Re: Evidence for "Big Bang Theory"

Kai Henningsen (kai@khms.westfalen.de)
14 May 1995 17:44:00 +0100

Yasha@bigraf.tamu.edu wrote on 06.05.95 in <Yasha-0605951924400001@wildmaciici.tamu.edu>:

> In article <5lDTqHgjcsB@khms.westfalen.de>, kai@khms.westfalen.de (Kai
> Henningsen) wrote:

> > Not quite. If God exists _and_causes_no_observable_phenomena_, then
> > science can't tell us about that. If he _did_ cause such phenomena,
> > science _could_ tell us about it.
> >
> > The interesting part is that religions often _do_ claim that he causes
> > observable phenomena ...
>
> No, I'm afraid you are still missing the point. Science _could_ tell us
> about it it God _did_ cause such phenomena, IF AND ONLY IF, there existed
> an absolute set of unambiguous parameters to define God. That criterion
> cannot be met, therefore the experiment you have proposed is meaningless.
> Whatever phenomena you are studying are simply natural phenomena without
> the definition of God.

Well, if you argue from the premise that God isn't a natural phenomenon,
then of course that's where you end.

If, on the other hand (as is, I'd argue, the only proper way), you begin
such a hypothetical examination by saying "these are the phenomenons
attributed to God", then you should be able tom devise a set of parameters
explaining what God is and does - if, of course and as is currently
happening, your conclusion is not that you don't need any sort of God to
explain your phenomenon.

Let's get a little more concrete.

The Bible (to take only one family of religions) contains tales about
numerous interactions that should be approachable by science, if they only
happened where scientists could look into them - such as speeking, burning
bushes, suns standing still, seas parting, angels appearing, people
getting resurrected, and so on.

The whole reason people talk about God being outside science is because
all these phenomena never seem to happen anywhere they could be
scientifically examined - which is why many people (including me) conclude
they don't happen at all.

However, assuming there _was_ something you could call "God", there's no
reason why these things _should_not_ be easily observable, except if he
intentionally tries to make things difficult. There's no reason God could
not easily be an examinable thing.

Kai

--

Internet: kai@khms.westfalen.de

Bang: major_backbone!khms.westfalen.de!kai

http://www.westfalen.de/~kai/

## CrossPoint v3.02 ##