Atheists and religious people are often at odds. They have fundamentally different belief systems and views of the world. Many people in these opposing groups simply don’t understand how others could view the world in that way. So, these are some important questions atheists want religious people to answer.
1. Why does God allow so many tragedies?
One of the biggest questions atheists have for religious people is how God could be real with so many tragedies in the world. Why does God allow murder, rape, and famine to exist when he has the power to eliminate it. It doesn’t make any sense to atheists, so they want answers.
2. If God created the universe, then who created God?
This is the chicken or the egg question but for religion. If God is the most powerful being in the universe and he created it, who created God? Has he just always existed? Did he suddenly spawn into existence out of nothing? Was there a God before him that created the God people follow today, and if so, who created that God? It’s an endless cycle that doesn’t seem to have an answer that makes sense to atheists.
3. Is there proof of God beyond blind faith?
The thing that confuses atheists more than anything is religious people seemingly believe in God for no reason beyond blind faith. They learned to believe in God as kids and continue to believe in him to this day. So, atheists want to know what gives religious people so much faith in his existence.
4. Why doesn’t God show himself?
Another question atheists have is why God doesn’t show himself. If he’s an all-powerful being, why hasn’t he shown himself to prove his existence to us mortals? Surely, it would make people on Earth act better if they knew an afterlife awaited them. So, why not show yourself?
5. With so many different religions worldwide, how are so sure yours is the right one?
There are hundreds of religions throughout the world. Many are variations of each other, but some are hugely different. So, why are religious people so confident that they’re the ones that have it right? Why is a catholic so confident their belief system is right and not a Hindu, a Muslim, or even a biking from 1000 years ago that believed in Odin and Thor?
6. Do you think morality can exist without religion?
Many religious people point to the doctrines of their religion as the reason they act morally. So, do religious people think everyone would act cruelly without religion? Do they think every religious person is good and every atheist is bad?
7. Why do you ignore the contradictions in your holy text?
Anyone who has read a holy text understands that they’re all filled with contradictions. That isn’t an opinion or wild speculation, it’s a fact. Yet so many religious people ignore the contradictions in their holy texts. Atheists want to know why.
8. Do you believe everything in your holy text?
This question goes hand in hand with the previous, do religious people believe everything in their holy text? Not all religious people do, because if they did, there wouldn’t be a New Testament. That said, how do religious people pick and choose which things to believe in from their holy text? Additionally, if they’re picking and choosing, why should they believe in anything in it at all?
9. Do you support all the wars fought in the name of religion?
Religion was the chief cause of a huge number of wars over the years. The Crusades are probably the most famous set of holy wars. War caused by religion is a contradiction because most have a doctrine that states that killing is evil. So, atheists want to know how religious people can justify all the wars fought in the name of their religion.
10. Does your belief in an afterlife affect the way you behave in this life?
Most religious people believe in an afterlife or reincarnation. They believe that how they act in this life impacts their life in the next. So, do religious people let their belief in an afterlife influence how they live their lives? It makes sense that it would, but with God being all-knowing, wouldn’t he know that you’re only acting good because you want to go to heaven? Does that truly make you a good person if you need an incentive not to do bad things?
11. What makes you so sure that there’s only one God?
Most believers take their religious text as absolute truth. Atheists often point to the unknowable nature of an all-powerful creator. They can’t disprove the existence of a God, but they also find it hard to believe that if there’s a God, there would be just one. So, why do religious people have so much confidence that their God is the only one?
12. Do you believe in fate?
The concept of fate is present in all world religions, but it creates an interesting conversation around the purpose of life and free will. Some people take comfort in the fact that people aren’t truly in control of what happens in their lives and the world. Some believers attribute events to God’s plan. Most atheists don’t believe in fate, so they want to know if religious people believe in fate or free will. Can the two coexist?
13. Do you think atheists are bad?
Every religious person has different relationships with atheists. Some believe it’s a terrible sin to not believe in God, whereas others are more accepting of their atheist counterparts. So, atheists want to know if they think being an atheist makes them a bad person.
14. How does your faith evolve with scientific discoveries?
Religion has been used to explain things that were beyond human comprehension throughout history. Thunderstorms represented an upset God. Famine was brought upon people as punishment. However, as scientific advancements have taken place, many religious people have learned to accept them. These days, evolution is a controversial topic among many believers. So, atheists want to know how religious people’s faith evolves with science.
15. Do you ever doubt your faith?
It can’t be easy to blindly follow a religion for your entire life without your faith ever wavering. Many atheists are curious about how religious people handle moments where they question their faith. What brought them back to religion, and could anything make them stop believing?
