It seems that every time there is a debate over the existence of god, or the need for religion, theists seem to bring up the same (refuted) points over and over. I was thinking there must be some collection of arguments and rebuttals somewhere on the net? Could someone be kind enough to direct me to such a place?
I'm no expert, but it seems to me that people often have a need to "prove" the existence of God because: 1)They lack faith and don't realize/can't accept that(the bible states that you go "...by faith and not by sight...", and there are several other passages of similar nature). 2)Life and death can be scarey, uncertain, and unfair from time to time; Having someone or something you feel you can appeal to when things get like that can make things easier to accept or deal with. 3)People often need to feel validated in their existence, values, and actions; the religion/God they choose often reflects what they hold to be true or wish to be true. 4)Do you really wish to believe that you first ancestor was a piece of irradiated primordial slime that oozed out of the water, changed into something that slithered up a tree, changed into a barely sentient primate, and then finally changed into something like yourself? Many people have trouble just coming to terms with the existence of self and others, evolution's too much for them. It's much easier for them to believe some hyper-intelligent, hyper-powerful being popped into existence just because and created everything just because.
There are probably other things I could say on this, but I'd rather get some sleep now.