The non-contradiction between Free Will and Omniscience

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Theological Refutations to Free Will

The Inherent Fallacy in the Argument from "Fine Tuning"

The argument from "fine tuning" is a broken and fallacious argument from its very core.
It's completely meaningless to argue about the small points and whether some phenomenon is actually true and/or amazing and/or "has to be exact in order for us to exist".

I mean, sure it's a bonus when so many creationists get SO MANY scientific facts so terribly wrong while trying to invent scientific support for their "fine tuning" argument.
But pointing out those errors isn't going to change anything.
They'll just keep making new errors.

The fact of the matter is very simple:

The "fine tuning" argument is NOT an argument FOR god.
The "fine tuning" argument is an argument AGAINST god.
Think about it.

What if the universe wasn't fine tuned the way it is? What if it was vastly different?
Obviously, we would not exist. At least, that's what any sensible and reasonable person would say, and that's also the main point that creationists are trying to get across:
We exist because we exist in a universe whose physical laws allow us to exist.

But... What's so amazing about that? What does it actually prove?
That in order for us to exist, certain conditions must be met, and since we observe that those conditions are indeed met, then that proves... what?
It's nothing but a tautology - a truth statement proving nothing but itself.

Not only that, but this argument also assumes that everything that exists comes from nature, because everything must obey natural laws...
In other words... This argument assumes NATURALISM.
And isn't that the opposite of arguing for a supernatural God?

But you know what WOULD have been amazing?

If we existed in a universe WHICH WOULD NOT HAVE ALLOWED US TO EXIST.
Think about it.

Imagine if we had found ourselves in a universe where the laws of physics shouldn't have allowed us to exist.

I'm not talking about our existence being "unlikely" or "highly improbable" or "having an infintecimal chance of happening" or however you want to call it.

I'm talking about a physical impossibility.
Wouldn't THAT be actual evidence of an 'all powerful intelligent designer'? Wouldn't THAT be an actually amazing supernatural miracle - by definition!?

Indeed many creationists do try to claim such evidence that would suggest that our existence is "impossible" based on physical laws and observations.

Their most favorite is the argument against Abiogenesis: i.e. it's impossible for a living being to naturally evolve from non-living matter through purely chemical processes (a.k.a. "chemical evolution", "origin of life", etc.).

Unfortunately for them, multiple scientific experiments have proven the exact opposite:
Chemical evolution of non-living matter into a living organism is very much possible, and in more ways than one, even.

Sure, scientists have yet to prove which of the possibilities gave rise to our own biological evolution specifically, and indeed the chances of any such process to happen naturally is rather improbable (which supports the observation that biological life is indeed very rare on a cosmic level).

But it doesn't matter.
It is proven to be possible and that alone is enough to undermine the entire creationist argument of "fine tuning".

Why does God take credit for the good things but not the bad?

Well, first of all, god doesn't "take" anything, because god doesn't exist.

It's the people who assign to him the credit.

But why do they do that?

In the past, when polytheism was prevalent, people used to assign the bad things to the gods as well, not just the good things. Gods were often seen as capricious, erratic, and even irrational in their "behavior". And while it better matched the reality of how nature "behaved", it would instill a strong sense of inconvenience in the hearts of people. Imagine having your life governed by a bunch of capricious, erratic and irrational powerful beings. Doesn't seem very nice, does it? Quite depressing, even. It can make you feel powerless and helpless in the face of such odds.

Greek gods and goddesses influencing human affairs from above the clouds

Enter Christianity: Here we have these new 'preachers' who go around talking about an "all-loving" and "perfect" god. Such that always has our best interest in his heart. Such that even 'sacrificed' his own life for our benefit.
After years living under the tyranny of capricious and sadistic beings, now all of a sudden it appears that it wasn't these powerful beings who were at fault at all... Because they didn't even exist. But it was us the humans who were at fault.

Now, all of a sudden the "power" to "fix" the world lays in our hands. And all we have to do? All we have to do is to "fix" our belief system. Just believe in a different god who is "the one true god". Suddenly the people don't feel powerless anymore. Suddenly the good fortunes and benefits are right behind the corner, and it's super easy to get there! All you have to do is say "I accept Jesus Christ as my lord and savior" and ABRACADABRA you are now without illness or sadness and you are "saved", if not in this life then in the next.

The 'one true God' loves you and wants to help you. But there is something you must do in return.

From the movie "Agora" (2009)

It's almost like voting in political elections:
You vote for the candidate who promises you the best things.

If people had not assigned the good things to their god, then their god is redundant and unnecessary. Such a belief system would simply not survive as a religion.

If people had assigned the bad things to their god, then it makes their god capricious and undesirable. You wouldn't want to "vote" for such a "candidate". It also makes the people feel powerless to fix the bad things that happen in their life.

Bottom line is:

People assign the good things to god, and the bad things to themselves, due to wishful thinking.

They wish to have the power to change things for the better (using minimum effort as possible), and they wish that the god they worship would be a good god - and therefore worthy of worship.

To this effect, Christianity is the result of "religious evolution" where the religion that sounds better to the people (i.e. tells them what they want to hear) is the religion that survives better than the rest (and not because it's more "true" than other religions).

Special thanks to Atheist Republic for the inspiration to this post.

Everyone, deep down, is an Atheist

Throughout all of known human religious history, mankind has always "put" gods in the places that seemed most unreachable to mankind:

In the depth of a cave.
In the bottom of the sea.
At the top of the mountain.
Inside a volcano.
In the sky above the clouds.
Somewhere out in space.
In a parallel dimension.
In a parallel reality.

But all this proves one thing and one thing only:

Mankind has always known, deep down, that gods are undetectable.
But if these gods are "undetectable", then how could they reach conclusions about them in the first place?
And most importantly, how could these conclusions be so vastly different between different cultures (religions) and even between different individuals within the same culture (religion)?

Using Occam's Razor, the simple answers become very apparent:

Gods are "undetectable", because that's how non-existing things tend to be.
Gods are differently represented by different people, because gods are manifested within the imagination of individuals.

Mankind has always known, deep down, that gods are undetectable.
That's why whenever a person imagines a god, the first thing they need to do... is to put this god in a place which would be unreachable by humans...

For the sole purpose of justifying their apparent non-existence.

There is only one place where gods were ever proven to exist:

IN HUMAN IMAGINATION.

This is my God. There are many like it but this one is mine.

The God's Creed (based on the Rifleman's Creed from Full Metal Jacket):

"This is my god, there are many like it but this one is mine.
My god is my best friend. He is my life. I must know Him as I know myself.
My god without me, is nothing. Without my god, I am nothing.

I will believe my god be true, I must believe better than my enemy who has a different god,
I must believe in my god better than he believes in his…. I will.
My god and I know what counts in religion is not the evidence we have,
the soundness of our logic, nor the voice of reason.
We know that it is faith that counts. We will have faith…

My god is human, just as I, it’s how I can relate to Him.
Thus I will never learn about Him more than I’m told at church,
never learn of His weaknesses, His strengths, His character, His history,
His origins and His followers.
I will ever guard Him against the ravages of atheists and heathens.
I will keep my god clean and moral, even as I am clean and moral.
We will become part of each other. We will…

Before god I swear this creed, my god and I are the defenders of my religion,
we are the masters of other religions, we are the saviors of my life.
So be it, until there is no other denomination but my own."

This poem is based on the concept that Religions are Unreliable.

God on Trial

God on Trial is a 2008 BBC/WGBH Boston television play written by Frank Cottrell Boyce, starring Antony Sher, Rupert Graves and Jack Shepherd. The play takes place in Auschwitz during World War II. The Jewish prisoners put God on trial in absentia for abandoning the Jewish people. The question is if God has broken his covenant with the Jewish people by allowing the Nazis to commit genocide.[1]

The movie contains extremely powerful dialogue and thought-provoking notions.
It brings up the question of God's very existence, as well as God's nature as either good or bad (and that we simply were lucky to "have him on our side" for a while).
And who are in a better position to make this judgement than the poor Jews in Auschwitz waiting for their death?

More info about the movie (Wikipedia page):
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/God_on_Trial

YouTube removes these videos due to copyright, but some scenes are available in the below Facebook group page (belonging to the Israeli Atheist group "Brotherhood Without God"):

https://www.facebook.com/BrotherhoodWithoutGOD/videos/1501456570077233/

https://www.facebook.com/BrotherhoodWithoutGOD/videos/1501827126706844/

Videos are in English with Hebrew subtitles included.

Non-Existence and Why We Shouldn't Be Afraid of it

The fear of death is most probably the biggest trigger out there for religion and faith.
Humans fear death, mostly because of the unknown element attached to it:
Without religion, we don't know what happens to us after death.
What do we feel? Where do we "go"? Do we keep our memories? Are we accountable for our deeds in life? So on and so forth.

The fear of death is also the most common "last stand" fallback position that theists go to when the foundations of their faith are rattled.

I can't even count the number of times theists brought this issue up when they seem to have run out of arguments and counter-arguments:
"So what happens after you die?", "You just stop existing and that's it?", "What's the point of living if it's all for nothing?", etc.

Well, there are several ways to approach this issue.
The most common answer that I've seen used by atheists is that after you die, you don't necessarily "disappear" into non-existence. You still exist in the memories of your loved ones and next of kin. And if you were truly a remarkable person, then you might even gain "immortality" by being remembered for untold generations to come.
Some "immortal" men for example: Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, William Shakespeare, Ludwig Van Beethoven and so on, you get the idea. These people, although long dead, still "exist" in our everyday lives by the very fact of us remembering them and their achievements and lives.

Obviously, it's not a very 'satisfying' type of "immortality", because you're not there to enjoy it in person. So naturally, theists, selfish as they are, usually don't accept this kind of answer.

Another common answer atheists give is that the very fact that we are bound to die and stop existing at some point, only makes this life we have ever more precious and priceless.
It's an invitation to enjoy this one life we have and make the best you can out of it, because we have absolutely no other chance.

Theists usually don't seem to accept this answer either, although from my experience they don't really give a reason why. They just can't seem to wrap their heads around the notion of "one chance only". It's like automatically a reason for them to commit suicide and end the one life they have. It really boggles my mind why would anyone want to do that.

Personally, I agree with both of those common answers described above.
Yes, this life is precious because there's no other, and yes, we can achieve "immortality" by living in the memories of future generations (although it's an impersonal kind of "immortality"). Both of these notions together can push us to make the absolute best we can out of this life, as well as positively influence the world to make it better for future generations.

But there is another type of answer which is not so common. And here, although already more than halfway through this post, we reach the actual crux of the matter and the whole reason why I'm writing this.

We need to wrap our heads around an amazing fact. A mind-boggling, mind-blowing and yet a staggeringly simple fact:

We shouldn't be afraid of non-existence. Because we already passed it:
WE DID NOT ALWAYS EXIST.

What? You forgot? Where do you think you were before you were born, sugar?
You did not exist.

Do you remember this "non-existence"? You have memories of your experiences? Your feelings? Your ambitions? Obviously not. Because you did not exist.
And yet, the world existed all the same without you.

People lived. People died. People did this and that. Built things. Destroyed things. Killed each other. Saved each other. The rain was dropping. The sun was rising. The birds were singing. The dogs were humping. Life just... Went on.

So... Do you care about that, dear believer? Are you not upset about the fact that before you were born you did not exist? No? Why not? Isn't this fact just as disturbing as the fact that one day you'll be going back to that kind of state of non-existence?

Consider the following:
Let's assume, for the sake of argument, that before you were born you existed in some other form. Perhaps in some other dimension, perhaps as a completely different person. You had thoughts, memories, ambitions, and so on. But you don't remember any of that now, of course. All you remember is what you learned since after you were born into this life. Think for a second what that means. All those thoughts and memories of the person you were before... Everything that person went through... All of that was gone the moment you were born and started from scratch as a new person. How is that different from that other person... Stopping to exist? They stopped existing, and then you started existing as a whole other person with new memories and experiences.

This is, of course, a hypothetical scenario assuming there's such a thing as reincarnation or whatever.
But, as we already established, you don't really remember who or what you were before you were born, right? So... How is it different from the FACT that after you die, somewhere out there in the world, a new person is going to be born... A whole new person from scratch... Without any memories of what they were before they were born, but with new memories to gain in their new life? Who can say for sure that that new person will not be you? But since that "new" person won't have your memories anyway, does it really matter if it really is you or not?

How is it different?

So if you fear of nonexistence, get over yourself, champ.
You've already been there, done that.
Make the best of what you have.

Just remember one important thing:
After you're gone, the world will keep on living.
Humans will keep on being born.
So why not do what you can to make this world a better place for them?
For all you know, those "future" humans are...

You.