<< Hi Glenn,
Please believe me when I say I am not out to belittle anyone's sincere
beliefs. I am sincerely trying to understand yours. You say there is
something other than chance behind the universe. If so, it isn't chance is
it? Mutations might not be random, right? Are you saying God "set up"
(that could mean the same as "designed", couldn't it) the universe to
achieve his purpose by random processes? If he knew the end result (his
purpose) how could the process be random without the result being random?>>
Knowing the end results ahead of time does not mean the process that gave
rise to the end results was not random. Consider a simple example.
If you flip a legitimate coin a thousand times, I know that you'll get about
500 heads and 500 tails. And when you flip it and get these numbers,
it was chance that gave rise to them.
Although this is a ridiculously simple example, I think Glenn is arguing
that God is not bamboozled by chance. He knows it inside and out and
thus can still use chance to bring about a determined event. I must
confess that I like this argument (assuming I understand Glenn correctly).
Another possible argument is that God can survey all logically possible
universes and bring into existence any one He chooses. He thus
actualized this reality which happens to have spawned humans through
chance and natural selection because it spawned humans. The
theological upside of these arguments is that they stress God's
omniscience and omnipotence (as Glenn notes). The theological
downside is that the tend to turn God into an aloof sky god. ID,
on the other hand, emphasizes God's intimacy, but de-emphasizes
his power.
Do you think it might be possible that *both* ID and TE are true
and that the dispute is a function of our ever so limited ability to
comprehend and detect reality? Just a thought.
Mike