on
November 4, 2015 in Lutheran
Witness, Web-exclusive
Stories! 1
by Tim Pauls
Well,
that’s it: game over.
The
Express of
London recently ran the online headline,
“HISTORIC DISCOVERY: Physicists ‘PROVE’ God DIDN’T create the Universe”
(emphasis and syntax theirs). In the first sentences, the article breathlessly
announces that a team of Canadian scientists has proven how the universe
appeared out of nothing, “and the findings are so conclusive that they even
challenge the need for religion, or at least an omnipotent creator.”
I’m not a scientist, but I do speak
some Canadian, so I’ll attempt to summarize the team’s findings according to
the article. The team starts with “virtual particles,” which come into
existence out of nothing, existing only for a short time with low energy. It’s
not a promising start for a universe, until one applies two ingredients: the
theories of “The Minimal Length Scale” (measurements so tiny that time and
space cease to exist) and “Doubly Special Relativity” (involving the colossal
energy available just after the universe is born). Put those three ingredients
in a bowl, stir vigorously and one gets “Inflation Theory:” the tiny energy and
matter of a virtual particle get blown up into a 3.8 billion-year-old universe.
If you’re one of those smarty-pants
who points out that nothing comes from nothing, the article has the answer. The
universe, it says, is still nothing: it’s perfectly balanced between
“positive matter energy” and “negative gravitational energy,” which when added
together—like +2 and -2—equal nothing, and so nothing is the universe in which
you live.
Nothing: it’s really something!
To summarize:
Virtual particle + 2 theories = new
theory
= nothing, where you live
= no need for God or religion.
As I said, I’m no scientist; but I
would point out that this universe still had to come from somewhere, even if it
averages out to nothing.
As for ruling out the existence of
God, only the writer’s opinion does that: in fact, one of the scientists says
that while there’s no need for God as “supernatural super man,” you still need
God as “a great mathematician.”
As for the end of religion…well,
there’s an awful lot of trust in things unseen on the part of the reporter. His
faith makes you an accident in a universe of nothing, which logically makes you
far less than nothing. In stark contrast, the Christian faith declares you a
holy child known by God, redeemed at the price of Jesus’ own blood.
Finally though, theories are not
the same as facts. They’re suppositions—educated guesses if you will. The
history of science is full of theories that turn out to be partially or
completely wrong, as scientists make inaccurate conclusions about the data they
have. Sure, Christians will reject the article’s conclusions, like the means of
origin, the proposed age of the universe, and the absence of God; but look!
Given the evidence, it asserts that the universe was created suddenly, out of
nothing, with great energy.
Unless I’m missing something, that
basic premise agrees quite well with, “In the beginning, God created the
heavens and the earth.”
The Rev. Tim Pauls is pastor of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Boise, Idaho.
The
Lutheran Witness — Providing Missouri Synod laypeople with stories and
information that
complement congregational life, foster personal growth in faith, and help interpret the
contemporary world from a Lutheran Christian perspective.
complement congregational life, foster personal growth in faith, and help interpret the
contemporary world from a Lutheran Christian perspective.
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