Over January I thought I’d spend a few weeks in the newssheet reflecting on why I’m a Christian. Step 1 to being a Christian is of course to believe in a God. The reason I’m a theist is because as far as I can see, atheism requires adherents to suspend reality. Let me explain using the Kalam Cosmological Argument.
The cosmological argument is based on how our universe is expanding. Scientists have observed that all matter in our universe is moving away from each other. What this means mathematically is that our universe MUST have a beginning, because if we were to press the rewind button on the universe and watch it contract, if we go back far enough we would observe ALL matter in the universe coming together at one point.
Modern science calls the beginning of our universe the Big Bang, which is a huge problem for atheists. Why? Because if there is no eternal being beyond our universe, then our universe just popped into existence out of nothing. And that is what is called a metaphysical absurdity. Scientifically speaking, you cannot get something out of nothing. This is why no one has ever been sitting in their living room and one day have a horse just appear – POOF! – out of nothing.
The Kalam cosmological argument says:
- Whatever begins to exist has a cause.
- The universe had a beginning.
- Therefore the universe has a cause.
And that cause must be outside the physical world, which most world religions call ‘God’. So to be an atheist (i.e. claim there is no God) means believing in a metaphysical absurdity; that out of nothing comes something. To even be an agnostic (i.e. not sure about God) means being open to that metaphysical absurdity, which is akin to suspending reality. This is why like most rational people on the planet, I believe the ‘uncaused cause’ of our universe is God.
