A Mind Dump

A mind dump, sorry.

I find claims of "proof" by believers very odd for two reasons. One, there is nothing to prove. Faith is just that - faith. Why would a believer need to prove anything? Two, the evidence provided as proof never rises to the level of proof that would be accepted in court or by a doctor to make a diagnosis. Indeed, I doubt you would accept this level of "proof" if a car mechanic was telling you your car needed a $2000 repair.

The only evidence I have seen presented is ancient writings by unknown authors and claimed present day miracles. The writings - some in the Bible, some not. Hardly convincing proof. Jesus proved himself by fulfilling prophecy? This strikes me as a self-fulfilling prophecy - ancient writers claim X will happen in the future. Someone in the future reads the ancient writer, and poof - they claim to be X.

Miracles? This could be proven very easily to me. Jesus performed miracles in public - this is the level of proof I would need. IF the miracles are observed, measured, and verified by multiple objective observers. I guarantee then - I will be a believer. Example - walk on water. Easy to prove the deity can violate the law of gravity by independently verifying there is no support structure under the person. Document the miracle using objective tools to remove human bias and I'm a believer.

I have also heard it said it has been "proven" there is no other life in the universe. I'm sorry but this is so silly I hardly know where to begin. How do you prove a negative (no life)? You can't. The unique conditions that allow life on earth are so unusual they could never happen again? No mainstream scientist has accepted this idea. We don't begin to know enough about the universe to draw this conclusion. Yes, some who have science degrees will claim this and write nice books but they have violated their professional standards by abandoning the scientific method for understanding the world around us. Indeed, they have allowed their faith to interfere with their professional outlook. This claim also strikes me as somewhat arrogant - billions of galaxies were created for one minor species, on one minor planet, in one unremarkable solar system? In my mind Christians diminish their faith by making such claims.

A brilliant evangelical Christian scientist who does not make this mistake is Francis Collins. I've read one of his books and was very impressed by his passion for his faith and his clear argument that faith and science are two different worlds and do not overlap. Collins disputes the "proof" believers present and particularly the false "scientific" proofs. I admire Collins.

There is a geologist (don't remember his name off hand) who has a PhD in geology from Harvard who is a young earther - he has allowed his faith to so blind him that he has rejected several centuries of study, millions of pieces of scientific evidence, and now says the earth is only a handful of millennia old. As one atheist put it - "his brain is an embarrassment to humanity". Harsh yes - but I find the twisting of science to support faith deeply disturbing. It is poisoning our educational system - Texas leads the way by rejecting evolution. No other western educational system is teaching such nonsense.

Truth: that which can be objectively proven through repeatable verifiable methods. And the lack of information does not by default mean there is a god. That is the fallacy of the "god of the gaps" idea (if there is a gap in our understanding we insert god to explain it). But that is a topic for another day.

David