Reply #57: Martin Gardner is a good reference [View All]

[kurth]

In his famous little book "The Whys of a Philosophical Scrivener", Gardner summarizes pretty much all the arguments for and against God, immortality, prayer, evil, etc. In the end, it is a matter of personal belief. A few quotes:

"There is one fact about which both atheists and theists can agree. For many people, perhaps most people, there is a deep, ineradicable desire not to cease to exist..."

"If matter consists of particles known only by properties that are given by mathematical formulas, and if no one knows what is behind the formulas, who are we to say there cannot be other substances based on formulas not yet known..."

"If we could know whether there is or is not another life with the certainty that we know the sun will rise tomorrow, either belief would make life difficult if not impossible..."

"The most incredible fact about existence is that you and I exist. That the universe exists is awful enough, but even more astonishing, we are part of that universe, a part capable of wondering why the whole thing exists and why we ourselves exist... That you exist now is so incredible that your continued existence after death pales in comparison.."

"Suppose for argument's sake that someday physics will indeed reach the closed form of an axiomatic system. There will still be severe limitations on what science can tell us. For one thing, we could never be absolutely sure that the axioms are permanent..."