IQ and beliefs

[N1ghtBreak3r]

Just found this interesting.

http://www.examiner.com/article/of-10-h ... ts_article" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[ccgr]

Refreshing article, thanks for sharing!

[Wildebear]

Thanks for posting it here. Not surprised though, smarter people tend to believe in a higher power. Einstein is a prime example.

[Lazarus]

Is it smart to imply that people who don't hold to your belief system are less intelligent?

I don't think so.

[ccgr]

not saying that, but good to know there are some intellectual Christians out there

[Bruce_Campbell]

not saying that

*cough*

Not surprised though, smarter people tend to believe in a higher power.

IJS. Also, the Einstein thing is debatable. He certainly wasn't an evangelical Christian, whatever the case.

There are a lot of smart Christians out there. I can think of quite a few on this very site who are quite a bit smarter than I am. But yeah, I do take issue with the article, in that it calls out atheists for using arguments from authority (and he's not completely wrong here, many atheists are guilty of this) and then goes on to make an argument from authority. It's almost like the author is saying, "Hey, if you're going to use a logical fallacy, then I'm going to do the same exact thing, and somehow that means I win."

[Sstavix]

IJS. Also, the Einstein thing is debatable. He certainly wasn't an evangelical Christian, whatever the case.

Quite correct. If he were placed in any mainstream religion, it would probably be Judaism simply by default, although it seems he wasn't really practicing. Still he did believe there was something out there, he just wasn't entirely sure what.

When I first saw the topic (before I read the article) I thought about Thomas Jefferson, too. Although he wasn't a Christian, he wasn't an atheist, either. He was a deist, and believed there was a higher power out there, but didn't associate himself with any active religion at the time.

So high intelligence does seem to run the gamut throughout a variety of spiritual beliefs. If someone is trying to associate religious faith with IQ, there may be an agenda they're trying to support.

[ccgr]

Do I treat non-believers any differently? I certainly don't talk down to them. On the contrary as a Christian I have to put up with a lot. Our savior is constantly mocked and His name often disgraced. Kinda funny how Christians are perceived as pushovers and often times idiots, I mean when was the last time there was a decent debate (Dawkins Vs. Lennox comes to mind for me). The past ones I have seen have been pathetic. I certainly don't condone going against atheists on their terms but it doesn't mean we're all brain dead morons. I don't treat the Bible as a science book, but I don't consider it a bunch of fables either. So when I see an article abut successful people that happen to be Christian (or deists), I think it's cool. I read the biographies and didn't pay much attention to the rhetoric.

[storm]

i knew a pastor who said that he never parked by a bar or place that sold alcohol he never went in them quite often he was buying something in a near by store but he never wanted to give anyone the chance to even think he might be in one
we are so often judged by what people see in us and how we live out our lives and they judge God and His living word by us too
are you living a life right now that shows God's love and mercy ? i know all to often i fail at this

[ArchAngel]

I have no idea. People who boast about their I.Q. are losers.

No comment on intelligence in relation to beliefs; just a jab at the IQ system. It's a massively poor indicator of intelligence. The only real test is provides is that it weeds out the people who haven't yet realized that intelligence cannot be quantified by a single number.

Not even to mention how badly the calculations that go into it are.