in recent years significant progress has been made in solving the question of how life originated on our planet.. how do you think theists will respond when it finally happens?
as a former christian i know my reaction would have been something like "well that just goes to show that it takes intelligent life to make life", but for two reasons that defense doesn't work.. firstly it would prove that life is not an ethereal force that originates with god.
there is no 'ghost in the machine', no elan vital.
Anybody is free to rant about anything on their own thread. They are not welcome to hijack thread after thread with facile postmodern bullshit and deliberately misrepresent what others say.
SBF hates science. There is no such thing as a fact. We get it already!
in recent years significant progress has been made in solving the question of how life originated on our planet.. how do you think theists will respond when it finally happens?
as a former christian i know my reaction would have been something like "well that just goes to show that it takes intelligent life to make life", but for two reasons that defense doesn't work.. firstly it would prove that life is not an ethereal force that originates with god.
there is no 'ghost in the machine', no elan vital.
Thank you for highlighting the facile straw man with which SBF began his trashing of yet another thread
in recent years significant progress has been made in solving the question of how life originated on our planet.. how do you think theists will respond when it finally happens?
as a former christian i know my reaction would have been something like "well that just goes to show that it takes intelligent life to make life", but for two reasons that defense doesn't work.. firstly it would prove that life is not an ethereal force that originates with god.
there is no 'ghost in the machine', no elan vital.
In the ancient past if something was convincing - if an individual had the power to convince - then his take on reality was accepted as true. do we want to be convinced like this? - Ruby
No. A million times no!
That is why I always present objective evidence. I make it clear when I am discussing a hypothesis or a well proven fact. I welcome challenges and corrections. Nobody should take anybody's word for anything. Check it out. Do the research.
What is pernicious is when people like SBF twist what others have said and make it look as if they have refuted something when all they have done is attack a strawman.
My OP was a very simple and reasonable conversation-opener. As usual SF saw it as an opportunity to hijack a thread to spout his usual vacuous, anti-scientific, self-indulgent, bullshit. Some of the most inane things ever written in the history of the forum were written by SBF in this thread. As usual you cheer him on from the peanut gallery.
in recent years significant progress has been made in solving the question of how life originated on our planet.. how do you think theists will respond when it finally happens?
as a former christian i know my reaction would have been something like "well that just goes to show that it takes intelligent life to make life", but for two reasons that defense doesn't work.. firstly it would prove that life is not an ethereal force that originates with god.
there is no 'ghost in the machine', no elan vital.
I met one once. She is an atheist now of course.
in recent years significant progress has been made in solving the question of how life originated on our planet.. how do you think theists will respond when it finally happens?
as a former christian i know my reaction would have been something like "well that just goes to show that it takes intelligent life to make life", but for two reasons that defense doesn't work.. firstly it would prove that life is not an ethereal force that originates with god.
there is no 'ghost in the machine', no elan vital.
in recent years significant progress has been made in solving the question of how life originated on our planet.. how do you think theists will respond when it finally happens?
as a former christian i know my reaction would have been something like "well that just goes to show that it takes intelligent life to make life", but for two reasons that defense doesn't work.. firstly it would prove that life is not an ethereal force that originates with god.
there is no 'ghost in the machine', no elan vital.
Get the popcorn, sweets and drinks at Poundland.
in recent years significant progress has been made in solving the question of how life originated on our planet.. how do you think theists will respond when it finally happens?
as a former christian i know my reaction would have been something like "well that just goes to show that it takes intelligent life to make life", but for two reasons that defense doesn't work.. firstly it would prove that life is not an ethereal force that originates with god.
there is no 'ghost in the machine', no elan vital.
Our body cells are continually replicating, renewing, dying so that the body is a different body (so to speak) than the one we had 7 years ago, apart from brain cells. However we are still the same person. - tornapart
Really interesting comments thanks.
I think I will pursue it further in a new thread.
Landy I think you are right. I wonder how more rational christians would handle it. Evolution has been accepted by millions of christians but very few Muslims. Would the realisation that life can arise spontaneously from geochemistry be any more of a challenge?
Rebel please deal with the topic or hush. The forum doesn't need any more "politeness police".
in recent years significant progress has been made in solving the question of how life originated on our planet.. how do you think theists will respond when it finally happens?
as a former christian i know my reaction would have been something like "well that just goes to show that it takes intelligent life to make life", but for two reasons that defense doesn't work.. firstly it would prove that life is not an ethereal force that originates with god.
there is no 'ghost in the machine', no elan vital.
Rebel - Just as we were getting a conversation on topic you derail it again.
SBF wants attention away from the topic and onto himself. Well done!
in recent years significant progress has been made in solving the question of how life originated on our planet.. how do you think theists will respond when it finally happens?
as a former christian i know my reaction would have been something like "well that just goes to show that it takes intelligent life to make life", but for two reasons that defense doesn't work.. firstly it would prove that life is not an ethereal force that originates with god.
there is no 'ghost in the machine', no elan vital.
Surely if scientists are trying to make things happen then 'intelligence' is still behind it?
Not really. It's not like they are trying to make a cell or anything. They are setting up the chemical conditions that existed in a prebiotic earth to observe what happens.
To illustrate. The Giant's Causeway in Ireland consists of regular polygonal columns of basalt that don't look natural. If a scientist can show in the lab that these shapes emerge naturally from cooling magma - they can - then it shows no agency was involved in forming Clochán an Aifir.
The fact that it took an intelligent scientist to set up the experiment doesn't undermine the results.
I would think that it would turn some believers away from their faith in God but I'm sure just as many would stick with their beliefs
I agree. Many believers would deny the reality.
Evolution had a profound effect on some aspects of theology 150 years ago. We now know there was no Adam and Eve and no fall from perfection. Some believers adapted but others are still in denial. I wonder if origin-of-life would be any more challenging.
in recent years significant progress has been made in solving the question of how life originated on our planet.. how do you think theists will respond when it finally happens?
as a former christian i know my reaction would have been something like "well that just goes to show that it takes intelligent life to make life", but for two reasons that defense doesn't work.. firstly it would prove that life is not an ethereal force that originates with god.
there is no 'ghost in the machine', no elan vital.
I've been reading the thread with interest over the last few days and a lot of it goes right over my head and I can't make sense of any of it. - tornapart
That is a pity. SBF has succeeded in making a really simple and interesting talking point into something obscure and nonsensical.
The OP proposed a simple question. Scientists are working on demonstrating how life emerged from rocks through entirely naturalistic means with no intelligent agency.
I am simply asking for a conversation about what implications that would have for religious belief - if any.
This is why I get so frustrated by SBF. I enjoy interesting conversations about topics like this, it's why I come to the forum. Other posters like tornapart would probably join in and exchange ideas such as Memphis did earlier.
SBF goes out his way to make that impossible.
