The Lantern

Issue date: 4/30/08 Section: Opinion

I think most people have been in a confrontational argument over the existence of God at some point in their lives, and maybe they felt insulted by it, or even maybe they were the ones feeling elated at having embarrassed the other person. Logical arguments for example, like the existence of a god, is a convenient idea to explain how things in the universe are and in turn, God must exist. Certainly not everyone uses logic like this to prove and disprove God, and then try to rub it in someone else's face, but perhaps many of us know a few people who still do.

But can an argument change someone else's beliefs? In order to persuade them, is something besides logic and reason needed? My basic assertion is that for a god to be believed in, it must be real for the individual. I think this is self-evident: A person would not believe in a god if it were not "real" to them (even though it might be intangible) or else he would believe for no other reason except that others told him to do it. So, the underlying question is this: Can reason or logic make God real for a person?

I do not think they can but something else, like a catalytic event, is required to create the belief. And this event does not have to be external; it could be an internal one similar to the realization that you are in love for instance. Perhaps in this case, logic and reason are inadequate because the other person has not felt it, so God is not real to the individual. So, not only can logical arguments not change someone's belief in God, nothing can except this catalytic event, but it is unknown what form it will be. Maybe it is possible to see God in the action of someone else or perhaps in the weather, or maybe it is like the realization of a feeling, etc. I do not think man is born with the innate knowledge that a god exists, I think it is a product of this something else - this catalyst.

So, any confrontational argument using reason for or against the existence of a god do nothing to convert people to either position, but only serve to make each side defensive and no amount of logic can convert someone into or out of belief. However, I suppose it is inevitable that people will keep trying. Again, I should say that not all people use reason in a belligerent way, and they just use it for discussion, which is a better use for it here. Perhaps the existence cannot be questioned through logic or reason because the answer is simple: It is real/not real to the individual because of the presence/absence of an event that changed how he would otherwise view the world. Thankfully, there is no flawless logical argument that God exists or does not exist, but even if there was, maybe it would not even matter.

Paul Gardner can be reached at gardner.734@osu.edu.

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools