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DISTRICT BLOG

There Is A God

2/15/2019

Comments

 
One of the more interesting and compelling books in the field of non-Christian apologetics was written by former atheist* Antony Flew, one of the leading atheist philosophers* of the 20th century. 

In May of 2004, Antony announced that he now accepted the existence of God based upon the “world picture” that had emerged from modern science: (1) that the universe was brought into existence by an infinite Intelligence; (2) that this universe’s intricate laws manifest what scientists have called “the Mind of God;” and (3) that life and reproduction originate in a divine Source.

There are many fine arguments that Antony makes in There is a God: how the world’s most notorious atheist changed his mind (2007); foremost and most compelling were that:
  • design is apparent in nature, along with the fine tuning* of the universe – the anthropic principle, suggests the existence of a cosmic Designer
  • the laws and regularities in nature can be best explained by a divine Mind
  • there is no law of nature that instructs matter to produce end-directed, self-replicating life forms so how do we account for the origin of life from matter; stated differently, how can meaningful and semantic information emerge spontaneously from a collection of mindless molecules subject to blind and purposeless forces presents a deep conceptual challenge for the atheistic scientist…only blind and baseless faith in matter lies behind the claim that “bits of matter” can suddenly “create” a new reality that bears no resemblance to matter

On a final note, in appendix B, Antony has a dialogue on Jesus with N. T. Wright. Despite this winsome witness of N. T. Wright, Antony remained a mortalist* and deist*. If you are interested in compelling arguments from a non-Christian author, this is a very special work from a very influential, former atheist and is worthy of your review and reflection.

*NOTES:
  1. Antony was not always an atheist; he was raised in a Christian home and was the son of a Wesleyan Methodist pastor.
  2. In 1950 Antony authored the essay “Theology and Falsification” which became the most widely reprinted philosophical publication of the last half century. 
  3. It is a hard fact that we live in a universe with certain laws and constants and that life would not be possible if some of these laws and constants had been different. 
  4. A mortalist is a disbeliever in life after death.
  5. His “pilgrimage of reason” led him to accept the existence of a self-existent, immutable, immaterial, omnipotent and omniscient Being; yet he does not believe in the Trinitarian Christian God.
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  • Home
    • About Us
    • What We Believe
    • Administration
    • Board of Directors
    • Find a LCMS Church or School Near You >
      • NJ District Congregations
      • NJ District Schools
      • Find an LCMS Church, School, or Rostered Worker
    • Contact
  • EVENTS
    • Fall Pastors Conference
    • Calendar
    • Spring Pastor's Conference
    • Mission Classic Golf Outing
  • SERVICES
    • Congregational Services >
      • District Communications >
        • Communications Blog
      • Lutheran Schools & Early Childhood Centers
      • Parish Nursing
      • Worker Wellness >
        • Wellness Blog
    • Outreach & Missions >
      • Adult Ministry
      • Disaster Response
      • Stewardship & Financial Support Services
      • Lily the Comfort Dog
      • Mission and Ministry to Military, Veterans and Their Families
    • Partners in Ministry
  • AID & GRANTS
    • Financial Aid for LCMS Students
    • CHEF Grants
  • RESOURCES
    • COVID-19 Resources
    • Curated Articles & Papers
    • Resources on Racism
    • Recorded Workshops
    • Legal Resources
    • District Documents
    • Resources for Clergy >
      • District Directory
      • In Commemoration of the Reformation
      • 2020 Winter Pastors Conference Presentation Slides
      • Leaders & Learners
    • Resources for Congregations >
      • Congregations & Workers
    • District Convention 2018 >
      • Reports
  • DISTRICT CONVENTION
    • 2021 NJ District Convention Updates
    • Convention Information
    • Reports to the 2021 District Convention
    • Essayists
  • BLOG
    • Health Blog
  • Give