I know, this article may not be for everyone … but hear me out: You have youth in your ministry who are flooded with information, misinformation, and disinformation, and they are trying to figure out how to make sense of the world around them in a faithful way.

Youth may need practice in active listening skills to do the logic exercises below. If that is the case, please start with this article: Active Listening: Personally and Digitally.

We are in ministry in a world full of misinformation (information shared mistakenly, without malicious intent) and disinformation (information created and shared to intentionally deceive or manipulate). Part of our call-in ministry is to help young people discover and share what they believe from a faith perspective. Our Christian faith tradition of Methodism evolved in a context where logic was lifted as an ideal that often needed to be reconciled with emotions and feelings.

I think John Wesley would have valued reason and logic as key tools for discerning truth in matters of faith. I believe he would have advocated for ensuring the integrity of one’s reasoning for a belief, while also treating others who disagree with respect and working to align reasoning and belief with Christian faith. John Wesley believed that reason is a gift from God. He might even say that Christians can (and maybe should!) argue in a way that honors God by using sound reasoning. We can help young people learn that, in times of disagreement, we can argue in a way that glorifies God by using the gift of reason to think clearly and avoid resorting to manipulation, name calling, or logical fallacies.

I also think that John Wesley would encourage vigorous debates (he never was shy about writing LENGTHY sermons and letters to get his opinions across) to be done with integrity. That means treating those who disagree with respect and seeking a shared truth as opposed to “winning.” As the Methodist Movement took root, along with field preaching and theology in song thanks to Charles Wesley, the movement became known for ensuring that less-educated members of society could understand complex theological issues by being logically consistent and clear.

Logical fallacies often come up in debates and disagreements. A logical fallacy is a mistake in thinking or arguing that prevents the point you are trying to make from making sense. These fallacies may sound like they have an element of truth, and some people use them to manipulate the way others think to win an argument.

Wesleyan Logical Advice for Youth:

• Use your brain to think clearly and honestly, not to trick people with bad arguments.
• Be kind and respectful in arguments, and don’t use tricks to make yourself look right. It’s more important to be truthful.
• Think carefully and logically about your faith. Avoid faulty arguments that don’t make sense.
• Avoid common fallacies. Use honest and fair arguments, not cheap tricks that make the other person’s point look worse.
  1. Don’t change what the other person said to make their argument look worse. Be fair.
  2. Ad Hominem: Don’t attack the person. Instead, focus on the argument or idea.
  3. While emotions are important, don’t try to win an argument by making people feel sad or scared. Use reason and facts.
• Be clear and simple when explaining your ideas. Don’t use fallacies that make things confusing.
• Know when logic can help and when faith is needed. Don’t make bad arguments just because you can’t explain everything.
• Learn from others. Talk to others about your ideas and listen to other people. Different perspectives can help you see if your arguments make sense.

If you are interested in exploring logical fallacies and helping youth practice “flagging” when fallacies come up in a debate or argument, use the information and activity below to create a learning opportunity that makes sense in your context.

LOGIC ACTIVITY:

Materials needed:

• Chairs
• “Penalty Flags” (can be any soft, easy-to-see and easy-to-toss items)
• Discussion prompts to start a debate. A list of possibilities appears after the “Logical Fallacy Table.”
• Copies of the “Logical Fallacy Table” for participants

Set up a “fishbowl” conversation, where three chairs are facing each other inside a larger circle of chairs. Two people sit in the chairs in the middle with one empty chair, and these two people begin the debate with the prompt you provide. The other participants sit in the circle of chairs. Those in the outer circle are there to listen and throw a penalty flag when a logical fallacy comes up. They cannot talk unless they call a logical fallacy and toss a penalty marker.

Listeners can enter the debate by moving into the empty chair in the center of the circle when they have something to say. When this happens, one of the two original debaters needs to leave the center, take a seat in the larger circle, and become a listener.

Continue the debate until conversation dies down. Remember to set boundaries:

• This is to practice listening and responding well.
• We are practicing this mode of conversation so that we can identify how others (media, news, entertainers, politicians, advertisers, religious leaders, etc.) try to influence our beliefs or make the case for what they think is important.
• This activity is not about “winning” the argument. It is about being able to practice hearing other perspectives AND calling out when somebody is using logical fallacies to try to make their point.
• Everyone is encouraged to share thoughts and opinions.
• Anyone can throw a penalty marker and call a logical fallacy at any time. When a fallacy is called, the person who threw the penalty flag should say what they heard and which fallacy they think was used.

Create copies the “Logical Fallacy Table” (below) so that everyone in the activity has access to them. If you need to introduce or review the information before starting debates, do so. The “6th-Grade Level” and “Example in the Bible” columns are provided to help group members have an idea of how the fallacy might sound in a debate, or while reading.

Introduce a prompt for the debate. As the leader, play the part of a referee who keeps the activity and commentary moving. The more invested and excited you are, the more excited and passionately participants will debate with one another.

DOWNLOAD Logic Fallacy Table (PDF)

Debate Starters

Innocent:

• Is a hot dog a sandwich?
• Which are better: Cats or dogs?
• Does pineapple belong on pizza?
• Which is better: Winter or summer?
• Is it better to be really strong or really fast?
• Should cereal be poured into the bowl before the milk or after?
• Is it more fun to watch movies at home or in a theater?
• What’s the best pizza topping?
• Would you rather have the ability to fly or be invisible?
• Is it better to be early or right on time?

Fun:

• Is it acceptable to wear socks with sandals?
• Would you rather fight one horse-sized duck or 100 duck-sized horses?
• If you could only eat one food for the rest of your life, should it be pizza or tacos?
• Which is the superior cookie: Chocolate chip or oatmeal raisin?
• Is water wet?
• If animals could talk, which one would be the rudest?
• Should toilet paper hang over or under the roll?
• Would you rather have a pet dragon or a pet unicorn?
• Is it okay to put ketchup on eggs?
• Which superpower is more useful: The ability to talk to animals or the ability to never have to sleep?
• What is the best way to prepare and eat potatoes? (What is the best potato-based food?)

Serious:

• Should the death penalty be abolished worldwide?
• Is climate change the most pressing global issue today?
• Should schools require students to wear uniforms?
• Is social media doing more harm than good to society?
• Should college education be free for everyone?
• Should governments regulate how much personal data companies can collect?
• Is universal healthcare a human right?
• Should countries open their borders to refugees and immigrants?
• Should the voting age be lowered to 16?
• Is artificial intelligence (AI) a threat to human jobs and privacy?