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Vaguer Than Vague

Posted on September 15th, 2010 by Staks

I recently had a conversation with a Christian whose concept of God is so vague that he couldn’t define it. Now, I often talk about how Christianity has two main God concepts, the first being the character of God as portrayed in the Bible and the second being some sort of vague higher power concept. This third concept however, is vaguer than vague.

When I talked about the Vague Higher Power concept of God, I usually use terms such as all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-loving. These are admittedly vague concepts hence my phrase “Vague Higher Power Entity.” Nonetheless, my Christian friend saw this as too restricting of a definition.

So how can one argue against a concept so vague that we can’t even quantify it at all with words? I asked him to define what he means by God and he couldn’t even answer. He asserts a proposition which has no substance at all by his own admission.

I fear that this might become the new tactic of Christian apologetics. It views even Anselm’s God as too restrictive because the greatest conceivable being would be one which could not even be conceived by flawed humans. So if we can’t even conceive of a deity how can anyone argue against a being which cannot even be thought of or described in any way?

Of course this is nonsense and we need to insist that if a Christian is going to introduce a proposition that some super vague being exists that they at least need to define that proposition. Otherwise there is nothing to discuss. We should also call them out when they make the leap from a vague or super vague higher power concept to the more particular character of God has he is portrayed in the Bible. That’s bullshit and it is even intellectually dishonest.