Again this is for the Atheists that will intelligently answer this question with respect and integrity.?

I would consider the possibility that God was involved, but I honestly think I would need to see something like this happen a few times before I could believe it.

There are too many possible explanations in that unlikely scenario to even list. It could all be a fraud, a setup from the beginning, which would be my best guess. It could be you have psychic or mutant healing powers you have mistaken for a divine source. It could be that person just coincidentally healed by natural causes at that moment and would have walked without you laying hands on him. I would want you to heal multiple people in laboratory settings with qualified scientists and doctors monitoring it, with a control group. If they could detect the presence of God or angels, I would be open to the idea.

This probably seems extreme to you, but it really isn't. This is the standard we use with everything else. We would never approve a pill that hadn't undergone rigorous testing, and a religion is a bigger commitment than a prescription. You need to keep in mind that until recently, lightning and rainbows were seen as undeniable evidence of god. After actually studying these "divine" phenomena, we have discovered that static electricity and light refraction are responsible, and no deities have been observed in the process. The "miracle" you describe doesn't have a definite divine source. It has an unknown source.

I also wouldn't "open my heart" to someone I thought was evil, regardless of how real they are. If God does turn out to be real, he has some explaining to do.

I don't see a crucial difference between the two.

I would be more likely that it was a mass conspiracy.

Have you considered the fact that out of all the religious miracle healing, there is not one example of a person regrowing a limb or organ?

Neither (I don't believe in magic). I'd investigate any possible causes of this before jumping to a conclusion without evidence. For all I know, it could all be staged, or that person is able to walk but uses the wheelchair when it gets too tiring for their condition.

Neither. I would suspect a rigged demonstration or psychological inability to walk. Also if they had been in the chair a long time the wasting of the muscles would have to be restored for them to be able to walk.

No "miracle" has ever stood up to close scrutiny.

Hypothetical scenarios are meaningless. If you have a specific example of such an incident, please let us know. But be prepared to show evidence of medical examinations of the individual both before and after the 'laying of hands', as well as testimony of his doctors(s). In short, if you are going to make an extraordinary claim you need to be prepared to back it up. The purported incident needs to hold up to objective, intelligent scrutiny.

I would ask you to perform your stunt again under supervised, controlled laboratory conditions.

Tell you what... contact James Randi:

http://www.randi.org/site/index.php/1m-challenge.h...

If you perform your stunt without him debunking you, you'll get $1 Million. Not a bad paycheck... but since he's been offering this for decades and nobody has claimed the prize... I'm not giving you very good odds.

Hypothetically, if they were actually unable to walk before and if they were able to walk afterwards, I would acknowledge that there is not yet a scientific understanding of the reasons for it and that it should be investigated further anyone jumps to any conclusions.

I would not jump to an immediate conclusion, but would want to investigate, further.

Also, I would give no particular weight to your opinion of what had happened.

I would be interested in the reasons you hold a particular opinion.

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Regards,

John Popelish

Whats the difference in number 1 and number 2?