In a column in the Opinion section on Thursday, Feb. 7, Kristen Daily discusses some of the reasons why she, as well as many young adults in America, are walking away from the Christian faith. As a Christian, this deeply saddened me. With that being said, I would like to comment on several things she brought up in her article.

Daily first tells her readers that as she began to question if Christianity was true or not, she came to the realization that she “was only a Christian because of circumstance and the family into which [she] was born.” This is true that many people have religious beliefs that are largely determined based on where they are born. However, as an argument, it does nothing to say whether Christianity (or anything else) is false. Saying so would be called the genetic fallacy, where one tries to cast doubt on a belief by showing how one came to hold said belief. How one came to believe something does nothing to prove or deny a belief.

The second reason given for Daily’s departure from Christianity is that “[Christians’] actions did not match their words.” While I am aware of and deeply troubled by the hypocrisy that takes place within some churches, again, I state this is not a valid argument against Christianity. This would commit the fallacy of ad hominem in which someone tries to cast doubt on a belief that a person holds by criticizing the person and not the belief they hold. Christians have never held that they believe that Christianity is true because they are such good people, and it would be wrong to do so.

If these two reasons are void in casting Christianity into the realm of improbability, then what is the positive reason for belief? The first Christians in the first century were clear that their faith was founded on the historicity of the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. Paul, one of Christianity’s main founders proclaimed, “And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.” Regardless of one’s view of the infallibility of the Bible, historians whom are Christian, Jewish, agnostic and atheist all agree that Jesus was crucified, that his tomb was later found empty by his female followers, and that his disciples had experiences in which they believed they saw Jesus raised from the dead. Christians claim that the best explanation of these facts is that he was actually raised from the dead.

It is heartbreaking to see someone walk away from faith, but it is not wise to brush off Christianity because Christians don’t live up to their own moral standard. To reject Christianity, you must deal with the evidence. I would urge those who have walked away from Christianity for reasons such as these to really look into the evidence and to consider Christian theism as an intellectually tenable position.

Daily closed with a question: “If not church, where do you turn?” I would suggest that if you are seeking a model to live by, that church or any kind of human institution will ultimately fail us in giving us what we truly desire. However, in a midst of a seemingly purposeless world, on the foundation of the resurrection, the grace Jesus offers is our last and best hope for objective purpose.