Topics Religion

Question It sounds to me like the arguments about the existence of God are displaced from what the essence of the argument is "really" about. It seems pretty clear from the equations of quantum mechanics that there is a Deity. However, whether She takes any interest in human beings, let alone the quotidian details of our everyday lives, is another matter. That is where the argument "really" seems to be: if we posit that there is a Deity, what reasons do we have to believe that She cares about our everyday lives or intercedes in response to a prayer? It may well be that She is like a parent with grown children: "I took care of you and raised you to adulthood and gave you all the skills and abilities you need to take care of yourself on your own. Good luck!" Isn't that the basis of the argument in favor of free will? If we do have free will, then why would God respond to our prayers?

Accepted:
January 28, 2016

Comments

It seems pretty clear from

It seems pretty clear from the equations of quantum mechanics that there is a Deity.

I must say: That's as striking a statement as I can recall reading in quite a while! I wonder if it's the view of most of those who do QM for a living. Indeed, aren't there aspects of QM (indeterminacy, randomness, the Measurement Problem, the difficulty of reconciling QM with General Relativity, etc.) that suggest that no Designer is responsible for QM?

Anyway, you draw an analogy between the Deistic God and a parent of grown children. But parents of grown children don't take the totally hands-off attitude toward their children that Deism attributes to God. Not if they're decent parents. What decent parent would deliberately choose not to call for help if she saw her adult child clutch his chest and collapse on the pavement?

The Deistic God is a puzzling figure: knowledgeable and powerful enough to create a universe of mind-boggling size and complexity but morally callous enough not to care if the universe She creates contains, for example, enormous amounts of horrific suffering on the part of innocent people, suffering that She presumably could prevent.

I'd add: foundations of

I'd add: foundations of quantum mechanics is my field. I have at least a nodding acquaintance with many of the physicists and philosophers who work in this area. I don't know a single one of them who thinks that the equations of quantum mechanics provide evidence for the existence of any sort of a Deity. And I'd have to add that this seems right to me. Quantum mechanics may provide interesting concepts and analogies for theological thinking (physicist/priest John Polkinghorne thinks so, for instance.) But that's far short of providing arguments for the existence of a god.