What is Reddit's opinion of The Outsider Test for Faith: How to Know Which Religion Is True?

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You're starting to get it. You walked right past the real point.

I would suggest a book to you that you may find interesting.

Since you seem to like to compare religions for insight, this shows a method on how to do so.

> I'll be brutally honest and please don't kick me out of the sub for sounding like a theist, but I had a couple of interesting experiences as well.

Why on Earth would a theist be kicked out a sub dedicated to debating atheists? The whole point is for theists to challenge atheists. There wouldn't be much content here if theists were banned, lol.

As to your actual point about experiences, however, how do you know what you experienced was actually caused by your beliefs? Even if we reject physical explanations, how do you know what you experienced isn't evidence of Christianity or Islam or Buddhism instead?

After all, it's certainly true that Christians, Muslims, and Buddhists have religious experiences and claim that those experiences are evidence for their own religion. It seems rather convenient that the experiences which appear to confirm your religious views also happen to correspond with the religious views you were taught as a child, especially when people of other religions (also taught the same as child for their religion) claim the exact same thing.

While I'm not denying that you had experiences, it may be worth asking yourself why you don't find a Christian's experience of God convincing evidence for the truth of Christianity. And if you are wondering how an atheist views your own claims about religious experience, well, it's probably very similar to how you would view the Christian's experience...interesting, but it probably wasn't actually an experience of something supernatural that conforms to their belief system, because it's more likely another truth explains the experience.

Something to think about. This logic is based loosely on Loftus' Outsider Test for Faith, which may be worth checking out if you are curious about the deeper philosophical argument behind it.

Great response.

It calls to mind <em>The Outsider Test for Faith: How to Know Which Religion Is True</em>. When you look at your own faith as critically as you look at other faiths, you find that it doesn't stand up to the scrutiny without a lot of special pleading and motivated reasoning.

Hey look, the outsider test of faith.

Here's some possible support:

> Despite how certainty feels, it is neither a conscious choice nor even a thought process. Certainty and similar states of "knowing what we know" arise out of involuntary brain mechanisms, that, like love or anger, function independently of reason. (On Being Certain: Believing You Are Right Even When You're Not, xi)

I found that in John Loftus 2013 The Outsider Test for Faith.

John Loftus's The Outsider Test for Faith is critical for this idea.

Classic example of an Outsider Test for FaithOutsider Test for Faith.

He should read this

Here's some info you might find useful. Good luck. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/1616147377/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taft_p1_i7

Here's some info you might find useful. Good luck. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/1616147377/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_hsch_vapi_taft_p1_i7

One excellent source of clarity is John W. Loftus' The Outsider Test for Faith. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/1616147377/ref=dbs_a_def_rwt_bibl_vppi_i4

There is a very good book which I recommend. What you are briefly outlining is the very attitude we should have while dealing with faiths.

https://www.amazon.com/Outsider-Test-Faith-Which-Religion/dp/1616147377

https://www.amazon.com/Outsider-Test-Faith-Which-Religion/dp/1616147377

The Outsider Test for Faith by John Loftus.

The Mormon history books and the CES letter probably won't do anything; it's too easy to apologize them away. Loftus' book will ~~force~~ prompt your friend to consider how they know that Mormonism is true.

edit: It's about the epistemology of any faith and religious testimony. The only way your friend can refute it is through special pleading:

>a fallacy in which a person applies standards, principles, rules, etc. to others while taking herself (or those she has a special interest in) to be exempt, without providing adequate justification for the exemption.

On the topic of religion in general, which is important to understanding Mormonism as much as any other religion, a few books would help:

The Outsider Test for Faith - John Loftus

What You Don't Know About Religion (but should) - Ryan Cragun (he is an exmormon, and this adds to the interest for those of Mormon background)

The Varieties of Religious Experience - William James (a classic)

I also have a somewhat short summary where I examine the claims of the Church:

Examining Church Claims

Good luck!