God's soft white underbelly

[HarveyDarkey]

By JEFF SCHWEITZER - RICHARDDAWKINS.NET
Added: Tue, 05 Oct 2010 13:11:20 UTC - An RDFRS Original

Albert Einstein famously said, “Only two things are infinite: the universe and human stupidity, and I am not sure about the former.” Nothing provides better proof of the truth of this statement than the persistence of religion in human affairs. The widespread belief in the god of Abraham shames us before all other species, making a mockery of our claim to intelligence.

The inherent absurdity of faith is revealed most clearly in the central dilemma that religion has never been able to solve, exposing to us the vulnerable belly of the beast. That is, religion must somehow explain the existence of evil in the presence of god (an endeavor known as theodicy). Despite heroic efforts, all attempts at theodicy have failed completely. The bottom line is clear. In a world that knows evil, an all-powerful god responsible for all creation must be evil. That interpretation is unavoidable and certain. But given that a few billion people will insist on disputing the claim, we will show next how no other conclusion is possible.

Some who oppose the notion of a brutish ugly deity propose that god did not intentionally create evil. If so, that leaves us with the question of evil’s origin if not from the hand of god. In one scenario, evil flourished as an unintended consequence of human depravity once his newly-minted Adam and Eve started roaming the Earth. God was surprised by evil, but allowed it to exist once brought to his attention. In another scenario, evil sprang to life without god’s permission at all, as a rude cosmic surprise. Both scenarios would give god a pass on being evil himself, but they create yet another dilemma. In either scenario, god is not omnipotent. After all, if evil exists as a mistake or without god’s permission, we must conclude that he is incapable of peering into and controlling the future, a decidedly un-god-like attribute. None of this is looking too good for Mr. Big. Let’s review our two choices: first, an all-powerful god must be evil since evil exists and god created all, including evil; or, second, god’s work somehow got beyond his control, with evil coming along as something like a divine blooper, a mistake not typically associated with an all-powerful thing. We can only conclude, then, that god himself is evil or he is benign but with diminished powers. And a god with limited powers is no god at all.

Religion solves this conundrum the old-fashioned way: by making up a silly answer with truly contorted logic. The answer in this case is free will, but only for human beings. Somehow, when god gathered his last strength to make humans before taking a one-day vacation, he decided to give his new creation – but not spiders, beavers or parrots - the ability to choose a path not preordained by god. This divine grant of free will solves the dilemma because people can choose to be evil without implicating god. Whew!

http://richarddawkins.net/articles/529232-god-s-soft-white-underbelly

[enlightenment]

1. Very nice!

A great way to kick start the neurons in the morning.

Thanks!

[amyrose2712]

2. Thanks. Posting to FB later. nt

[laconicsax]

3. Like it. n/t