Posted on 01/04/2014 5:24:40 PM PST by dennisw
Professor Richard Dawkins dismissed his hard-earned reputation as a militant atheist - admitting that he is actually agnostic as he can't prove God doesn't exist.
The country's foremost champion of Darwinist evolution stunned audience members when he made the confession during a lively debate on the origins of the universe with the Archbishop of Canterbury.
Professor Dawkins is a dedicated admirer of Charles Darwin, regarding the Victorian pioneer of evolution as the man who explained ‘everything we know about life’.
But when Archbishop Dr Rowan Williams suggested that Professor Darwin is often described as the world's most famous atheist, the geneticist responded: 'Not by me'.
He said: 'On a scale of seven, where one means I know he exists, and seven I know he doesn't, I call myself a six.'
Professor Dawkins went on to say he believed was a '6.9', stating: 'That doesn't mean I'm absolutely confident, that I absolutely know, because I don't.'
The two men were debating whether Biblical writers 'got it wrong' by not saying that the universe is billions of years old.
The Archbishop said: 'The writers of the Bible, inspired as I believe they were, were not inspired to do 21st century physics, they were inspired to pass on to their readers what God wanted them to know.
'In the first book of the Bible is the basic information - the universe depends on God, humanity has a very distinctive role in that universe , and humanity has made rather a mess of it.'
This latest admission by Professor Dawkins comes after he was left lost for words name the full title of his scientific hero’s most famous work during a radio discussion last week when accused Christians of being ignorant of the Bible.
In his frustration, he resorted to a helpless: ‘Oh God.’
(Excerpt) Read more at dailymail.co.uk ...
Oh, please. The burden of proof is on those claiming existence of God.
He’ll know about one second after he dies.
According to "Webster's Seventh Tattered", agnostic means, "of or relating to the belief that the existence of any ultimate reality ( as God ) is unknown and probably unknowable." This seems to be a much firmer point of view than mere indecision.
Now, in Webster's Eleventh Collegiate, this is repeated, except it adds, with the qualification broadly ( italics in orig,) "one who is not commited to believing in the existence or nonexistence of God or a god". Love that "God or a god" ... sounds like Gog and Magog ! ... well, they are just acceding to the popular usage here, as they have, since the 1960's at least, counted themselves as recorders and not dictators of usage.
“Misquitos suck...”
Literally and figuratively.
Not saying there aren't stupid-a** people who call themselves atheists and Christians at the same time...I'm sure there are, as Generation.com has a collective IQ of room temperature.
Scouts Out! Cavalry Ho!
“Therefore, they’re not atheists.”
Exactly. I think atheists are usually irrational. They tend not to make sense.
Psalms 14:1 The fool says in his heart “There is no God”.
This is one of my favorite verses. The most important question anyone can ever ask him or herself is one Jesus asked Peter, “Who do you say that I am?”
Jesus claimed to be the only way to the Father. You must believe He died for your sins to be removed to go to heaven. If I’m wrong, I’ll just die and rot in the grave.
But, if you’re wrong and you ignore His offer, you’ll spend eternity in hell, just as He said. Therefore, only as fool would rely on his intellect to decide if God is real. Just as Dawkins isn’t sure, no one, no matter how brilliant, can be.
So…ask Him. If He’s real, He’ll answer.
I understand where Dawkins is coming from, as a former atheist myself. Atheism is an emotional conclusion, whereas agnosticism is an honest intellectual position. At least that’s how it was for me at one time.
Agnostic atheist: I don’t believe there’s a god but can’t prove it.
Agnostic theist: I believe there’s a god but can’t prove it.
He must have a new book coming out.
If we could communicate with the mosquito, we would find that it contains within itself the flying center of the world. - FN
When the fires of Hell touch his carcass of a soul, he will be QUITE sure about the existence of God.
There’s a fundamental distinction in my comments in entirely missing my point.
Ignorant atheists 9those who believe He doesn't exist and take it on "faith") don't believe in God. Those who actually do research and/or try to prove He doesn't exist, have different takes. Some of those who finally research enough, to discover that His existence makes more sense that atheism, become carriers of the Word.
Wasn’t there a Richard Dawkins on Hogan’s Heros? That who I think of any time I hear this dude’s name.........
But in Dawkins case, he would the prosecutor charging that God does not exist. Therefore it is his burden to prove.
Actually, the prosecutor in such a case would be the person saying God does exist, just as, in a criminal case, he would be saying “Yes, you are guilty”.
So again, Dawkins doesn’t have to prove there is no God. His opponents have to prove there is.
How so? Dawkins is claiming that those that believe in God are wrong. It’s up to him to prove it. As far as I can tell, he is the one that made the accusation against the believers. The believes did not single Dawkins out and charge him with being a non-believer.
Dawkins sounded pretty senile when Ben Stein interviewed him. He was talking about the possibility that aliens planted basic single-celled organisms on Earth.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.