The atheist line

שו”ת › Category: faith › The atheist line

asked 9 months ago

Hello Rabbi Michael
For a while now, I’ve been watching episodes of the atheist line, and it seems like there’s simply no logical reason to believe. It seems like in every debate there, the atheists always win, and refute all the arguments for the existence of God, and show why religion in general and Judaism in particular is a terrible and horrible thing.
I would appreciate your feedback on the program in general and my question in particular.
thanks

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מיכי Staff answered 9 months ago

I didn’t listen, so I can’t express an opinion on the plan. I can say that this plan is not fair, and so when they invited me to come, I didn’t agree unless it was done in an equitable way. Think about the situation as they stage it. Two skilled presenters, whose main occupation is to deal with one speaker who is just a random person from the ordinary. They sit in front of the screen and the viewer sees only them, and that unfortunate person tries to talk on the phone. The one who is visible to the viewers and the one who controls the conversation are, of course, the atheist duo. It is no wonder that a one-sided picture emerges. For comparison, you can get an impression from two debates I had with one of the moderators there (Aviv Franco), which were conducted in a more equal manner. I wonder if you think the conclusion is similar there too. Search here on the site or on YouTube.

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שלום replied 9 months ago

Thank you very much!

אחד שצפה replied 9 months ago

"Which were conducted in a more equal manner", is there a hint here that the editing in both debates was not completely equal?

מיכי Staff replied 9 months ago

not

דוד ש. replied 9 months ago

I actually got a different impression from the atheist line. They often don't bother to understand the argument the caller is trying to make, they technically overpower him because he is connected shakily over the phone, and laugh at the claim that they didn't understand.
For those who know a little about philosophical discussions, you can see that they often disdain well-known and weighty philosophical claims, in a way that somewhat presents them as ignorant. In general, the style is very demagogic and they don't give weight and respect to the claims but rather present a straw man for the claim and attack it demagogically (it does depend a bit on who is guesting in that episode). Just a program for fools.. Watch Alex O'Connor, for example, and you will see that it is actually possible to be an intelligent atheist who treats arguments with respect. The atheist line is the Amnon Yitzhak of atheists, he also always wins over the infidels.

זאב replied 9 months ago

Hello,
In my opinion, in general, it is a bad idea to use debates to examine a topic and form an opinion on it, because rhetorical skill and the art of argument are the main influences on the viewer's impression, and not the claims themselves. A correct claim can be presented poorly or a false claim can be presented well.

Personally, I try to focus on written things, and even in them – To neutralize the influence of writing ability, I read several different writers from each side, and summarize for myself the different claims and a clear explanation of what the point of the argument is, and thus can form an objective opinion (as much as possible).