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Debate Info

25
36
Jesus Christ Ayn Rand
Debate Score:61
Arguments:46
Total Votes:66
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 Jesus Christ (21)
 
 Ayn Rand (25)

Debate Creator

Thejackster(518) pic



Conservative Christians: closer to who? Jesus or Ayn Rand?

Many Conservative christians believe that they are standing up for biblical principles, however theyre constant attacks against social programs and financial safety nets seem to contradict what Jesus spoke about. 

Jesus Christ

Side Score: 25
VS.

Ayn Rand

Side Score: 36
3 points

They are more closer to Jesus because He is God. Why would they want to be closer to Ayn Rand?

Side: Jesus Christ
Cartman(18192) Disputed
3 points

In actions, not in who you admire.

Side: Ayn Rand
Srom(12206) Disputed
1 point

They would follow Jesus's actions rather then someone who is human and isn't perfect.

Side: Jesus Christ

Jesus: Encouraged charity, pacifism, to love thy fellow man, and for rich people to give up all their wealth to the poor

Rand: Encouraged greed, coercion, objectivism, and considered poor people leeches who deserved to die to ease society of a burden

Which would most likely be the rhetoric to come from a Right wing Christians mouth?

Side: Ayn Rand
1 point

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Yeah, they're a lot closer to Jesus than to Ayn Rand...

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Side: Jesus Christ
1 point

I would argue they are closer in practice to Christ. Conservative Christians give more than secular people across the board, volunteer time, money even blood. This fact holds true even when removing the Church tithe (donation). This giving is personal and private and is much more in accordance with Christ's theology than Rand's Objectivism.

Christ held that we should seek to quietly give and do so with a cheerful heart. That is far closer to the personal charity in concept that to social programs which are coercive and usually relatively boastful (given the tone and rhetoric of those who argue for them).

Rand's Objectivism held that no charity was permissible at all. That human interaction should be guided solely by mutually beneficial exchange rather than by any charitable instinct. Rand herself often criticized Christians for their giving, arguing that it was immoral to subsidize inaction.

As such, agree with the positions or not, it is clear that Conservative Christians are far, far closer to Christ than Rand.

Side: Jesus Christ
Thejackster(518) Disputed
0 points

Bill gates, atheist: donated over $26 billion to charity

Warren Buffet, atheist: gives over half his wealth to charity

Pat Robertson, conservative christian: never donated to anything in his life and utilizes slave labor in a diamond mine in africa

Side: Ayn Rand
ColumCille(9) Disputed
1 point

I'll first note the 100% absolute lack of any actual evidence supporting those claims.

Your argument itself is relatively meaningless. Who cares if two large atheists do give a lot of money (the claim about Pat Robertson is an urban legend and warrants no response)?

Christians in the US give both a higher percentage (on average) of their wealth than the non-religious and give a larger absolute amount than the non-religious (those two included).

So really the question is, which is better for the world? More people giving more or a couple of big names to throw on a debate site? I think we both know the answer to that.

Sources: http://philanthropy.com/section/How-America-Gives/621/ States with the highest religious participation give more financially.

http://www.hks.harvard.edu/saguaro/communitysurvey/index.html From this data we see that those who actively participate in religion are 25% more likely than those who are areligious to donate money and 23% more likely to donate time. Interestingly, even if you remove Church activities and tithes (which I would maintain are still socially beneficial giving) the numbers are still high, 18 and 12 percent respectively.

Side: Jesus Christ
3 points

Ayn Rand was weird... but at least we have proof of her existence.

Side: Ayn Rand
ColumCille(9) Disputed
1 point

Either party's existence is irrelevant to the question of philosophic similarity. 2 is closer to 5 than 10 is. I don't need to argue that either is physically real to make that claim.

Side: Jesus Christ
2 points

biologically we share dna with ayn rand and we share nothing with a man that possibly existed but surely was no miracle worker.

Side: Ayn Rand

Many Conservative Christians exhibit bigotry toward Gay people.

Side: Ayn Rand