CT Scan: Critical Thinking Scan
Do Christians Use Circular Reasoning?
Season 2, Episode 10
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12-Nov-2020
One objection to Christianity is that it’s circular reasoning to say, “God’s Word is true because the Bible says so.” And left at that, this argument is indeed circular. Does that mean Christianity is founded on a fallacy? The short answer is no, but let’s unpack why.
Up Next in S2: Fallacies
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Valid Conditional Arguments
Conditional arguments use “if-then” statements, like “If God created humans, then all humans have value.” The “if” is the antecedent, and the “then” is the consequent. Let’s look at 3 valid types of conditional arguments: Affirming the Antecedent, Denying the Consequent, and Hypothetical Syllogis...
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Affirming the Consequent
Subtle, persuasive, and almost always illogical, Affirming the Consequent is a flawed “if-then” argument which argues that an “if” statement is true because a “then” statement is true. Like “If your car is out of gas, it won’t start. It won’t start; therefore, it’s out of gas.” Using real evoluti...
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Denying the Antecedent
Denying the Antecedent is a type of flawed “if-then” argument which claims that a “then” statement is false because an “if” statement is also false. Like “If you have a dog, you are a pet owner. You do not have a dog. Therefore, you are not a pet owner.” Using real examples from the origins contr...
