[Vision2020] Spiders, Humans, God & 'War

[Tbertruss at aol.com]

Chas et. al.

Chas wrote:

I have never understood this sentiment.  In your illustration of the
spider, the spider at least registers that we exist (or so I imagine;
I've never been inside of a spider's mind, if it has one, to verify
that this is true).  in the case of humanity assessing God, we
necessarily invent Him out of whole-cloth, as He has left us no
inarguable evidence of His existence.  Determining the intentions and
actions of this possibly/probably fictional entity is the only avenue
we have available.  It is amazing in the sole sense that attempting to
fathom the attributes of an invisible pink unicorn is amazing; 

Chas wrote the above in response to this:

This is like saying a spider understand the intentions of a human being doing 
quantum mechanics.  The spider simply is incapable of understanding in this 
manner, as human beings, speculatively speaking, very well may be incapable of 
understanding the intentions and mind of a being that created the entire 
universe

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I'm not sure if you are agreeing with the usefulness of my spider analogy or 
not... What sentiment do you not understand?  That I am astonished that human 
beings believe in incredible and impossible things?  Perhaps you think I 
should not be astonished?  Ah, but I am but a new born babe in the woods, 
wondering, wondering, dazed at the infinite possibilities of the human imagination! 

I do not agree that the spider registers that "we" exist.  I may be 
nit-picking, but though the spider will respond to a stimulus that you present, it may 
have no recognition of who or what you are, that you are biped mammal, and not 
a tree blowing in the wind, and it certainly does not comprehend Quantum 
mechanics, which was the condition I set for comparing a spider's comprehension of 
human intellect to the comprehension of the human mind of the mind or 
capabilities of a being that was capable of creating the entire universe.

My comparison in this case was not meant to be precise, nor does it hammer 
home my point conclusively.  Just because a spider cannot comprehend a human 
being doing Quantum mechanics does not mean necessarily that a being who created 
the entire universe is completely beyond the comprehension of the human mind.  
But the image of a spider attempting to understand Quantum mechanics should 
communicate to the reader the great disparity in intellectual and other sorts 
of capabilities that might, indeed, would probably be present, between a 
creator of the universe, and human beings.  And that the absolute certainty some 
fervent believers in God find so easy, that they understand what God wants, is 
questionable, or should be questioned, perhaps especially when what they believe 
that God wants is war against other human beings.

Ted Moffett

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