Transcript Is God a delusion?

Is belief in
God a
delusion?
A response to
Richard
Dawkins
“ It has been a good
year for atheists…”
The Times, 24th December 2007
“ Not since Victorian
times has there been
such a sustained
debate about religious
belief”
The Times, 24th December 2007
“The God
Delusion “
• One of the best-selling
non-fiction books of its
type:1.5m copies in 31
languages
Richard
Dawkins
“The God
Delusion “
• One of the best-selling
non-fiction books
• Backed up by Channel 4
TV series: new Dawkins
on Darwin series
Richard
Dawkins
“The God
Delusion “
“Richard Dawkins was
recently voted as one of
the world’s top three
intellectuals”
Richard
Dawkins
• One of the best-selling
non-fiction books
• Backed up by TV series
• Much hyped
“The God
Delusion “
“Appendix:
A partial list of friendly
addresses for individuals
needing support in
escaping from religion “
(p 375)
Richard
Dawkins
• One of the best-selling
non-fiction books in
2007
• Backed up by Channel 4
TV series
• Much hyped
• A book designed to try
to destroy faith in God
by an “Evangelical
Atheist”
“The God
Delusion “
“ I see this as a book for a
new millennium, one in
which we may be released
from lives dominated by
the supernatural”
Brian Eno, sleeve
comment
Richard
Dawkins
• One of the best-selling
non-fiction books in
2007
• Backed up by Channel 4
TV series
• Much hyped
• A book designed to try
to destroy faith in God
“The God
Delusion “
Suggests that believers are
of inferior intelligence to
atheists
Richard
Dawkins
• One of the best-selling
non-fiction books in
2007
• Backed up by Channel 4
TV series
• Much hyped
• A book designed to try
to destroy faith in God
• Couched in scathing
and sometimes
offensive language
“The God
Delusion “
19th
“The
century is the last
time when it was possible
for an educated person to
admit to believing in the
Virgin Birth [of Jesus]
without embarrassment.”
(p 157)
Richard
Dawkins
• One of the best-selling
non-fiction books in
2007
• Backed up by Channel 4
TV series
• Much hyped
• A book designed to try
to destroy faith in God
• Couched in scathing
and sometimes
offensive language
“The God
Delusion “
“Dawkins claims that
religion..can lead to
extreme violence;
[therefore] faith instruction
to the young is worse than
paedophile abuse.”
The Times, 24th December 2007
Richard
Dawkins
• One of the best-selling
non-fiction books in
2007
• Backed up by Channel 4
TV series
• Much hyped
• A book designed to try
to destroy faith in God
• Couched in scathing
and sometimes
offensive language
“The God
Delusion “
“My dream is that his book
may help [atheists] to
‘come out’ “
(p 4)
Richard
Dawkins
• One of the best-selling nonfiction books in 2007
• Backed up by Channel 4 TV
series
• Much hyped
• A book designed to try to
destroy faith in God
• Couched in scathing and
sometimes offensive
language
• Claims atheists are a
persecuted minority
• Worried about the
persistence of belief
in creation
• Critical of science
teaching
“He worries that evolution
takes up little more than
two hours of a child’s
science education”
Richard
Dawkins
“He worries that evolution
takes up little more than
two hours of a child’s
science education”
Richard
Dawkins
• Worried about the
persistence of belief in
creation
• Critical of science
teaching
• Very alarmed by 2006
survey which showed:
- Creation most likely 22%
- Intelligent Design
- Evolution
- Don’t know
Ipsos Poll for BBC Horizon
January 2006
19%
48%
11%
The God hypothesis
“ That there exists a
super-human,
supernatural
intelligence who
deliberately designed
and created the
universe and everything in it, including
us.”
Richard
Dawkins
(p 31)
The Dawkins assertion
“ That any creative
intelligence, of
sufficient complexity
to design anything,
comes into existence
only as the end
product of an
extended product of
gradual evolution.”
Richard
Dawkins
(p 31)
The Dawkins assertion
That there is no
God and that
Christianity is at
best a delusion
and at worst a
danger to civilised
society
Richard
Dawkins
The Dawkins assertion
That the earth we
see around us is
the product of an
almost mystical
force of Darwinian
evolution
Richard
Dawkins
Objectives tonight
Richard
Dawkins
1. To examine what
Dawkins says about
the earth
2. To look at what he
says about the
Bible, the Lord
Jesus and God
3. To make some
comparisons with
what the Bible says
Deluded by
Design?
Dawkins accepts that life
on earth is complex:“ Every species and every
Deluded by
Design?
organ that has ever been
looked at within a species is
good at what it does. The
wings of birds, bees and
bats are good at flying….
Dawkins accepts that life on
earth is complex:We live on a planet where
we are surrounded by
perhaps 10 million species,
each one of which
independently displays a
powerful illusion of apparent
design…” p 139
“
Deluded by
Design?
“
Dawkins accepts that life
on earth is complex:“We live not only on a
friendly planet but in a
friendly universe …”
Deluded by
Design?
“
Deluded by
Design?
“our kind of life cannot
exist without liquid
water”
Deluded by
Design?
We are in exactly the
right orbit round the
sun
..not too hot and not
too cold”
Deluded by
Design?
“Earth’s single
relatively large moon
serves to stabilise our
axis..
Deluded by
Design?
“Our sun is unusual in
not being a binary,
locked in mutual orbit
with a companion
star..”
Deluded by
Design?
The odds against life
on earth developing
are a billion to one!
Deluded by
Design?
Yet evolution must
have happened
because we are here!
Deluded by
Design?
Evolution by natural
selection is the only
explanation
Deluded by
Design?
Evolution by natural
selection is the only
explanation, since
Dawkins refuses to
accept the idea of an
all-powerful God
Digression :
But about the
origin of life?
•Dawkins denies that
chance is the reason for
the development of life,
since he claims natural
selection is not chance
But what about
the origin of life?
• Dawkins denies that
chance is the reason for
the development of life,
since he claims natural
selection is not chance
• But he suggests that
the origin of life required
several pieces of luck
But what about
the origin of life?
•Dawkins denies that
chance is the reason for
the development of life,
since he claims natural
selection is not chance
• But he suggests that
the origin of life required
several pieces of luck
• Literally one in a zillion
But what about
the origin of life?
“We can deal with the
unique origin of life by
postulating a very large
number of planetary
opportunities. Once that
initial slice of luck has
been granted..natural
selection takes over and
natural selection is
emphatically not a matter
of luck..”
(p 140)
Not a matter of
luck?
“It may be that the origin
of life is not the only
major gap in the
evolutionary theory
which is bridged by
sheer luck..”
(p 140)
Not a matter of
luck?
•“It may be that the origin
of life is not the only
major gap in the
evolutionary theory
which is bridged by
sheer luck..”(p 140)
• Goes on to suggest
that the origin of
eucaryotic cells and
consciousness are
also matters of luck.
Flaws of logic
• Neither the theory of
evolution nor natural
selection are , as
Dawkins suggests,
proven facts.
Flaws of logic
• Neither the theory of
evolution nor natural
selection are , as
Dawkins suggests,
proven facts.
• Dawkins has not
disposed of the
difficulty of irreducible
complexity e.g. the
components of basic
cells
The bacterial
flagellum
“ Evidently crucial
components ..were already in
place and working [in TTSS]
before the bacterial flagellum
evolved”
p132
Flaws of logic
• Neither the theory of
evolution nor natural selection
are , as Dawkins suggests,
proven facts.
• Dawkins has not disposed of
the difficulty of irreducible
complexity.
• Dawkins’ suggestion
that because we exist,
evolution must have
happened is a circular
argument, rather less
scientific or rational
than religious faith.
God’s reply to those who assert the
supremacy of human reason
God’s reply to those who assert the
supremacy of human reason
Job chapter 38
Dawkins on God
“A God capable of designing a
universe or anything else
would have to be complex and
statistically improbable..” p153
Dawkins on God
“To suggest that the original
prime mover was complicated
enough to indulge in intelligent
design..is tantamount to dealing
yourself a perfect hand in
bridge..” p155
Dawkins on God
“To suggest that the original
prime mover was complicated
enough to indulge in intelligent
design..is tantamount to dealing
yourself a perfect hand in
bridge..” p155
The God of the Bible is presented to us as
being eternal, all-powerful and the creator of
all we see around us.
The God of the Bible is presented to us as
being eternal, all-powerful and the creator of
all we see around us:This is evidenced by:-
* the wonders of the world around us
e.g. Psalm 19 vv 1-4
The God of the Bible is presented to us as
being eternal, all-powerful and the creator of
all we see around us:This is evidenced by:-
* the wonders of the world around us
e.g. Psalm 19 vv 1-4
* God’s work in the lives of men and
women e.g. Psalm 23
The God of the Bible is presented to us as
being eternal, all-powerful and the creator of
all we see around us:This is evidenced by:* the wonders of the world around us
e.g. Psalm 19 vv 1-4
* God’s work in the lives of men and
women e.g. Psalm 23
* the words of God’s prophets e.g.
Ezekiel 37 being fulfilled long after they
were spoken
The God of the Bible is presented to us as a
God who cares:This is evidenced by:* Repeated descriptions of God as a
Father e.g. Psalm 103
The God of the Bible is presented to us as a
God who cares:This is evidenced by:* Repeated descriptions of God as a Father e.g.
Psalm 103
* Many references to God caring about right
and wrong e.g. Psalms 7, 11
The God of the Bible is presented to us as a
God who cares:This is evidenced by:* Repeated descriptions of God as a Father e.g.
Psalm 103
* Many references to God caring about right and
wrong e.g. Psalms 7, 11
* A clear account of the origin of evil Genesis 3
The God of the Bible is presented to us as a
God who cares:This is evidenced by:* Repeated descriptions of God as a Father e.g.
Psalm 103
* Many references to God caring about right and
wrong e.g. Psalms 7, 11
* A clear account of the origin of evil Genesis 3
* The giving of God’s Son, Jesus Christ, to
save us from our sins Romans 5:6-8
The God of the Bible is presented to us as a
God who cares:This is evidenced by:* Repeated descriptions of God as a Father e.g.
Psalm 103
* Many references to God caring about right and
wrong e.g. Psalms 7, 11
* A clear account of the origin of evil Genesis 3
* The giving of God’s Son, Jesus Christ, to save us
from our sins Romans 5:6-8
* The promise that the world will be restored to
perfection when the Kingdom of God is
established on the earth. Revelation 21:1-5
Dawkins has no conception or
understanding of such a God
• Scoffs at the Biblical record
• Knows little and cares less for historical
evidence of the existence of Biblical
characters including Jesus
• Recycles objections, ( including the Da Vinci
Code’s), from a wide range of critics and
atheists without giving any real impression
that he has read the whole of the Bible with
an open mind
Dawkins has no conception or
understanding of such a God
So struggles:• To explain altruism in humans, especially
Christian “charity” to others
Dawkins has no conception or
understanding of such a God
So struggles:• To explain altruism in humans, especially
Christian “charity” to others
• The presence of evil in the world – except to
blame almost all conflicts on religion
“ I cannot think of any war that has been fought in
the name of atheism.”
Dawkins has no conception or
understanding of such a God
So struggles:• To explain altruism in humans, especially
Christian “charity” to others
• The presence of evil in the world – except to
blame almost all conflicts on religion
“ I cannot think of any war that has been fought in
the name of atheism.”
[Really? what about the Terror in the French
Revolution, Stalin’s massacres or Pol Pot’s
killing fields,- to name only a few!]
Dawkins has no conception or
understanding of such a God
So struggles to explain:• altruism in humans, especially Christian
“charity” to others
• the presence of evil in the world – except to
blame almost all conflicts on religion
• the persistence of religious beliefs which he
believes to be not only useless but dangerous
What of the
future?
What of the
future?
* Climate change?
* Population growth?
* Sustainability?
* The future of the
human race?
What of the
future?
Dawkins asserts that
evolution is bringing a
better world:“ There seems to be a
steadily shifting standard
of what is morally
accepted.. in a
recognisably consistent
direction ..[of]
improvement.” p268
What of the future?
UK Crime figures 1946 -2001
Murder
Rape
Robbery
1946
347
251
921
1956
315
329
965
1966
364
644
4474
1976
565
1094
11611
1986
662
2288
30020
2001
886
9743
111500
What of the future?
UK Crime figures 1946 -2001
Murder
Rape
Robbery
1946
347
251
921
1956
315
329
965
1966
364
644
4474
1976
565
1094
11611
1986
662
2288
30020
2001
886
9743
111500
Note: During this time church attendance declined substantially
This is hardly a steady improvement with the impact of enlightened atheism!
What of the future?
“But understand this, that in the last days will come
times of stress. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of
money, proud, arrogant, abusive, disobedient to their
parents, ungrateful, unholy, inhuman, implacable,
slanderers, profligates, fierce, haters of good,
treacherous, reckless, swollen with conceit, lovers of
pleasure rather than lovers of God, holding the form of
religion but denying the power of it. Avoid such people.”
2 Tim 3:1-5
“The Lord God will set up a Kingdom
which will never be destroyed…
The law will go out from Zion and the
word of the Lord from Jerusalem..
What of the
future?
They shall not hurt or destroy in all my
holy mountain
The earth will be filled with the knowledge
of the Lord
This same Jesus you saw taken from you
into heaven will come in the same way as
you saw Him go…”
Is belief in
God a
delusion?
No, never!
Thank you
and
goodnight!