Summary of On Claiming Belief In God: Discussion with Dennis Prager

00:00:00 - 00:50:00

Dennis Prager discusses how he became motivated to do what he does after becoming terrified of how terrible human beings could be. He says that good does approximate to good, and that parallels between us are eerie. Dennis Prager responds to a question about whether or not he believes in God, explaining that it is important to live as if there is a God in order to have the audacity to claim belief. He relates this to his experience as an adult, saying that although his belief in God has been circuitous, it is still a central part of his belief system.

• 00:00:00 The speaker discusses how he became motivated to do what he does after becoming terrified of how terrible human beings could be. He says that good does approximate to good, and that parallels between us are eerie.
• 00:05:00 Dennis Prager discusses the idea that to be happy, one must have a tragic view of life in order to discover who they are and what they are capable of. He also discusses how this idea is found in older texts, and how it is necessary for those who want to learn about death and life. Not a single person in a panel discussion has ever reacted to this idea, indicating that it is an old idea that many people know.
• 00:10:00 Dennis Prager responds to a question about whether or not he believes in God, explaining that it is important to live as if there is a God in order to have the audacity to claim belief. He relates this to his experience as an adult, saying that although his belief in God has been circuitous, it is still a central part of his belief system.
• 00:15:00 Dennis Prager discusses how he became convinced of the existence of God after realizing that there was no wisdom or morality at Columbia University without God. He points out that it is not unreasonable to believe that this value is divine, as it is the ultimate value that we hold. He discusses how atheism can lead to nihilism and how Christianity provides a metaphysic that helps us to understand our existence.
• 00:20:00 This YouTube video is a discussion between Dennis Prager and two leftist students about the idea that people are basically good. The students concede that this is largely true, but add that it's also true that evil exists and can be encountered by oneself. This challenges the idea that good always prevails, and can be a difficult thing to maintain.
• 00:25:00 Dennis Prager discusses how people who lack a belief in God often suffer from PTSD due to the moral repugnance they experience when faced with evil. He goes on to say that children learn this lesson much earlier than adults and are therefore wiser in regards to the concept of good and evil. He asserts that living in accordance with this understanding is necessary in order to be truly grateful, and that the current world situation is largely positive by comparison.
• 00:30:00 Dennis Prager discusses how, in contrast to how things could be, most people in the West are currently living in a "so good" society. He also speaks about how, in the modern academy, there is a lack of gratitude and a lack of understanding of history.
• 00:35:00 Dennis Prager talks about how universities do more harm than good now, and how the postmodern doctrine is psychologically and politically toxic. He suggests that the debate on campuses is about whether or not a human being has the capacity to communicate intelligibly as an individual, and the answer for the postmodernist collective types is that there is no such thing as an individual. This leads to the idea that free speech is absurd because free speech is predicated on the idea that each of us have something to say, that's ours. He says that this is what's being debated, and that the war that's going on philosophically or theologically in the campuses is far deeper than you think it is.
• 00:40:00 Dennis Prager discusses the idea that it is up to one individual to bring down a tyranny, and that it is a difficult task. He recalls a funny story of his son coming over and telling him that only 200 of his colleagues had signed a document trying to get him fired.
• 00:45:00 Dennis Prager discusses how he has never been attacked in the press the way that he has been by atheists, and how he has never subscribed to the idea that he lives in a world full of hatred. Dennis Prager discusses how he believes that there are lies and anti-truths, and how his life is actually full of love and friendship.
• 00:50:00 In this video, Dennis Prager discusses how his life is full of travel and how it has led to him meeting many people from all walks of life. He notes that it is difficult to believe, but it is incredibly positive to constantly have good things happen to him. He says that if he could ask for anything, it would be to give his life in a manner so that people would feel grateful to him.