Since my last post on Can Evangelicals be Open-Minded? I have had some push back on my comments at the original post at the Friendly Atheist. Instead of my comments getting lost there, I decided to respond here.
Basically, my open-mindedness was questioned as I am committed to certain beliefs. I believe in God, in the trustworthiness of the Bible, the resurrection of Jesus and so on. Since I am not prepared to just give up those beliefs, I must be close-minded.
First, I must say that I did not grow up convinced of these things and then have been afraid to question them. Although I grew up in the church, I was not committed to any theological beliefs. In fact, in my mid-teens I became an atheist and did not become a theist until I attended university. Even then, I did not become a Christian until a number of years later. So there has been lots of questioning, suggesting I may be somewhat open-minded. Even as a Christian, many of my beliefs have evolved. How I look at creation and the nature of the Bible is a fair bit different than I did twenty years ago. I am not afraid to adjust my beliefs as I learn more.
But what about atheists? Are they more open-minded? After all, many of them consider themselves “free thinkers,” suggesting they are free to think whatever they want. I would say to my atheist friends, how open are you to the idea that God exists? How open are you to intelligent design? How open are you to the idea that the Bible is a relatively accurate record of the events described? How open are you to the possibility of the supernatural? How open are you to the resurrection of Jesus? My suspicion is that most atheists are not open to these things at all.
The truth is, most people (atheist or Christian) are convinced of certain things and not ready to give them up, and are open to other things and are willing to consider other possibilities.
- Close-Minded
- Friendly Atheist
- Opened-Minded