I am presented with an ancient book claimed to be written by a god. The book appears similar to many other ancient texts: beliefs, rituals, magic potions, incorrect science, worship and sacrifice to a god to obtain favors, fables etc:
I ask the individual is there anything in the text itself that points to a supernatural origin ? For example a math formula that could not have been known back then ? He can provide nothing.
I ask is there anything in the book that can be falsified ? For example the book writes a donkey spoke. Now in my world they do not. The man responds, nothing is falsifiable. Either your science is bogus or the donkey did talk (our god can make donkeys talk) or the text does not mean the donkey ‘really’ talked. In short nothing in the book is falsifiable.
I ask given your god exists, can I make any predictions as to what this god would write ? No. He is inscrutable and a total mystery.
I tell the individual we have nothing to discuss. I can not prove your god did not write this book. But is seems the better explanation your book appears the way it does is because it was written by ancient ignorant superstitious humans.
Suppose the individual claims his god is truthful, non deceiving and all knowing, If there are things in that book that seem inconsistent with that claim it suggests the book was not from his god. Rather, the deceptions are in there because the book was written by ancient ignorant humans.
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