This chapter we learned about challenges of faith from science, dehumanization, and atheism. Science and Faith often conflict with each other, especially with advances in technology and the use of the scientific method. We are constantly hit with advertising and other societal pressures, which dehumanize us and challenge our faith. Atheism challenges our faith in several ways; examples are Thomas Hobbes and Friederich Nietzsche. Hobbes was a practical nihilist who believed that life had no purpose and that we aren’t even free to make our own choices. Nietzsche was a positive nihilist who believed that "God is dead." All these things can become serious detriments to our faith if we let them.

There are two types of atheism: positive atheism and practical atheism. Positive atheists make a deliberate and conscious decision that God does not exist. They consider it an essential part of who they are, as a person who has Faith in God does. Generally, positive atheists view religion as a hindrance to human progress. Practical atheists are people who claim to be people of faith and call themselves "Catholic" or "Muslim" or whatever church they belong to, but they do not live out their faith. They simply wear it on the outside, but that’s as deep as it goes. These are called practical atheists because they might as well be atheists since they do not let their faith have a role in their lives.

There are three general responses to the God question: does God exist? They are yes, no, I don’t know, and I don’t care. Yes, known as Theism, No, know as Atheism, and I don’t know, known as Agnosticism, are all valid answers. For each one, you have to actively make a choice and that choice becomes part of your life and who you are. "I don’t care," known as indifference, is not a valid answer. It requires no choice other than to be lazy or scared.

Although it seems that science disproves the existence of God sometimes, there are flaws in the scientific method. First, science presupposes the uniformity of nature. We often hear the term "laws of nature." These are not actually laws but inductions, which can be disproven with only a single counterexample. We have a very limited experience of the universe and who are we to say that something does something every single time everywhere? For all we know, the next time we jump up, we might not come back down. The second flaw is the science emphasizes empirical knowledge. It investigates the material world, but God is beyond this world. God is not part of this physical world, but simply works through it. And the third flaw is that the scientific method does not give us certainty. This goes along with the first. It is always possible for more than hypothesis to be correct or even though we accurately predict what will happen, it does not mean that is really what happens.

Am I a practical atheist? What do I do to live out my faith and have it be an essential part of my life?

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I am going to look more carefully at advertising and societal pressures and see what they are really doing to me. Are they challenging my faith or hurting my relationship with God? Am I buying into these values? What can I do to prevent this from happening?