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Has The United States Had Any Atheist Presidents?

Has The United States Had Any Atheist Presidents?

Last updated on: August 29, 2016 at 5:23 pm by Jack Wellman

Has The United States Had Any Atheist Presidents? 2016-08-29T17:23:35-05:00 Jack Wellman

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Has the United States ever had an atheist as president?

Atheists

Atheists are certain that God doesn’t exist, but when they categorically state there is no God, they are making an absolute claim to be “all-knowing” on this subject, however think about this; Thomas Edison estimated the summation of all of mankind’s knowledge to be only about one millionth of one percent of all that there is to know, so our “knowing” all things with any absolute certainty has an infinitely high margin for error, as to be almost incalculable. How is it that someone can state as a fact that there is no God? Especially given the fact that we are so finite creatures compared to the entire expanse of universe? You might conveniently say, “The burden of proof is on you,” but that is avoiding the ultimate question; “How can one prove that God doesn’t exist?” The truth is, they cannot! Of course, they’ll bring out the same old tired arguments, like “How can you prove that pink unicorns don’t exist?” We can’t, and neither can they, but neither can they prove that God doesn’t exist!

Can Atheists Truly Exist?

St. Thomas Aquinas wrote, “The sciences in principle cannot eliminate God, because God is not some phenomena in the world.” Stephen Jay Gould, who is an agnostic in regards to the question of God’s existence said “that science and religion are not in conflict and do not overlap.” [1] Even “Darwin’s Bulldog,” Thomas Henry Huxley said that agnosticism is the only honorable position because we really cannot know, but that’s the nature of science (meaning “knowledge”) because we’re always learning. Often, they learn that they were wrong! Naturally, none of us know a “gnat’s eyelash” of all that there is to know either, so for me to state something as fact but not be able to prove it, makes me stand on very shaky ground. That’s why we shouldn’t state such absolutes as “God doesn’t exist,” especially because it’s impossible to prove. If someone came up to you and told you that they are 100% positive about something and then you asked them, “Why do you say that,” meaning, what’s your reason to believe that? Without evidence, there can be certainty. Doesn’t this beg the question: “Does the atheist actually exist?” because they have no evidence to show for it. It’s easier to prove that atheists don’t exist than for them to prove that God doesn’t. The lack of evidence creates a roaring silence. C.S. Lewis said he was “met at every turn by the serene truth of God’s existence.” For Lewis, there can be no such thing as an atheist, because the atheist, by definition, cannot prove their position, therefore atheists do not really exist at all. At best, they are agnostic, who believe in a god, but not necessarily in a personal god.

Knowledge

Evolutionist Richard Lewontin wrote in The New York Review (January, 1997, P. 3) that “We take the side of science in spite of the patent absurdity of some of its constructs, in spite of the failure to fulfill many of its extravagant promises of health and life, in spite of the tolerance of the scientific community for unsubstantiated just-so-stories, because we have a prior commitment, a commitment to materialism. It is not that the methods and institutions of science somehow compel us to accept a material explanation of the phenomenal world, but, on the contrary, that we are forced by our “a priori” adherence to material causes to create an apparatus of investigation and a set of concepts that produce material explanations, no matter how mystifying to the uninitiated.” What Lewontin was saying was that evolutionists have a preconceived notion about there being a god because they can’t put Him to the test, so now, most of the institutions today (public school to graduate school) almost seen to have an axe to grind against creation (and the Creator). It is in the best interests of science to discover their errors, and science is replete with scientific conclusions turn out to be dead wrong and in some cases, the polar opposite. I enter old science textbooks as the first line of evidence of just how wrong science can be, and humans for that matter.

No Excuse

The Apostle Paul wrote that “the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plain to them, because God has shown it to them” (Rom 1:18-19). God has shown it to them, not only in creation (Psalm 19:1-2), but in the human conscience. The creation clearly reveals “his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse” (Rom 1:20), and “Claiming to be wise, they became fools” (Rom 1:22) and “exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator” (Rom 1:25). God tells the unsaved person that it is “because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed” (Rom 2:5). At the time of His appearing or after death, “He will render to each one according to his works” (Rom 2:6), “but for those who are self-seeking and do not obey the truth, but obey unrighteousness, there will be wrath and fury” (Rom 2:8).

Were there atheist Presidents?

Most U.S. presidents were known to be Christian or Catholic (one) and acknowledged it publically, but few presidents ever professed to be an atheist that I know of. Since 70% of the nation still professes to be Christian in America [2], most presidents would never state publically that they didn’t believe in God, even today. Honestly, there were some who may have not believed in a personal God, a few we believe held a deist’s view where God was “hands off” in His creation, and most named the name of God and even acknowledged Jesus Christ, so the fact is that the vast majority of U.S. presidents have been professing Christians, not only in the first century or so, but in recent history too. To be sure, none of us can say with assurance whether someone is a Christian or not just by their professing it, because in the end, only God can know (1 Sam 16:7). Out of all of the U.S. presidents that America’s had, have there been atheists? It’s possible, but clearly the vast majority has believed. The question is, do you?

Conclusion

God is no respecter of persons, but that doesn’t mean God won’t hold some more accountable than others. God will require it of those in position of authority, and more so if they’ve lived a life of corruption and kickbacks. God has the final say, as it says, “we will all stand before the judgment seat of God” (Rom 14:10b) and “each of us will give an account of himself to God” (Rom 14:12). Better to settle your account with God today than before judgment comes. As a result, you’ll have it paid in full by trusting in Christ. Then, you’ll only be judged for your works, whether you did them for your own interests (hay, wood, stubble), or for the glory of God, and didn’t shout it out on the rooftop (gold, silver, gems). As for those who reject Jesus, He Himself says to those, “whoever does not obey the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God remains on him” (John 3:36b).

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.

1. Gould, Stephen J. (1998). Leonardo’s Mountain of Clams and the Diet of Worms. Jonathan Cape. p. 274. ISBN 0-224-05043-5.

2. America’s Changing Religious Landscape”. Pew Research Center: Religion & Public Life. May 12, 2015.

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