My Dear Atheist Friends,
 

The first thing you need to understand is that you are never going to "convert" (or should that be de-convert?) a Christian by arguing with them. It just won't happen. You may think you have a perfectly formulated, air-tight, logical case demonstrating that belief in God is unjustified. You might even be right - but it doesn't matter.

You see, Christians do not think in the same way as those of us who don't share their views. Crucial to their belief is a concept known as faith. One of the earliest Christians expressed it this way:

Faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen 
(Hebrews 11:1).

Most atheists, as you know, believe that holding something as true in spite of apparent evidence to the contrary is being intellectually dishonest (I say "apparent" deliberately, so as not to offend any Christian who might happen across this letter). Yet Christians make a virtue of this very thing. If something leads them to doubt their beliefs, they are encouraged to hold fast to that belief in spite of their doubts. This is "trusting in God". Conversely, they are told that questioning God is committing the sin of pride - how dare you doubt the all-powerful, all-knowing being who created you?

Christians can (and many do) eventually decide that there are aspects of what they are required to believe that don't make sense, or are unpalatable - a large number of atheists were once committed Christians. But if they get to this point, it is far more likely as a result of introspection rather than your clever arguments. Accept that.

Secondly, you need to understand that most Christians will be of the opinion that you, as an atheist, hate their God. I suppose, by extension, some seem to think you must therefore hate them too.

I'm not sure that you can do much to alter their opinion on this. One thing you could try is to ask them if they hate (for example) Thor. They are likely to see this as a ridiculous question. Obviously they don't hate Thor, because Thor doesn't really exist. If they are observant, it might dawn on them that for exactly the same reason, you don't hate their God. It is pointless to spend your time hating something you assume to be imaginary.

Thirdly, don't lose hope for your Christian friends. The reality is, that despite enormous differences between what you believe and what they do, in the end it turns out they are almost as atheistic as you are!

There are literally thousands upon thousands of gods - not just made up names in novels, but all-powerful beings that civilisations and cultures have actually worshipped throughout the centuries:

Norse gods, Roman gods, Greek gods, Egyptian gods, Celtic, Hindu, Chinese, Japanese, Hawaiian, Polynesian, Aboriginal, Irish, Welsh, Slavic and pagan gods. Gods of peace, gods of war, gods of love.... You could fill books with their names (as a mercy, I won't).

Realise that, for all of these thousands of deities, your Christian friend believes one hundred percent that they are not real. They are all inventions of our minds - with one exception! How much of a step is it for them to go one god more? Live in the hope that one day, when they understand why they don't believe in these myriads of gods, they will understand why you don't believe in theirs.

Finally, my atheist friends, try not to get dragged into the "litany of sins throughout the ages" debate. Yes, it is really difficult to avoid this, because many Christians will try to take the line that the world is a better place because of religion, and meaningless without it. But do try not to get embroiled, if at all possible.

What will happen if you succumb is that your friend will begin by listing all the wonderful works that churches do - the caring for the poor, the abused, the sick. Then, you will feel obliged to point out the despicable acts that have been carried out in the name of religion - the crusades, the inquisitions, the terrorist atrocities, the sexual abuse of children, the ill-treatment of women. You might even point out the work of secular organisations such as Amnesty International or Doctors Without Borders to show that good works are possible without religious motives.

What both Christians and atheists need to understand is that there are good and bad people who are atheists, and there are good and bad people who claim to be Christians. Somehow, I think almost everyone on both sides does know this in their hearts, but we seldom act as if we do. There are far more important things that define us as people than our religious beliefs, or lack thereof.

You might, as a non-believer, take offence at some of the more fundamentalist Christians you know wanting to condemn you to a life hereafter of eternal torment and suffering because you don't see things their way; after all, it does seem a tad uncharitable. But the thing is, you don't believe that, so don't let it bother you.

Try to get along with your believing friends. Perhaps Voltaire put it as well as anyone:

Think for yourself and let others enjoy the privilege of doing so too.

Your friend,

Me