God of the Gaps?
We know that David Copperfield is an illusionist. He isn’t magical. The tricks he performs on stage are just that: tricks! They are sleight of hand illusions, albeit very large and complicated. As his website proclaims, he amazes audiences.
His website also proclaims that Mr. Copperfield has “sold more tickets and grossed more money than Lion King, Cats, Phantom of the Opera, and Chicago even during their best weeks.” In fact, he still holds the Broadway record. His London show sold out 20 straight performances. His television specials outperform top sporting events and won him 21 Emmy Awards. Over the past ten years, he has grossed $1 billion in ticket sales. We keep coming back for more and more, even though we know that he’s playing tricks on our eyes and our minds.
In other words, we understand that there is a rational explanation behind his illusions. Some recent TV shows have taken us behind the scenes of magician tricks, showing audiences how the illusions actually work. Yet we still keep coming back for more illusory magic.
Why, then, is the battle between atheist vs. theist so heated on the “God of the gaps” point? Science, the atheist says, narrows God’s province as we furnish more and more phenomena with a rational, scientific explanation. Instead, why can’t we just be in more awe of God, who provided nature with that design in the first place?
We humans are still in awe and wonder of other humans who do amazing things. As I’ve shown above with David Copperfield, even though we know that a rational explanation exists, we still keep coming back for more. So I don’t see why science should drive us away from God; rather, it should pull us closer.
It is interesting that your starting point often define where you will end up. An atheist looks at science and says it disproves god while I a theist looks at the science and say, “how is it possible that anything other than intelligent design formed such intricate complexity?” Good thoughts
http://sturggleswithfaith.wordpress.com
“Why, then, is the battle between atheist vs. theist so heated on the “God of the gaps” point? Science, the atheist says, narrows God’s province as we furnish more and more phenomena with a rational, scientific explanation. Instead, why can’t we just be in more awe of God, who provided nature with that design in the first place?”
There is no conflict between science and religion if the religious don’t deny scientific findings because of their religion and don’t use their religion to make scientific claims and then attack science if it finds evidence that contradicts those claims.
Good question. Knowing the mechanics of something should not remove the wonder of it or the admiration for the designer.
Nifty post.
I think it has something to do with trust. The theist says “God lives here”, and then the scientist says “well, actually, no”. The theist then revises, while refusing to acknowledge the fallibility of his beliefs. Cue heat.
That’s not an encouraging argument! So God is a trickster? Religion a snake oil salesman?
It might be worth looking at where religion and science get into tussles. For my part, if you ignore creation stories and things of that nature, things work out fine. Take the view of some eastern traditions that hold the universe has always been. There’s no need to rationalize those beliefs, they already come rationality included.