But if the answer to "how do I tell the difference?" is that I ask the entity who is making the request in the first place, we've now achieved full epistemic closure.
I assume she expected you to ask God, y'know, now, not immediately after something claiming to be Him appeared and ordered you to kill 'em all. (Presumably asking Him "wait, are you sure killing children is a good idea?" would be met with a "yes". Or a thunderbolt.)
Sure, that's probably true. I don't see what difference it makes, though.
I mean, OK, suppose I wait an hour, or a day, or a week, or however long I decide to wait, and I ask again, and a Voice says "Yes, kill 'em all." Do I believe it's God now? Why?
Conversely, I wait however long I decide to wait and I ask again and a Voice says "No, don't kill 'em." Do I believe that's God? Why?
Do I ask a dozen times and take the most common answer?
None of those seem reasonable. It seems to me that on her account, what I ought to do is rely on my ju...
Happy New Year! Here's the latest and greatest installment of rationality quotes. Remember: