If God exists, why did he create life? (The nature of a \'Creator\')

by Balance_Maintained , U.S.A., Monday, December 13, 2010, 02:41 (5093 days ago) @ dhw

Firstly, let me say that my comment on the entertainment value was not to say that A UI would not get joy from creating, but, to use your analogy of a screenwriter, that the pleasure derived from writing the script is completely different derived from watching the finished film. -> 2) Science has not come up with any link between humans and the millions of extinct species such as dinosaurs, and unlike Tony I have no faith that links may one day be discovered. I therefore can't believe in an original human-centred plan (barring initial ignorance of how to do it), and so I ask what God could derive from so many unrelated species.-
I do not believe that we are descended from dinosaurs(not in a direct genetic sense). I believe that they were necessary to turn this lump of rock into something inhabitable by humanity. There is a vast difference between the two, though I may one day be proved wrong on both counts, I doubt it. --> 3) As regards your parental analogy, I love being a father, and although my children are free agents, I'm there to share their pleasures and pains and to help if required. I see no sign of God the Father being there to do the same. You, BBella, have triumphed over your suffering, but you won't need me to tell you that every day there are thousands who don't even have the chance to emulate you. What parent stands idly by while his child perishes even though he has the means to save it? The conventional religious answer to this question is that God works in mysterious ways and we must have faith. That does not satisfy me, because if the pieces don't fit, I can't believe the image is right and the pieces are wrong.-
I am with Bella on the parental analogy, and even though I always question the form, number, ideals, methodology, and various other attributes of the UI, I still view it as a parent like figure. In that context, I do not see where it should intervene with the pangs of humanity. IF this life is simply a step on a longer journey, then anything we experience here would be the cosmic equivalent of a skinned knee, and as a parent with young ones, I know I for one do not even try to keep them from skinning their knees as that would in the long run do more harm than good. -Also, more in regards to the topic at hand, I am not sure UI could do other than create/destroy. To me it seems an intrinsic part of its nature. If God is organized energy, than organization would obviously be an innate goal of such an entity. All matter and life, though at times seemingly random, has been shown to be extraordinarily organized. The randomness is a product of our own lack of understanding, not a fault of a chaotic universe. -I do not share the view of experimentation. I view all creation as a purposeful movement towards a goal that I do not yet understand. I have seen no false starts, no failed attempts, no out of place artifacts that would lend themselves to the idea of 'experimentation'. Surely, if there were failures, there would be evidence. The dinosaurs, in my opinion, were not failed experiments, but a necessary precursory step in a much grander creative process, as was all that came before, and all that has come since. Like putting a preparation on a canvas and sanding it smooth before you paint. It does not seem like a creative work in and of itself, but without it, the finished painting would be completely different and might not achieve the desired result. What God could derive from 'from so many unrelated species' is a preparation of the canvas in the most efficient manner with the least expenditure of energy.