I have come, after much thought, to the realization that there is (for me at least) a fundamental flaw in the atheist-theist debates that rage on Wondercafe and elsewhere. The problem, as I see it, is that both positions, especially in the extreme forms that tend to start and get involved in these debates, are based on an old-fashioned notion that one's faith is binary: one either believes in God or doesn't. In computer interface terms, it's a checkbox labelled "God" that you click or you don't.
In the most recent issue of the United Church Observer (February 2011) we have a feature article about the so-called “Post-Theistic” churches that have begun to spring up from within the greater United Church polity. These congregations are taking down their crosses, closing their Bibles, and trying to re-imagine themselves as spiritual beings in their own right.
I've had several hours to read through quite a few threads now, and I must admit I'm a bit baffled by moderate Christianity. Countless times I see people saying they not only don't believe this or that from the Bible is literally true, but also that it doesn't matter whether this or that is true.
I don't understand. I suppose it's as about as tenable a position a rational Christian can take, but then I wonder: what's the point?
