Invisible Sun

Wow. Steven Den Beste of USS Clueless bats one out of the park, the parking lot, the layers of the atmosphere and achieves lunar orbit. This is a great must-read for anybody with any interest in modern theological and non-theological debate.

In my years arguing with fundamentalist atheists (Steven calls them "proof atheists" and "evangelistic atheists"), I have attempted to explain why they were in the same ontological boat that I am as a Christian, and any claims of theirs (or mine) to being more correct, less delusional or irrational are wrong, because it comes down to the decision, the arrival at an opinion that may or may not be fact, that has been made by the individual given the available evidence. We are all/both stating belief which we believe to be fact, but neither of us can know if it is fact or not (yet).

Yes yes, there are many theists and atheists who arrived at their professed view because it was handed to them, they didn't think very hard about it, didn't really investigate, and sometimes chose what they did just for comfort, or need, or to piss somebody off. But then, many of us believe what we do because we have investigated extravagantly and thought about it for years, and have reached our decision without regard to any needs or promises of comfort. We theists and atheists who have given it a lot of thought and have done much investigation quite rightly take umbrage at the presumption of someone else who claims we haven't done our homework. And then calls us idiots, delusional, or what have you.

Well, Steven has done his homework, to say the least.

So did C.S. Lewis.

And so have I.

Now, can we just all get along and have a couple beers?
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Update: Additional thoughts from Steven.