Your friend reveals he’s an atheist. How do you approach the discussion?

In a previous post, I explain the #1 tactic in conversations on tough topics is to ask questions rather than make statements. It’s also important to prepare for these discussions. So, what questions should you ask when talking with an atheist or skeptic?

Here are three good questions you can ask, depending on the situation and your prior discussions with the person.

1. What’s the best evidence you’ve heard and what’s wrong with it?

Deploy this question in response to an atheist who asserts, “There is no evidence for God” or demands, “Show me the evidence now!” This question requires the skeptic to reveal how much he or she has studied the issue. Have they only heard superficial arguments? Have they wrestled honestly with the best that theists have to offer? Frequently, it’s the former. In that case, you now have an opportunity to present better evidence to them.

In this post, I lay out how you can take this question further.

2. What would convince you?

This is another good question to ask when faced with someone who claims there is no evidence or insufficient evidence for theism. Some might argue this question obscures the issue. After all, what’s most important is not what would convince someone, but what should convince someone.

What would convince someone is a matter of personal psychology. What should convince someone is a matter of epistemology and objective knowledge. Despite this, I think “what would convince you?” leads nicely into “what should convince you?”  Here’s what I mean.

If you ask “what would convince you that God exists?” you need to be prepared for a common answer. The most common answer will be a description of some miracle. Something like this, “I would believe if God appeared right in front of me and healed an amputee.” 

How would you respond to that?

Here’s one answer I might give, “That would certainly be a cool miracle to witness. But I have to ask you: would that be the only way you would be convinced?”

At this point, they might say, “No, I could give a lot of different miracles like that.”

I might say, “Ok, I understand, but is that the way it has to be? Do you have to have a miracle of your own? Or is it possible that you could come to see God exists in other ways? For example, maybe a philosophical argument or historical investigation could lead you to think God exists. Do you think that’s possible?” Your suggestion here transitions from what would convince them to what should convince them or what could convince them.

Perhaps they will say, “No, that’s not possible.” If they say that, press them: Why not? Ask, “Isn’t it possible that God could exist and not give you your own miracle but provide other evidence of his existence?”

Most would probably answer say “Yes, that’s possible.” Perfect. That’s your opening to ask the question #1 above and then talk about the evidence. The exchange can take place with the background assumption that it’s possible such evidence for God could be good. That goes a long way in preparing your atheist friend to hear theistic arguments.

3. Why do you think atheism is true?

 An atheist believes God does not exist. At least, that’s a standard definition according to the esteemed atheist philosopher Graham Oppy.

I have argued that we should characterise atheists and agnostics in terms of their doxastic attitudes towards the claim that there are no gods: atheists believe that there are no gods, agnostics suspend judgement whether there are no gods. [Section 1.14, source]

That means atheism is a positive position that needs some justification. If an atheist claims your evidence is insufficient, keep in mind he also bears a burden of proof. Why should his atheism be accepted? Why think it’s true? What precisely are his reasons?

Some atheists try to avoid the burden of proof completely. They claim atheism is merely a lack of belief in God but not a positive belief that there is no God. If the atheist says this, he has two problems:

• He disagrees with notable atheists in the field (such as Oppy).
• This skeptic collapses atheism into agnosticism. He has to say that agnostics are also atheists since they lack a belief in God. Ask: “How do you distinguish atheism from agnosticism on your view?”

Perhaps the atheist has genuine reasons such as the problem of evil or the problem of divine hiddenness. I’ve dealt with those here and here.

Summary

 Prepare to ask any of these three questions to your skeptical friend:

• What’s the best evidence you’ve heard and what’s wrong with it?
• What would convince you?
• Why do you think atheism is true?

 Why should you remember these questions? Several reasons. First, they will help you feel more prepared for conversations with a skeptic. Second, these questions afford you the opportunity to listen to your atheist friend and discern more about where he or she is coming from. Third, they lead nicely into a substantive discussion of the best evidence for theism.

These are not “gotcha” questions. They are questions that require us to move beyond sloganeering and condescending quips. They force us to listen to our atheist friends carefully. Let’s see what the skeptic has studied and aim to offer him something more for consideration.