by jimwalton » Mon Jul 27, 2020 2:01 pm
Absence of evidence doesn't prove anything. When we look at the biblical account, we have many documents and artifacts of positive evidence that verify the biblical story. It also turns out that no evidence has ever been uncovered that disproves the biblical story. In this case we have positive evidence of substantiation and a lack of negative evidence for refutation. Therefore, with the evidence in hand, I can say that there is, as far as I know, nothing in the Bible that is not true.
No case is made on negative evidence, but if you have positive evidence that disproves the Bible, I would be happy to discuss it with you.
> I claim that there is a teapot orbiting the sun between Earth and Mars. I have found no evidence to prove this to be untrue.
In such a case, the burden of proof would be on your shoulders to prove your claim. The fact that you have found no evidence to prove it untrue is meaningless. What you must substantiate is the evidence that supports your claim that there is a teapot orbiting the sun between Earth and Mars.
Since your silly example is based on unsubstantiatable negative criteria, it's logically unsubstantiatable as well. But if you want to talk about the positive corroborations of the biblical record, there are hundreds of items that can be on the list. But there are zero items to substantiate a teapot orbiting the sun between Earth and Mars. That's the difference.
What the OP asked is, "Is there anything in the Bible that is not true?" I addressed the question from the same negative vantage point as his query.
Absence of evidence doesn't prove anything. When we look at the biblical account, we have many documents and artifacts of positive evidence that verify the biblical story. It also turns out that no evidence has ever been uncovered that disproves the biblical story. In this case we have positive evidence of substantiation and a lack of negative evidence for refutation. Therefore, with the evidence in hand, I can say that there is, as far as I know, nothing in the Bible that is not true.
No case is made on negative evidence, but if you have positive evidence that disproves the Bible, I would be happy to discuss it with you.
> I claim that there is a teapot orbiting the sun between Earth and Mars. I have found no evidence to prove this to be untrue.
In such a case, the burden of proof would be on your shoulders to prove your claim. The fact that you have found no evidence to prove it untrue is meaningless. What you must substantiate is the evidence that supports your claim that there is a teapot orbiting the sun between Earth and Mars.
Since your silly example is based on unsubstantiatable negative criteria, it's logically unsubstantiatable as well. But if you want to talk about the positive corroborations of the biblical record, there are hundreds of items that can be on the list. But there are zero items to substantiate a teapot orbiting the sun between Earth and Mars. That's the difference.
What the OP asked is, "Is there anything in the Bible that is not true?" I addressed the question from the same negative vantage point as his query.