Back to David's theory of evolution (Evolution)

by David Turell , Wednesday, July 15, 2020, 14:46 (1372 days ago) @ dhw

dhw: So why have you told us that death is caused by aging, and that was what God wanted? Old people and young people die from the same diseases, so which "mistakes" did he want (deliberate) and which ones didn't he want (unavoidable)?

Unavoidable, was explained: molecular errors in high speed reactions. Older organisms have lots more errors. 'Aging' is built in purposely. All have to die.

dhw: You say the errors were beyond his control. I suggest they were incorporated deliberately. Which of us is limiting God’s powers?

DAVID: Can't I be honest about God's powers? It is you who are worried about limitations.

dhw: I am not in the least worried about limitations. One of my explanations of evolution is that God was experimenting, and you objected because your God knows everything and can do anything he wants. What worries me is that at one moment you are telling us that your God is all-powerful and always in control, and the next moment he has limitations, but mysteriously this case is less “humanizing” than a God who does what he wants to do.

God does what He wants to do, and His inventions have limits. So? doesn't bother me.

DAVID: My interpretation is simple: God creates reality, the history of which tells us what He did, not why.

dhw: If God exists, nobody could possibly disagree with that statement. But that is not the end of your interpretation! You tell us why, and you tell us how, and the two together make no sense, as you acknowledge when you say you have no idea why he would have chosen to design the vast bush in order to produce us. You then reject logical alternatives on the silly grounds that they “humanize” God (see below) and that nobody knows the truth – which applies to all theories.

DAVID: I am allowed, as you are, to theorize about God's purposes. Logic does not tell us God's reasons for wanting humans!!! You are not logical about God.

dhw: We are not dealing with his reasons for wanting humans. We are dealing with the claim that for 3.x billion years he directly designed millions of non-humans, although his only purpose was to directly design humans. Stop dodging!

No dodging. Your analysis of God's actions is faulty; God can be patient and not rush his creations

dhw: Your “humanizing” objection to my logical alternatives is invalidated by your agreement that your God probably has thought patterns similar to ours, so please stop flogging it.

DAVID: […] we cannot know God's thoughts behind His reasons for His actions. All we can know, not guess, is God's logic is like our logic. Stop twisting my arguments to cover your illogicality.

dhw: If God’s logic is like our logic, it should make sense to us. You constantly claim that I twist your arguments. Please tell me which of your arguments I have twisted.

DAVID: Logic does not tell us God's reasons for wanting humans!!! You are not logical about God.

dhw: As above, we are not dealing with his reasons for wanting humans. Now please tell me which of your arguments I have twisted. If you cannot do so, then please withdraw the accusation.

The exchange is clear. You want reasons for God's choices of action. I cannot know them and neither can you.