Showing posts with label God. Show all posts
Showing posts with label God. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

Is Belief In God Natural and Intuitive?

John Calvin Image by jimforest via Flickr
There is within the human mind, and indeed by natural instinct, an awareness of the divinity. This we take to be beyond controversy. To prevent anyone from taking refuge in the pretense of ignorance, God himself has implanted in all men a certain understanding of his divine majesty. Ever renewing its memory, he repeatedly sheds fresh drops.” As Calvin further explained, “from the beginning of the world there has been no region, no city, in short, no household, that could do without religion, there lies in this a tacit confession of a sense of deity inscribed in the hearts of all. -- John Calvin, quoted by Albert Mohler, here.
Calvin may have pressed his point too far when he speaks of "no household", but the point is well taken nonetheless. If what he claims is so, then belief in God may sufficiently rest on intuitive sense alone, and the philosopher Plantinga is right when he claims that belief is "properly basic".  The apostle Paul does not lament that people do not reach a knowledge of God through insufficient empirical evidence, but the opposite -- that people willfully suppress the knowledge of God, a knowledge which is evident from the creation, and, perhaps, as an indwelling intuition.
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Saturday, September 04, 2010

The Kingdom Strikes Back

Signature of Stephen Hawking.Image via Wikipedia

Yesterday, Stephen Hawking gave God a death-blow: "because gravity exists, there is no God!" It's hard to refute an argument like this, I mean, this is a knock-out.

And the disciples thought the death of Christ was a setback!

But now, just when I thought it was time to dismantle the Blog and go fishing, the Kingdom of God strikes back!

John Lennox: As a scientist I'm certain Stephen Hawking is wrong. You can't explain the universe without God

The Archbish: Archbishop of Canterbury hits back after Stephen Hawking insists God did NOT create the universe

And, on the lighter side, this: Hawking Not Needed to Explain His New Book, Says Universe

To sum it up:

There was a man named S. Hawking
Who thought he heard a big knocking
KNOCK! KNOCK! "Who's there?"
"Why, nothing but air!"
An answer disturbing and shocking

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"... nothing intellectually compelling or challenging.. bald assertions coupled to superstition... woefully pathetic"