Who is God?
Jeremy Ulrey (julrey@amaonline.com)
Fri, 18 Apr 1997 20:09:44 -0500
I've seen numerous debates recently as to the existence of God. Without =
dipping into that particular school of thought (for the record I am an =
atheist) I would like to address certain questions to the believers on =
this list. To those that feel the scientific evidence points to the =
universe having necessarily been created, what exactly is it that makes =
you think the Bible is an accurate description of the Creator and His =
motives? It seems to me you could just as easily believe in a creator =
and not necessarily the one mentioned in the Bible or any other popular =
religion. I don't think there's a religion, living or dead, that can't =
be explained away by sociological /superstitious rationalization. One =
question I'd like to see addressed is: if the universe had a creator, =
why do you think he chooses to reveal his presence? If it's to aid =
mankind in its pursuit of purity, then why has He not done a more =
efficient job? Is it because mankind is inherently flawed and can't be =
saved, and if so, isn't this evidence of God's imperfection as well =
(having created flawed beings?) Another concept I'd like to address is =
that of free will: what does God's granting of free will to man explain =
about not only human nature but the nature of God as well? For example, =
what was the purpose of God's granting us free will if he desired =
perfect/pure beings? Why not just create us that way? Presumably there =
is some inherent superiority in being pure by choice rather than by =
creation, but why is that so? Do we as humans desire artificially =
intelligent washing machines so that they can decide for themselves to =
do what we can already program them to do without having to worry about =
error? Some might make the distinction that to compare humans to =
machines is a gross analogy, but one of the tenets of Christianity that =
has always troubled me is the way humans are supposed to aspire to the =
highest values, but even once those values are achieved we're still but =
ants in the shadow of the almighty God. In light of these views I can't =
imagine how God would regard us any more than we regard our washing =
machines. I know that God is supposed to be all-loving, etc. but what =
does that say about the concept of love? If we love Hitler and we also =
love Mother Teresa, what is the difference in values between those two =
subjects? Well, I can see this has become a rambling affair, so I'll =
leave off here. I'll offer further querying as I receive answers. =
Please don't trouble/quibble over the vagueness of some of the =
questions. I have intentionally made most of the questions at least =
partially vague as sort of a Rorschach test for Christianity. My =
intention is not to disprove or discredit the notion of Christianity, =
but to understand the thinking of some of its followers. If you don't =
understand what I'm asking, either respond to the best of your ability =
or ignore the question. I'll be happy to elaborate on any of the =
questions above for those who are interested in responding but don't =
know where to start.