ask questions about what they're saying. See if their statements are logical. See if there's some problem inside the logic. For example, what if an atheist said, there is no God, I know there is no God.

You'd have to know all things to know if there is or is no God, so logically it's not possible. So by listening to what they say, you can hopefully learn a little bit about logic in their statements, see if their statement is valid or not.

It's not that difficult. It's pretty easy. So basically, ask questions, listen, find out their presuppositions, admit if you don't have an answer, and learn to say, so, a lot. See how it goes. And I think you might enjoy your discussions with atheists a lot more.

Thanks.