If a supernova explodes in space, does it make a noise?
Lately I’ve seen a few really cool stories about space.
Astronomers reported seeing a black hole swallowing a star 3.8 billion (that’s billion with a B) light years away.
There’s another story of a supernova, an exploding star, somewhere out in the galaxy 25 million (that’s million with an M) away.
And this morning I saw a cool story about a planet that is thought to be one HUGE diamond. That planet is only 4,000 light years away, so feasibly Veruca Salt could have her daddy buy it for her when technology improves ever so slightly.
Perhaps learning about the universe has affected my view of religion the most. Growing up in a Christian home, I thought the universe reflected the awesomeness of god.
That’s what we were taught.
If god created a universe so gigantic and mysterious, I thought, just think how awesome and mysterious he is for creating it!
Even from the outside looking in, I can see how great that argument seems to be. I certainly don’t blame believers for reaching for it in conversation.
Within the framework of religiosity, it makes a lot of sense.
As I learned more and more about the universe, it required that I change my mind. If the universe is a reflection of god’s greatness, grandeur and mystery, then that which represents him should be undeniably awesome.
Right?
If the universe is BILLIONS (with a B) of light years wide, and the one pin-prick, minuscule, blue planet that god decided to put people on is Earth, than the even smaller, physical representation that survived the ages as a book should be undeniably brilliant.
There’d be no room for advocating slavery, baby killings, genocide, hell, the devil, or any other idea that weakens the idea of an all-powerful savior of humanity. You’ve heard this argument ad nausuem from the atheist camp.
On top of that, science and education would continue to point to him, instead of deconstruct him.
If you were god, wouldn’t you want that physical manifestation to surpass perfection?
I was taught that who you are in public reflects your family, your school, your church, so be on your top behavior at all times.
God has manmade immunity from exemplary behavior. Look at all the believers who point at Irene and earthquakes as god displaying his greatness to oppose “sin”. So godly murder is okay?
Somehow, god gets manmade praise for reprehensible action.
And yet, I’m the small-minded guy for not believing in him.
The other thing that gets my goat is that god would put all these mysterious intergalactic explosions and phenomenon millions light years away, and wait until late in the last century to make technology great enough to finally observe it.
Even if the earth is 10,000 years old, god — in all his mega-awesomeness — said to him (selves), “Let’s wait 9,500 years before giving those morons the technology or knowhow to start to understand this stuff. Let’s give ’em another 400 to 450 years of floundering around in ignorance. I’m going to wait even longer to introduce Hubble and other major telescopes …
“For I am GOD!!! … wait thousands of years to hear me roar!”
It’s sad.
Le Café Wittypoots 