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From ancient Greece to modern America, from short essays to long arguments, from individual lives to history and philosophy, in words reasoned quietly or
shouted loudly,
The Atheist God Would Read (or watch or listen) . . . offers a wide range of books for rational people in an often irrational world.
New titles added weekly. Plus DVDs, MP3s and more.
Added February 2010: Fiction: an eclectic selection of
novels and short stories from an atheist perspective. Come browse.
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Experience of nature leads some to believe in God's existence - but the existence of nature itself is more than enough.
Nature is beautiful. It's wonderful. It's awesome.
From the tiniest bacterium seen under a microscope to the vast cosmos of the night sky (if you are lucky enough to live in an area with no light pollution), nature astounds us.
Some of us even lose our sense of self. We feel at one with nature. We are part of the cosmos. We glimpse God.
4.10a Nature = God?
For many people nature itself is proof of God. This is either an emotional response - the "glimpse of God", or a quasi-rational one.
We saw in Chapter Three that the rational argument
(nature is complex; that complexity can only have been created by a supernatural being - God) is attractive but false. How about the emotional argument. Do we glimpse God?
Unfortunately for believers, all we see is a mirage. As Section 2 demonstrated, we are merely interpreting our experience as oneness-with-God-or-the-cosmos-or-whatever.
But the fact we do not glimpse God does not mean that our experience is valueless. In fact the sense of wonder that nature induces in us should only be the first step in our appreciation of the world and universe we live in. There is so much to see and so much to discover - and our lives are so short and so full that we will only be able to glimpse a small part of the wonders that surround us.
We can interpret the spectacle of nature as God's handiwork if we wish, but we would be fools to do so. There is enough to explore in nature itself, from the complexity of atoms to the grace of gazelles, from the weirdness of deep sea organisms to the gore of carnivores, from black holes to nuclear fission; we do not need facile fairytales to
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The deep roots of belief
Despite reason and evidence indicating that God does not and
cannot exist, billions of people across the world continue to
worship him in one of his many forms.
Belief in God draws its strength from a wide range of sources
and provides a sense of security and wellbeing for many.
Transforming that belief into an understanding and respect for
rationality takes time and much effort.
4.1: The origins of religion
Where did faith come from?
4.2: In the genes?
Are we programmed to believe?
4.3: Community and identity
Defining ourselves through faith
4.4: Peer pressure
Faith as fashion
4.5: Death and despair
There must be a better world
4.6: A sense of justice
Evildoers must be punished
4.7: God and meaning
Religion gives us a purpose
4.8: The power and the glory
They reflect on us too
4.9: Against the tide
Converts and natural-born rebels
4.10: Nature calling
A glimpse of God?
4.11: Pick 'n' mix
What are your reasons?
4.12: Summary
Finished this chapter? Move on to
Chapter 5
Faith in action
People create God in their own image.
What happens when they not only believe in God but put their
faith into action?
The results are predictable: good people do good things in the
name of religion and bad people do bad things. They act in
God's name but God is irrelevant.
Not sure what you're looking for?
If there's a word that you don't recognize, it might be defined
here.
If there's a topic you're looking for, check the search boxes at
the top and bottom of this page.
If there's something you want to ask, send an
e-mail.
We can't guarantee an answer, but we'll do our best.
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distract us from the reality around us.
Next:
Chapter Four: Section 11 Pick 'n' mix
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If God existed, he would...
admire the beauty of a universe that he did not create
recognize that eternity is meaningless
deny both heaven and hell
disown all men and women who speak in his name
denounce the harm caused by religious "morality"
help the human race to thrive without him
If God existed, he would be an atheist.
What is the difference between science and faith?
science is certain of nothing and requires proof of everything
faith is certain of everything and requires proof of nothing
Which do you trust?
"I know there is no God"
or
"I believe there is no God"
???
Check the answer
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