--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: It sounds superficially fair. But it…" description: "\"It sounds superficially fair. But it presupposes that that there is something in Christian theology to be ignorant about. The entire thrust of my posit..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb7/richard-dawkins-115_accused_it-sounds-superficially-fair-but-it-pres_1725031.jpg" --- # It sounds superficially fair. But it presupposes that that… ![“It sounds superficially fair. But it presupposes that that there is something in Christian theology to be ignorant about. The entire thrust of my position is that Christian theology is a non-subject. It is empty. Vacuous. Devoid of coherence or content. I imagine that McGrath would join me in…” quote by Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb7/richard-dawkins-115_accused_it-sounds-superficially-fair-but-it-pres_1725031.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb7/richard-dawkins-115_accused_it-sounds-superficially-fair-but-it-pres_1725031.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/eb7/richard-dawkins-115_accused_it-sounds-superficially-fair-but-it-pres_1725031.jpg) > “It sounds superficially fair. But it presupposes that that there is something in Christian theology to be ignorant about. The entire thrust of my position is that Christian theology is a non-subject. It is empty. Vacuous. Devoid of coherence or content. I imagine that McGrath would join me in expressing disbelief in fairies, astrology and Thor's hammer. How would he respond if a fairyologist, astrologer or Viking accused him of ignorance of their respective subjects?” [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The claim is that Christian theology lacks substantive content and coherence, rendering it an empty field of study. **In simple terms:** Christian theology is empty and meaningless. Key Takeaway Question the relevance of theology. Themes theology skepticism philosophy religion meaninglessness Mood critical skeptical provocative Type argumentative philosophical When to use this quote - academic debate - public discourse - personal belief - interfaith dialogue Key Concepts nihilism epistemology critical thinking Questions to Reflect On - Is any belief system inherently empty? - How do we assess the value of non-empirical ideas? A Different Perspective Faith may hold personal value despite lacking empirical content. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Accused](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accused/) [Accused Ignorance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/accused-ignorance-1375127/) [Astrology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astrology/) [Christian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christian/) [Christian theology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/christian-theology/) [Coherence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/coherence/) [Disbelief](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disbelief/) [Empty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/empty/) [Fairs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fairs/) [Fairy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fairy/) [Hammers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hammers/) [Ifs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ifs/) [Ignorance](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignorance/) [Ignorant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/ignorant/) [Imagine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagine/) [Imagine that](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/imagine-that/) [Position](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/position/) [Sound](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/sound/) [Subjects](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/subjects/) [Theology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theology/) [Theology Ignorant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theology-ignorant-1375125/) [Theology Non](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/theology-non-1375126/) [Thrust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thrust/) [Vacuous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vacuous/) [Vikings](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/vikings/) ## Related quotes > [Theology is a non-subject. 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The child's facial expression is transformed. The jaw is relaxed and hangs…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marie-winn/again-and-again-parents-describe-the-trancelike-nature-of-their/) [Marie Winn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marie-winn/) > [First of all you must understand that practising martial arts means studying a certain oriental philosophy of life, otherwise it's merely a vacuous sport…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-c-brown/first-of-all-you-must-understand-that-practising-martial-arts-means/) [William C. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-c-brown/) > [ Speaking of \[Colin\] Kaepernick, did you see what \[Barack\] Obama said about Kaepernick? 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Crisp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/quentin-s-crisp/) > [It's one thing for a person to live his life as a vacuous shell without fully comprehending the extent of his transgressions, but I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tarek-saab/it-s-one-thing-for-a-person-to-live-his-life-as-a-vacuous-shell/) [Tarek Saab](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tarek-saab/) > [We're at a time when we are being presented with undeniable changes in the global climate and fundamental issues that affect every single one…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thom-yorke/we-re-at-a-time-when-we-are-being-presented-with-undeniable-changes/) [Thom Yorke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thom-yorke/) ## More by Richard Dawkins > [At the deepest level, all living things that have ever been looked at have the same DNA code. 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And of all its money-making rip-offs,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/the-roman-catholic-church-is-an-institution-for-whose-gains-the/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Let us understand what our own selfish genes are up to because we may then at least have the chance to upset their designs.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/let-us-understand-what-our-own-selfish-genes-are-up-to-because-we-may/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [What's going to happen when I die? I may be buried, or I may be cremated, I may give my body to science. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/what-s-going-to-happen-when-i-die-i-may-be-buried-or-i-may-be/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [Or why it is acceptable to train fast runners and high jumpers but not to breed them. 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If in the future that requires violence”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/we-will-not-go-quietly-away-if-in-the-future-that-requires-violence/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) > [It's a truly disgusting idea that the creator of the universe - capable of inventing the laws of physics and designing the evolutionary process…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-dawkins/it-s-a-truly-disgusting-idea-that-the-creator-of-the-universe-capable/) [Richard Dawkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) [Explore all 1,239 Richard Dawkins quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-dawkins/) ## More Accused quotes > [We resent being faced with facts we'd prefer to ignore as much as being wrongly accused of doing something we haven't.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aidan-chambers/we-resent-being-faced-with-facts-we-d-prefer-to-ignore-as-much-as/) [Aidan Chambers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aidan-chambers/) > [Jesus Himself was criticized. 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Fang tried to play innocent--but "innocent Fang" is an oxymoron, so it didn't work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-patterson/you-re-lying-through-your-fangs-iggy-accused-fang-tried-to-play/) [James Patterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-patterson/) > [The big story today, Barack Obama was accused of insulting Sarah Palin when he criticized Republican policies by saying, you can put lipstick on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/conan-o-brien/the-big-story-today-barack-obama-was-accused-of-insulting-sarah-palin/) [Conan O'Brien](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/conan-o-brien/) > [I've been accused of humanizing the Nazis, to which I can only say, you can't blame me for that. God did that. Go talk…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/w-d-snodgrass/i-ve-been-accused-of-humanizing-the-nazis-to-which-i-can-only-say-you/) [W. D. 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But it presupposes that that there is something in Christian theology to be ignorant about. The entire thrust of my position is that Christian theology is a non-subject. It is empty. Vacuous. Devoid of coherence or content. I imagine that McGrath would join me in expressing disbelief in fairies, astrology and Thor's hammer. 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