Atheist's Wager
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The Atheist's Wager is an atheistic response to Pascal's Wager regarding the existence of God. The wager was formulated in 1990 by Michael Martin, in his book Atheism: A Philisophical Justification, and has received some traction in religious and atheist literature since.
One formulation of the Atheist's Wager suggests that one should live a good life without religion, since Martin writes that a loving and kind god would reward good deeds, and if no gods exist, a good person will leave behind a positive legacy.[1][2] The second formulation suggests that, instead of rewarding belief as in Pascal's wager, a god may reward disbelief, in which case one would risk losing infinite happiness by believing in a god unjustly, rather than disbelieving justly. [3]
Explanation [edit]
The Wager states that if you were to analyze your options in regard to how to live your life, you would come out with the following possibilities:[1][4][5]
- You may live a good life and believe in a god, and a benevolent god exists, in which case you go to heaven: your gain is infinite.
- You may live a good life without believing in a god, and a benevolent god exists, in which case you go to heaven: your gain is infinite.
- You may live a good life and believe in a god, but no benevolent god exists, in which case you leave a positive legacy to the world; your gain is finite.
- You may live a good life without believing in a god, and no benevolent god exists, in which case you leave a positive legacy to the world; your gain is finite.
- You may live an evil life and believe in a god, and a benevolent god exists, in which case you go to hell: your loss is infinite.
- You may live an evil life without believing in a god, and a benevolent god exists, in which case you go to hell: your loss is infinite.
- You may live an evil life and believe in a god, but no benevolent god exists, in which case you leave a negative legacy to the world; your loss is finite.
- You may live an evil life without believing in a god, and no benevolent god exists, in which case you leave a negative legacy to the world; your loss is finite.
The following table shows the values assigned to each possible outcome:
| Belief in god (B) | No belief in god (¬B) | |
|---|---|---|
| Good life (L) | +∞ (heaven) | +∞ (heaven) |
| Evil life (¬L) | -∞ (hell) | -∞ (hell) |
| Belief in god (B) | No belief in god (¬B) | |
|---|---|---|
| Good life (L) | +X (positive legacy) | +X (positive legacy) |
| Evil life (¬L) | -X (negative legacy) | -X (negative legacy) |
Given these values, Martin argues that the option to live a good life clearly dominates the option of living an evil life, regardless of belief in a god.
References [edit]
- ^ a b Martin, Michael (1990). Atheism: A Philosophical Justification. Temple University Press. pp. 232–238.
- ^ Alvin F Berry. So What If...the God of the Bible Exists...Does It Really Matter at the End .... Dog Ear Publishing. p. 10. ISBN 9781457500206. Retrieved January 26 2013.
- ^ Philip A Stahl. Atheism: A Beginner's Handbook: All You Wanted to Know About Atheism and Why. ISBN 9780595427376.
- ^ "The Atheists Wager". Retrieved January 26 2013.
- ^ Pascal's Wager as an Argument for Not Believing in God. Retrieved January 26 2013.
