(February 14, 2013 at 11:18 am)AtlasS Wrote:(February 14, 2013 at 10:36 am)Esquilax Wrote: Ahh, the old god of the gaps argument: we don't know yet, therefore god. That's nice and flawed.
It's a well known argument & it's not used by the religious folks only. It's called the leap of faith, you reach a certain level where you don't know the answer, you would also think that searching for the solution would take a very long time, without a guarantee that the solution might be discovered.
A leap of faith, otherwise known as a flash of inspiration, is fine and can in fact be a perfectly valid aid to investigation.The problems come when, having made that inspirational leap, we decide that the solution has been found and thus the investigation shuts down.
However, this isn't what Esquilax was referring to. The god of the gaps argument ism basically, "we don't yet have an explanation for phenomenon X; therefore it must have been God". That is the point at which investigation shuts down.
(February 14, 2013 at 11:18 am)AtlasS Wrote: Religion is not what I want. It's a heavy burden on my back. I don't like the concept of hell, I don't like the concept of slavery to any deity.
I'm not making a judgement here, and I hope I don't come across as condescending, but perhaps you ought to search for a way to rid yourself of this burden if it troubles you so much? Doesn't have to be anything too drastic - you're already making a start with your opinions of hell, for instance.
(February 14, 2013 at 11:18 am)AtlasS Wrote: Evolution goes against my believe. Still I study it seriously, I even tried to link it with my religion. Even though parts of it contradict religion, I never denied it.
This too is admirable. There are many evolutionary biologists who manage to be religious as well. Just beware the trap of embracing religion at the expense of reality, where the two may conflict.
At the age of five, Skagra decided emphatically that God did not exist. This revelation tends to make most people in the universe who have it react in one of two ways - with relief or with despair. Only Skagra responded to it by thinking, 'Wait a second. That means there's a situation vacant.'