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Is 'God' An Atheist?
#10
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist?
Alright, I can accept the idea of a non-self aware god for the purposes of your discussion, especially given the hypothetical nature of the whole thing : )

I think in response to your cases I would say that for A, your argument of anthropomorphic problems could be solved if this force is manifest through the inner religion that so many claim. Perhaps it is an anthropomorphic perspective but that doesn't necessarily rule it out as many religious people would argue that humans are made in God's image. If this force has no self-awareness then perhaps the increasing level of complexity we see is analogous to developmental stages of human life. The development of sentience could then be a universal attempt to examine itself and the human sense of god is the true semblance coming through. Your argument of how a personality form in a mind not associated with the universe might also be asked of how we develop our personalities from synaptic transmitters, or more fundamentally, the actions of individual atoms. I sure don't know the answer to that question, but the fact that similar situations can be identified suggests that this phenomena may exist on a higher order and could be examined further.

The second also sounds similar to the Deism followed by Ben Franklin, where God may exist but is useless because nothing can be changed. This view could also be considered deterministic depending on how you want to interpret the limits of the conditions imposed on the universe. In this instance then I think an argument could be made that it is the entirety of the space-time interactions that make up "God", and that these conditions would define the circumstances in which this type of God could arise. This is highly speculative but if one considers the actions of quantum phenomena in an energy density unlike one we've ever seen then it seems plausible that the laws our universe work on may be the correct combination of random law changes that permit the conversion of energy to matter in the big bang, bringing into existence this type of deity.

I would also submit another option, that of the Gaia theory. Modern physics predicts vibrational strings/loops of energy at the foundation of matter, and we've known for decades that there is quite literally nothing differentiating humans from a common hydrogen atom except macroscopic combination. Perhaps this underlying energy that permeates the universe interacts with itself in a way we can't understand, like synapses in our brain. In a case like this a superior force or will could develop in a way that optimizes some purpose of the universe, possibly to increase entropy to a point of pure disorder and energy as it may have been before the big bang. A God of this nature may or may not be self-aware, but it is a harmonious view with many of the more Eastern belief systems.
My religion is the understanding of my world. My god is the energy that underlies it all. My worship is my constant endeavor to unravel the mysteries of my religion. Thinking
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Messages In This Thread
Is 'God' An Atheist? - by Spencer - August 7, 2010 at 5:08 pm
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by TheDarkestOfAngels - August 7, 2010 at 5:21 pm
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by ssmutters - August 7, 2010 at 5:39 pm
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by Tiberius - August 7, 2010 at 9:59 pm
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by ssmutters - August 7, 2010 at 10:58 pm
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by Cego_Colher - August 7, 2010 at 11:11 pm
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by Edward the Theist - August 7, 2010 at 11:53 pm
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by ABierman1986 - August 8, 2010 at 2:29 am
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by Edward the Theist - August 8, 2010 at 3:15 am
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by ABierman1986 - August 8, 2010 at 4:25 am
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by Edward the Theist - August 8, 2010 at 5:45 am
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by downbeatplumb - August 8, 2010 at 6:01 am
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by Edward the Theist - August 8, 2010 at 6:23 am
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by downbeatplumb - August 8, 2010 at 6:29 am
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by Edward the Theist - August 8, 2010 at 6:42 am
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by ABierman1986 - August 8, 2010 at 5:56 am
RE: Is 'God' An Atheist? - by ABierman1986 - August 8, 2010 at 6:27 am

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