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→Atheism and knowledge
''See also:'' [[Atheism and knowledge]]
''See also:'' [[Atheism and knowledge]]
[[File:113320508 2b86fdb94a.jpg|thumb|201px|right|A common and legitimate criticism of the [[atheist worldview]] is that [[atheism]] is irrational.<ref>[http://carm.org/cut-atheism Atheism] by Matt Slick
*[http://www.iclnet.org/pub/resources/text/cri/cri-jrnl/web/crj0131a.html Putting the Atheist on the Defensive] by Kenneth R. Samples, Christian Research Institute Journal, Fall 1991, and Winter 1992, page 7.
*[http://www.faithstreet.com/onfaith/2012/03/21/atheists-dont-own-reason/10924 Atheists don’t own reason] by Tom Gilson
* [http://www.leaderu.com/truth/1truth11.html Why the Burden of Proof is on the Atheist] by Professor Ralph McInerny
* [http://www.leaderu.com/truth/3truth02.html Theism, Atheism, and Rationality] by [[Alvin Plantinga]]
*''[http://www.voxday.net/mart/TIA_free.pdf The Irrational atheist]: Dissecting the Unholy Trinity of Dawkins, Harris, and Hitchens by [[Vox Day]], Benbella Books, Dallas, TX, 2008'' , ISBN 1933771364; ISBN 978-1933771366
</ref> See: [[Atheism and irrationality]] ]]
[[Epistemology]] is the analysis of the nature of [[knowledge]], how we know, what we can and cannot know, and how we can know that there are things we know we cannot know. In other words, it is ''the academic term'' associated with study of how we conclude that certain things are true.<ref name="Virkler">{{cite book |last1= Virkler|first1= Henry A.|title= A Christian's Guide to Critical Thinking|url=http://books.google.no/books?id=rUgqAAAACAAJ&dq=virkler+A+Christian%27s+Guide+to+critical+thinking&hl=en&sa=X&ei=lzc9T9DDD4nN4QSy-fmACA&redir_esc=y |accessdate=16.2.2012 |type= |edition= |series= |volume= |date= |year= |month= |origyear= |publisher= Wipf and Stock Publishers|location= Eugene, OR|isbn= 1-59752-661-4|page= 3|pages=336 |at= How do we know the Truth? |chapter= 1 |quote= |ref= }}</ref>
The [[Christian apologetics|Christian apologist]] Jason Petersen wrote about [[atheism and epistemology]]:
{{cquote|The [[atheism|atheist]]’s [[Atheism and irrationality|foundation for reasoning]] must be [[Principle of induction|inductive]]. The reason being is because in the atheist worldview there is no ultimate starting point for knowledge. It has to be induced. If atheism is true, there can be no universal values - nature is all there is. But nature itself provides no benefit for knowledge. Nature itself is not knowledge. Thus, because there would be no ultimate universal standard for reasoning , there would be no starting point for knowledge. When humans came into existence in an atheist worldview, there wasn’t an embodiment of knowledge in which they could deduce the possibilities, rather, they had to build possible inferences while starting from nothing.
Most atheists agree that their foundation for reasoning is inductive. However, what a lot of people are unaware of is that inductive reasoning does NOT deal in absolutes. It only deals with what is possible or what is probable. This means that given that all of the premises in an inductive argument are true, the conclusion can still be false.
If an atheist agrees that their foundation for knowledge is inductive, then they must live consistently with that implication in order to have a self consistent foundation for knowledge. But if the foundation of knowledge is no more than induction, then it entails that one can not be ultimately certain about anything. If the atheists say that their foundation for knowledge is inductive, but yet they make absolute claims, then the atheist is contradicting their own epistemology. This is because the atheist, who uses inductive reasoning as their foundation for knowledge, has limited themselves to what they believe is probable, but they can’t make absolute claims due to the limitations of inductive reasoning.<ref>[http://answersforhope.org/portfolio_item/the-epistemological-argument-against-atheism/ The Epistemological Argument against Atheism]</ref>}}
== External links ==
== External links ==