Voordat we over god kunnen praten zullen we natuurlijk eerst moeten weten wat god is. Ik kwoot Smith's boek "Atheism: the case against God":
Mr. Jones: "An unie exists."
Mr. White: "Prove it."
Mr. Jones: "It has rained for three consecutive days -- that is my proof."
If this exchange is less than satisfactory, much of the blame rests with Mr. White: his demand for proof is premature. Mr. Jones has not specified what an "unie" is; until and unless he does so, "unie" is nothing but a meaningless sound, and Mr. Jones is uttering nonsense. Without some description of an "Unie," the alleged proof for its existence is incoherent.
When confronted with the claim that a god exists, the person who immediately demands proof commits the same error as does Mr. White. His first response should be, "What is it for which you are claiming existence?" The theist must present an intelligible description of god. Until he does so, "god" makes no more sense than "unie"; both are cognitively empty, and any attempt at proof is logically absurd. Nothing can qualify as evidence for the existence of a god unless we have some idea of what we are searching for. Even if it is demanded that the existence of god be accepted on faith, we still must know what it is that we are required to have faith in.
Ik weet niet wat een god is. Ik heb nog nooit een god gezien, gehoord, gevoeld, geroken of geproefd. Dus ik kan er niet echt over praten voordat ik weet wat het is, wel?
Daarom de vraag aan de theisten:
Wat is (een) god?
Lord Daemon
Mr. Jones: "An unie exists."
Mr. White: "Prove it."
Mr. Jones: "It has rained for three consecutive days -- that is my proof."
If this exchange is less than satisfactory, much of the blame rests with Mr. White: his demand for proof is premature. Mr. Jones has not specified what an "unie" is; until and unless he does so, "unie" is nothing but a meaningless sound, and Mr. Jones is uttering nonsense. Without some description of an "Unie," the alleged proof for its existence is incoherent.
When confronted with the claim that a god exists, the person who immediately demands proof commits the same error as does Mr. White. His first response should be, "What is it for which you are claiming existence?" The theist must present an intelligible description of god. Until he does so, "god" makes no more sense than "unie"; both are cognitively empty, and any attempt at proof is logically absurd. Nothing can qualify as evidence for the existence of a god unless we have some idea of what we are searching for. Even if it is demanded that the existence of god be accepted on faith, we still must know what it is that we are required to have faith in.
Ik weet niet wat een god is. Ik heb nog nooit een god gezien, gehoord, gevoeld, geroken of geproefd. Dus ik kan er niet echt over praten voordat ik weet wat het is, wel?
Daarom de vraag aan de theisten:
Wat is (een) god?
Lord Daemon
Welch Schauspiel! Aber ach! ein Schauspiel nur!
Wo fass ich dich, unendliche Natur?