The Language of Argument

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21

R e l i g i o u s R e a s o n i n g

Religion is central to the lives of many people across the world. They attend reli-

gious ceremonies and pray or meditate, sometimes several times a day. Even when

they are not engaged in explicitly religious practices, religion also affects believers’

views in morality, politics, and even science. (See Chapter 20.) Critics of religion

disdain these influences and claim that religions depend on false or unjustified be-

liefs, especially the belief that God exists. Both sides of this debate present ingenious

arguments, which will be explored in this chapter.

What is religion? That’s not an easy question to answer. Religions are var-

ied and complex. They include rituals, communities, institutions, texts, and

beliefs. You cannot understand religion as a whole by looking merely at reli-

gious beliefs. Moreover, religious beliefs cover many topics, from the afterlife

and the meaning of life to creation and miracles. You also cannot understand

religion by considering only beliefs about God. Nonetheless, since belief in

God is so central to so many religions, it is crucial to ask whether God exists.

People who believe that God exists are called theists. People who deny the

existence of God (or any other god) are called atheists. Many people accept

neither belief and claim that we cannot know whether God exists. They are

called agnostics.

It is also important to realize, however, that people who believe in a tradi-

tional God within Christianity, say, usually deny the existence of other kinds

of gods. Their position is, thus, theism with respect to their own religion and

God but atheism regarding other religions and gods. Hence, when asking

whether someone is a theist or an atheist, it is crucial to specify the kind of

God at issue.

Who or what is God? Different religions include different beliefs about

God or gods. Nonetheless, the dominant traditions in the Western world—

Judaism, Christianity, and Islam—all derive from Abraham and share certain

central beliefs about God. In traditional views, God is a person with the three

“omnis”: omnipotent (or all-powerful), omniscient (or all-knowing), and

omnibenevolent (or all-good). Some theologians add that God is omnipres-

ent (or equally present at all spaces and times), but many see God as eternal

or existing outside of all time and space. Nonetheless, God is supposed to be

active in time, such as when He causes miracles or answers prayers. Not all

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