Hi Allen;
Allen Roy wrote:
> Naturalism/Materialism is the concept that nature -- matter, energy, motion,
> etc. -- is all there is, has always been so and ever will be (No evidence of
> a beginning, no possibility of an end). Everything that is exists and
> happens does so according to inherent laws in nature. There is not and can
> not be any outside influences. Thus life had to arise within nature
> according to natural laws (Abiogenesis). The same processes which occur
> today have always occurred throughout the distant past though not
> necessarily at the same rates (Actualism or Non-Uniform Uniformitarianism).
>
I have a couple of honest questions for you if you feel so inclined to respond:
1) What does it mean to say "outside" when speaking of influences acting upon
the (inside?) universe? Can such a notion have any meaning at all to human
discourse?
2) Should we consider the classical notion of angels as being "inside" or
"outside" - or perhaps more to the heart of the question : "natural" or
"supernatural".
Maybe it is time for our faith to move on from such simplistic dualistic
concepts as natural vs supernatural, for after all, isn't God the most
"natural" of beings! :-)
>
> As a Creationary Catastrophist, I believe that nature had a beginning. It
> operates according to rules (physics) invented, designed and created by God,
> who can function within or without nature according to his wishes. Life
> exists only because God created it. It is impossible for life to originate
> on it's own. The processes which exist today have commonly occurred in the
> past, however, the catastrophe called Noah's Flood was a real, one time
> event caused by God that occurred within the rules of nature but beyond
> common occurrence.
>
3) Is not God's presence required "in the now" in order for the universe to
maintain its existence? If not, is this not a deistic view?
4) Why is it impossible for life to originate "on its own"? Could not God have
provided it with something like Howard Van Tills fully gifted functionality (Is
that the phase Howard?) so that via the combination of random chance and
physical forces, life would emerge and evolve?
Thanks
George A.
-- George A. Andrews Jr. Physics/Applied Science College of William & Mary P.O. Box 8795 Williamsburg, VA 23187-8795
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