Re: [asa] NY Times: Darwin's God

I think it depends what you mean by "implanted programming." That God
created us with a desire to know him and means by which to in some sense
perceive his glory and relate to him is clear, both from ordinary experience
and from scripture. So, to say that evolution produced a tendency to
believe in God, or that brain chemistry or structures that make belief in
God rewarding, I think should be uncontroversial. That is kind of like
saying "we have evolved to be able to perceive things in visible light.
This is consistent with my theological beliefs, because I believe God
created beautiful things like flowers for us to see and enjoy."

 It seems to me, however, that the folks interviewed in the NYT article are
going far beyond this. What they are saying is more like "beauty is nothing
but a brain state. There is no 'real' beauty." Or, more directly: "God is
nothing but a brain state. There is no 'real' God."

I think these folks are going far beyond the conclusions of natural science
to make reductionistic metaphysical claims -- or at least, I think that sort
of program underlies their explanations.

On 3/10/07, Bill Hamilton <williamehamiltonjr@yahoo.com> wrote:
>
> There is another possibility. If man developed by an evolutionary
> process guided by God, then it's entirely possible that God implanted
> programming to develop a longing for God -- which would be met by God
> Himself when He revealed Himself.
>
> Bill Hamilton
> William E. Hamilton, Jr., Ph.D.
> 248.652.4148 (home) 248.821.8156 (mobile)
> "...If God is for us, who is against us?" Rom 8:31
>
>
>
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Received on Sun Mar 11 09:10:06 2007