10 Common theistic argumentative tactics

In all of my years of being an atheist I have come across just about every argument for God, Christ, the divine origins of the Bible, and just about everything else there is to say about Christianity under the sun. So for the uninitiated and even for theists who for some reason or another do not realize or understand what they are doing this is for you. These philosophical fallacies are  common argumentative tactics utilized by most Christian apologists.

1. Circular reasoning

  a use of reason in which the premises depends on or is equivalent to the conclusion, a method of false logic by which "this is used to prove that, and that is used to prove this"; also called circular logic

2. Ad hominem

1

: appealing to feelings or prejudices rather than intellect

2

: marked by or being an attack on an opponent's character rather than by an answer to the contentions made 

 

3. Begging the question

A fallacy in which the premise of an argument presupposes the truth of its conclusion; in other words, the argument takes for granted what it is supposed to prove.

 

 

4. Red herring

something intended to divert attention from the real problem or matter at hand; a misleading clue. 

 

 

5. Straw man

A fallacy in which an opponent's argument is overstated or misrepresented in order to be more easily attacked or refuted.

 

 

6. Ad populum

 

 A proposition is held to be true because it is widely held to be true or is held to be true by some (usually upper crust) sector of the population. 

 

 

7. non sequitur

An inference or conclusion that does not follow from the premises or evidence.

 

 

8. Post hoc

logical error: the fallacy of arguing that since one event happened before a second, the first caused the second

 

 

9. Stacking the deck

A fallacy in which any evidence that supports an opposing argument is simply rejected, omitted, or ignored.

 

 

10. False dilemma

A fallacy of oversimplification: an argument in which only two alternatives are provided when in fact additional options are available. Sometimes called the either-or fallacy.

 

 

I hope that this post has helped to clarify some of the more common logical fallacies out there and if you're interested in learning more you can find a comprehensive list at The Skeptic's Dictionary.