Having grown up as an atheist (well, up to the age of 17, if you call that grown up) I have always taken an interest in atheism. However, atheists seemed to have kept their head low until recently. Best-selling books like The God Delusion written by Richard Dawkins, arguably the best-known and most aggressive anti-Christian atheist today, have certainly stirred the pot.
If I may be bold and summarise Professor Dawkins in a word, his basic claim is that religion is irrational. I admit that people come to faith in Christ in many and varied ways, and often without going through a comprehensive "rational" enquiry as such. God can touch our lives in so many ways. But somewhere along the line they do hear the gospel and do understand it and do believe in it. That is still rational, although rational argument may not have been the primary motivator.
It just so happens that my conversion story is very much a story of rational enquiry. I came to realize that philosophically, I had assumed a closed universe world view (everything in the universe can be explained by factors within itself " no outside factors), so no wonder God had no place in it. As soon as I made the rational decision to allow an open universe as a possibility, then my choices blew wide open. God is allowed to exist!
I then very carefully and rationally weighed the evidence, as best I could, for the historicity of the New Testament documents and for the resurrection of Christ. I studied the Scriptures and concluded that Christ is the way, the truth and the life.
I must admit to a rather "cool" and "rational" conversion. Over time, I came to experience Christ in a more personal way, but it took years. It takes time to recover from the prison of atheism and to experience what a personal living relationship with Christ is like. So, you can see, for me, it is hard to swallow Dawkins' view that religion and Christianity in particular is entirely "irrational". I felt I had escaped from the "irrationality" and restriction of atheism into the "real" world.
Anyway, back to Dawkins. He says, "The reason so many people don't notice atheists is that many of us are reluctant to "come out'. My dream is that this book may help people to come out".1 I do not know whether or not he is right, although my friend at Anglicare Research tells me that atheism is certainly on the rise in Australia. But are we believers ready for the conversation? Are you ready to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have? (1 Pet 3:15)
You don't have to have all the answers to give the reason for the hope you have. But if you "spare a thought for the atheists", by which I mean have a think beforehand about the questions an atheist "coming out' might ask, you will be better prepared. Just for starters, what would you say to: Can you "prove" that God exists? Why do we need God to have morals, I don't? Haven't you simply been indoctrinated into Christianity by your parents? Doesn't science clash with Christianity? Isn't faith irrational?
But a final comment: Pray for your atheist friends, for only God can change the heart. Remember, they may well be won over more by how you live and how you respond, than by your arguments. As is says in Col 4:5-6, "Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone".
1 The God Delusion (paperback edition) p27
