Judging by Origin

This fallacy judges a claim by where it came from instead of whether it is true. It is often called the genetic fallacy.

Nathanael did it when he first heard about Jesus:

"Can anything good come from Nazareth?" Nathanael asked. "Come and see," said Philip. John 1:46

Philip did not argue about Nazareth. He invited Nathanael to look at Jesus for himself. That is the cure for this fallacy. Look at the claim.

How It Shows Up

"You only believe because you were raised in church." Maybe so. But how a person came to a belief does not tell you whether the belief is true. A child raised to believe the earth goes around the sun still believes something true.

"Christians borrowed their stories from older myths." That claim has problems of its own. But even if two stories sounded alike, the question would still be whether Jesus rose from the dead. Peter said, "we did not follow cleverly devised fables... but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty." 2 Peter 1:16

Christians Do It Too

We can dismiss an idea only because it came from someone outside the church. Paul did not. On Mars Hill he quoted Greek poets: "As some of your own poets have said, 'We are His offspring.'" Acts 17:28 A true thing is true wherever it is found. All truth answers to God, who made the minds that find it.