Pope Francis: ‘Evolution … is not inconsistent with the notion of creation’

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Is your claim He created Himself?
No, that was your claim, made in error I’m sure.

You said:
God creates everything out of nothing
If God creates “everything”, then He creates Himself, since He is not nothing. God creates everything except Himself. You left out the very important qualifier at the end.

rossum
 
Reading through all of these posts it seems like some fundamentally minded believers have made the assumption that if a scientist doesn’t believe in God then they cannot investigate material reality effectively and that sounds a lot like militant atheists who think that if you believe in God then you cannot investigate material reality effectively, or govern effectively etc.

If you pan back a bit then these both seem like the same limited perspective (fueled by prejudice and emotion) but just with different outcomes.
Religious fundamentalists and atheist fundamentalists seem to have a shared mindset, which, as you rightly point out, makes them more alike than different. Hence, their arguments are also often identical - sometimes with different outcomes due to different premises, but also sometimes with the exact same outcome. An example of the latter would be that both camps insist on a literal interpretation of Scripture, while accusing those who do not of cherry picking.

Perhaps it’s also no wonder that many in both camps report having once belonged to the other camp.
 
Are you admitting to avoid an infinite regress both sides have to admit God?
No. One side admits God, the other side admits the multiverse, which lacks a great many of the properties of God.

Of course an omnipotent God would find it just as easy to create a multiverse as to create a single universe.

rossum
 
If God creates “everything”, then He creates Himself, since He is not nothing. God creates everything except Himself. You left out the very important qualifier at the end.

rossum
Catholics know this already.
 
No. One side admits God, the other side admits the multiverse, which lacks a great many of the properties of God.

Of course an omnipotent God would find it just as easy to create a multiverse as to create a single universe.

rossum
And who created the multiverse?
 
Honestly, who here has taken this position? Can you cite those posts that believe the bible should “retreat”.
Do you really understand what those who disagree with your agenda are saying?
What is my agenda?
 
Indeed, that is why the modern synthesis is being abandoned in favor of self organization.
If I left loose bicycle parts in some turbulent water for a billion years, it would self assemble? I don’t understand.

Peace,
Ed
 
Religious fundamentalists and atheist fundamentalists seem to have a shared mindset, which, as you rightly point out, makes them more alike than different. Hence, their arguments are also often identical - sometimes with different outcomes due to different premises, but also sometimes with the exact same outcome. An example of the latter would be that both camps insist on a literal interpretation of Scripture, while accusing those who do not of cherry picking.

Perhaps it’s also no wonder that many in both camps report having once belonged to the other camp.
Respectfully, do you have any scholarly research you can cite that supports your comments?

Best,
Ed
 
Catholics know this already.
I am not Catholic. You were making assumptions about your readership, and those assumptions were incorrect. Your error is a common one. God does not create everything because God is not created.

rossum
 
If I left loose bicycle parts in some turbulent water for a billion years, it would self assemble? I don’t understand.
Bicycle parts are too large. Try leaving some simple organic molecules lying around instead.

Are you trying to tell us that your omnipotent God is incapable of setting up a world in which chemicals will self-assemble?

rossum
 
Religious fundamentalists and atheist fundamentalists seem to have a shared mindset, which, as you rightly point out, makes them more alike than different. Hence, their arguments are also often identical - sometimes with different outcomes due to different premises, but also sometimes with the exact same outcome. An example of the latter would be that both camps insist on a literal interpretation of Scripture, while accusing those who do not of cherry picking.

Perhaps it’s also no wonder that many in both camps report having once belonged to the other camp.
The insistence of a literal interpretation of scripture by atheists such as Sam Harris or Dawkins is particularly disconcerting because both of these men claim that unlike science, religion never corrects itself or comes to new understanding (which is false) while at the same time claiming that we cherry pick our understanding of scripture over time as far as interpretation and or emphasis on some aspects over others. This approach by the new atheists (and endless fundamentalist Christians also) is just plain dishonest and frankly very frustrating-- it is a tactic to win a debate-- rather than an attempt to come to some kind of accurate understanding.
 
The insistence of a literal interpretation of scripture by atheists such as Sam Harris or Dawkins is particularly disconcerting because both of these men claim that unlike science, religion never corrects itself or comes to new understanding (which is false) while at the same time claiming that we cherry pick our understanding of scripture over time as far as interpretation and or emphasis on some aspects over others. This approach by the new atheists (and endless fundamentalist Christians also) is just plain dishonest and frankly very frustrating-- it is a tactic to win a debate-- rather than an attempt to come to some kind of accurate understanding.
I don’t agree. The Bible is a closed book. That is, it has been examined very closely. Sacred Scripture is also called the Word of the Lord. Winning or losing is not the goal - only truth. I see this debate brought up here endlessly. Regarding the Bible, the Church clarifies. It looks at new social and scientific events and discoveries through the light of Scripture.

I am never frustrated because I trust the Church and only the Church to instruct me about this subject. Science can only deal with materialism. It cannot study God or the soul, so any connection with the soul and early humans has no scientific backing whatsoever.

Peace,
Ed
 
Respectfully, do you have any scholarly research you can cite that supports your comments?

Best,
Ed
I don’t think scholarly research needs to be cited. I came independently to the same conclusions as Rin; it is plain to see for those able to see it. The only thing about Rin’s statement that I might have some reservations about: I am not sure if I have atheists see become fundamentalist believers. Yet I agree with him on the other way around: fundamentalist believers, when they become atheists, usually become atheists of the fundamentalist kind.
 
Science can only deal with materialism. It cannot study God or the soul, so any connection with the soul and early humans has no scientific backing whatsoever.

Peace,
Ed
You mean science can only deal with the physical world. Materialism is a worldview, the physical world is a fact of God’s creation. That some or even many scientists are materialists is a different matter, certainly different from science itself.
 
No. God didn’t start with nothing. He started with Himself and nothing. Since God is not nothing, then He didn’t start with pure nothing.

rossum
Do you just like to argue? By saying GOD created the universe out of nothing, it’s understood that God was there and is real. I hate to spell everything out…takes too much time!
 
“Nothing plus the multiverse” = "something,’’ namely, a multiverse which has always existed with no first mover and no beginning, which fails to go back to the beginning, because a godless multiverse can’t logically and scientifically involve a beginning.

I’ve resigned myself to accept the fact that humanity is permanently forbidden to ever find the final answer due to the paradoxical belief that a godless multiverse could magically pop itself into existence from absolutely nothing, and I’m actually much happier now.
Multiverse!! 🤷 :eek: :eek: :eek: Boy am I glad God inspired His Biblical writers with words we all understand.
 
Not exactly. You are starting with nothing plus God. To be a fair match, you first have to get from nothing to nothing plus God.

Alternatively, if you start from nothing plus God, then the other side gets to start from nothing plus the multiverse.

That makes if much more of a fair comparison.

ETA: Your point 1) is heresy, since God did not make “everything”, just almost everything. Ask yourself, “Is God created?”

rossum
I learned in 1st or 2nd grade , God always was, always is & always will be!
 
Do you just like to argue?
No. I was merely pointing out that the original question was skewed. Theists were allowed a head start, with nothing and God. Atheists were expected to start with pure nothing. In order to remedy the imbalance, I added the multiverse to the atheist side. That makes for a much fairer discussion.
By saying GOD created the universe out of nothing, it’s understood that God was there and is real. I hate to spell everything out…takes too much time!
By saying that the current universe arose from the multiverse it is understood that the multiverse was there and is real.

rossum
 
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