I was listening to a really interesting debate on NPR on Intelligence Squared. the show is like an Oxford Debate contest taking place in New York. The debate was "Science Refutes God." There were four panelists, and each one made excellent arguments, gave intelligent answers, and summarized their arguments like champions. I was terribly impressed with each one. My take on this whole scenario is this: God, in whatever form God exists, is beyond our ken, and, so, it makes it terribly, wonderfully human to argue about such things. Atheistic scientists refute the spirit. Puritanical religious types refute evolution. And here's my mutation (snicker...): The spirit evolves. I believe God is evolution. God him/herself evolves to the tenets/morals/mental capacity/evolution of humanity. When God first showed up in human lives, we see terrifying deities of power and fear, demanding sacrifices of human and animal lives to appease a divine blood thirst. The humans felt empowered and emboldened by their God of choice to utilize the divine to heal, find love, sanctify marriage and birth, grow crops, bring game, make war, control others, enslave nations and other tribes, and cause death. Humans have had an interesting way over time of sidestepping blame to save face and life time and again, and blame it on the "Hand of God."
The God I believe in IS omnipotent, and just beyond the realm of my true understanding. To quote a particular saying from a Van Halen video: "Right now God kills moms and dogs because He has to." Honestly, it's not a job I'd willingly step into. I've seen the Boss' job, and I don't want it.
I've had too many strange and wonderful experiences through my life to discount any of that.
To quote one of the panelists from Intelligence Squared: "Science tells us the how of the Universe, but, not the why."
Odhinn Bless,
Brandon out!
No comments:
Post a Comment