My Attitude About Religious People

[David Sklansky]

I have no problem with people who WANT their religious beliefs to be true. I have no problem with people who FERVENTLY HOPE their religious beliefs to be true. I have no problem with people who SOMEHOW FEEL STRONGLY that they are true. I have no problem with people who think life is meaningless and morals are not existent without God. (I may not agree, but I realize the arguments against that are not clear cut.)

My problem is with those who think that their religious beliefs should appear highly reaonable to an objective intelligent observer. Not all religious people believe that. But if their religious beliefs include a belief you need to be a strong believer or you are in trouble, they run into a problem. The adherents of those religions, the ones that require a strong belief, can't admit that objective observers should not find their religion reaonable because that forces them to admit that objective observers will be punished by God. And thay don't want to make that admission.