You may have read this before. I just thought it might create a diversion easing the tension that must underly the vilification of Christians.

A University professor … challenged his students with this question. "Did God create everything that exists?"

A student bravely replied, "Yes he did!"

"God created everything?" The professor asked.

"Yes sir, he certainly did," the student replied.

The professor answered, "If God created everything; then God created evil.

And, since evil exists, and according to the principle that our works define who we are, then we can assume God is evil."

The student became quiet and did not respond to the professor's hypothetical definition…The professor, quite pleased with himself, boasted to the students that he had proven once more that the faith in God was a myth.

Another student raised his hand and said, "May I ask you a question, Professor?" "Of course", replied the professor.

The student stood up and asked, "Professor does cold exist?"

"What kind of question is this? Of course it exists. Have you never been cold?"

The other students snickered at the young man's question.

The young man replied, "In fact sir, cold does not exist. According to the laws of physics, what we consider cold is in reality the absence of heat.

Everybody or object is susceptible to study when it has or transmits energy, and heat’s what makes a body or matter have or transmit energy. Absolute zero (-460 F) is the total absence of heat; and all matter becomes inert and incapable of reaction at that temperature. Cold does not exist. We’ve created this word to describe how we feel if we have no heat." The student continued, "Professor, does darkness exist?"

The professor responded, "Of course it does."

The student replied, "Once again you’re wrong sir, darkness doesn’t exist either. Darkness is in reality the absence of light. Light we can study, but not darkness. In fact, we can use Newton's prism to break white light into many colors and study the various wavelengths of each color. You cannot measure darkness.

A simple ray of light can break into a world of darkness and illuminate it. How can you know how dark a certain space is? You measure the amount of light present. Isn't this correct? Darkness is a term used by man to describe what happens when there's no light present."

The young man asked the professor, "Sir, does evil exist?"

Professor: "Of course, as I have already said. We see it everyday. It's in the daily examples of man's inhumanity to man. It is in the multitude of crime and violence everywhere in the world. These manifestations are nothing else but evil.

Student: "Evil does not exist, sir, or at least it does not exist unto itself. Evil is simply the absence of God. It is just like darkness and cold, a word that man has created to describe the absence of God. God did not create evil. Evil is the result of what happens when man does not have God's love present in his heart. It's like the cold that comes when there is no heat, or the darkness that comes when there is no light."

The professor sat down.

The young man's name -- Albert Einstein

Ybgirp

Isn’t a combination of childhood indoctrination combined with a lack of rational thinking about the subject the surest way to guarantee a lack of adult faith? Such people are at the mercy of any emotional attack on their religion and irreversibly bitter about the indoctrination.

Re proof: Surely a man healing the sick and coming back to life could constitute proof. (cf. man under the bridge) If God performed miracles at the whim of atheists like a dog He wouldn’t be omnipotent would He?

Alchemist

In case you believe that hurtful remark, cf. attempting a cruel assault on feelings, let’s explore that further. The top 3 indicators of psychopathy, Juvenile Delinquency , Promiscuous Sexual Behaviour, and Early Behavioural problems, are hardly characteristic of Christians. Psychopaths have no concern for others.
Christians try to save people from eternal damnation and believe we should treat people as we want to be treated.

What is your point? Is it that gods are like darkness and cold... they cannot be studied because they don't exist?
Are you suggesting that what people think of as gods are in fact the absence of reason, and therefore not worth thinking about?
Sounds logical.

mjpb, from what I've read on the topic Albert Einstein struggled in his later years because the work that was developed out of his earlier breakthough work was showing things he was unwilling to believe. He worked to prove what followed his earlier work wrong and failed.

His "god does not play dice" (or something to that effect) comment does not fit the realities of the observed universe, Einstein's own work laid the foundations for proving the role that chance does play in the universe.

Einstein may be one of the most prominent examples of a brilliant mind hampered by a wrong belief that he was unwilling or unable to put aside when reality intervened.

Evil is not the presence (or absence) of God, there is no god whose followers have been immune from doing evil, nor have those of us who do not follow god.

R0bert

Unfortunately, mjpb, a study reported in a recent issue of the Journal of Religion and Society, by evolutionary scientist Gregory S. Paul, looking at the correlation between levels of "popular religiosity" and various "quantifiable societal health" indicators in 18 prosperous democracies, including the United States, showed without doubt the the more 'religious' the country, the higher the levels of social dysfunction in all areas from murder to abortion, prostitution to sexual diseases, child and sexual abuse to divorce and theft... and the USA -- the country with the highest degree of religiosity, scores the worst on all counts. So much for the beneficial effects of religion.

Ybgirp

I aimed to make 3 points. The two going out to you related to childhood indoctrination and proof. I also let the Alchemist know that it is delusional to assume Christians are psychopaths. You appear to be referring to my diversion. Is that your diversion? Your joke is a joke so I presume you want laughter not analysis.

Robert

Re: example
Either that or most of us just aren’t smart enough to “get it”.

Ybgirp

I’m sure citing the study that will become the anthem of the atheists and it will be referred to many more times in mass media.