“I do all the work and you get all the credit”

In one of my classes this past semester we had an interesting discussion and survey about religious beliefs of nursing students in my class. Each student had to create a nursing related survey and report their findings and one student chose this topic.

She reported that 75% of the students believe in God and 25% are atheist. She also reported that 96% of students believe that they are going to heaven if they died at the time of the survey. Many Christians posted hateful comments along the lines of “how can atheists believe that they will go to heaven if they don’t believe in God?” Acting as though atheists are brainless, when in fact, it is quite contrary.

You see, I had to point out that the study results of this student were completely invalid. This was a project for evidence-based research and you would like to think that students on my college level are more intelligent than this. So, what was the error within the study?

Question one: Do you believe in God? Yes/No

Question two: Have you accepted Jesus as your Lord and Savior? Yes/No

Question three: If you do not believe in God, then what do you believe? Fill-in-the Blank

Question four: If you died today, where would you go? Heaven/Hell

I had to point out multiple issues. First, the survey does not take into account any religion other than the creator’s religious ideas. Second, after 25% of students had answered that they do not believe in God in question one, they are only given two options in question four, including only heaven or hell. No atheist is going to say that they are going to hell because to not believe in a god, means not to believe in heaven or hell as well.  For the survey to be valid, it should have included an option of “rot in the ground” for question number four.

Instead of other students catching this error, they chose to attack atheists for answering that they are going to heaven. But this was not the end to the discussion on the matter.

Many students responded in discussion posts that, “I know God is real, because I couldn’t make it through nursing school without him.” I wanted to respond so badly in two different aspects. (1) Well then God deserves your degree, not you. (2) How is it that us atheists make through nursing school just fine, as well? In fact, the other honors nursing student’s I talk to are atheists.

I would like to think that spending time studying and working hard effects the outcome of nursing students, but if you want to give all credit to some invisible man in the sky that’s your choice. No other instance is there one man that receives so much credit for what other people or nature does themselves.

I must admit, that when asked what I believe as an alternative to god, I responded I believe in Evidence-Based Practice, which we had been using all semester. You see, for medical protocols to be put in place, there must be evidence-based research for it to be valid. Knowledge and scientific research has only refuted any Biblical study, never confirmed.  That’s why nut-job churches only want their children homeschooled and to learn very little science, because this knowledge abolishes any idea of creationism. It keeps the people incapable of critical thinking and understanding realism.

I read recently that Justin Beiber stated that his mother never shared Santa Clause with him, because she feared that if he believed in Santa and found out it was a lie, then he would probably not believe in Jesus. Well, let’s break this down… Why would he not believe in Jesus? Because there is no more evidence for Jesus or the stories of the Bible, than Santa Clause. In the realistic world, Jesus being the son of God is no more valid than the existence of Santa Clause.

I mean, a book about talking snakes and donkeys, penguins sharing boats with desert animals, parting waters, walking on water, turning water into wine, a man dying and coming back to life, etc… is just as absurd as a book about a fat man in a red suit that can travel the earth in one night.

My wife was joking about a zombie apocalypse the other day, and I had to catch myself from saying, “Anyone would be stupid for thinking that zombies could actually exist.” Then it occurred to me, 90% of Americans believe that a man could raise himself from the dead. And honestly, 90% of Americans are stupid.

Also, this girl later tried to post a Salvation tract and information about accepting Jesus for the nursing students who are atheist, but here’s the kicker… ON A EVIDENCE BASED RESEARCH CLASS FORUM!

I remember when I started the nursing program, I had a student say to me that “if you pray before the test, you’ll do fine” in my pathophysiology test and she was sincere in this response. And guess what, she failed out.

What an excuse for lazy people who want something but don’t want to put the time and effort into achieving it. I want money, but don’t wanna work for it… so I’ll “pray” for it. I want my marriage to get better, but I don’t wanna change my attitude… I’ll “seek god.” You know, people can get off their ass and make changes and work hard towards something, or just hope that god or some magical form will grant it. Which is the lazy way? Which is the American way?