Book Launch Day and What to Say to Someone Who Claims There's No Evidence for God's Existence
My husband Pat's book, The Best Argument for God, is out! And here's a guest post from him
The book that my husband has been working vigorously on for quite a long while is finally out! I’m so excited for him. This has been a beautiful effort, and it’s a beautiful book. You can grab a copy of The Best Argument for God on Sophia Institute Press and Amazon. In the meantime, I asked Pat if he could write a guest post for my Substack on a theme from the book, and I’m delighted to share it today.
What to Say to Someone Who Claims There's No Evidence for God's Existence
Many of us have encountered the claim: “There is NO evidence for the existence of God.” What's the best way for a Christian to address this?
Initially, it's crucial to define terms. What exactly does the person mean by 'God' and by 'evidence'? If your experiences mirror mine, you often hear echoes of Neil DeGrasse Tyson's sentiments, suggesting that without a tangible "bearded man in the sky," belief in God is unfounded. To many, God is perceived as a being within our physical realm, and evidence is expected to be a direct, empirical encounter, say, through a telescope or microscope.
Yet, those with a philosophical inclination realize that evidence isn't solely about direct observation. Consider particles; while we don't see them directly, we infer their existence from their effects. Similarly, footprints might hint at the presence of Bigfoot, but direct sightings would, of course, be more substantial evidence. Testimonies from those who claim to have encountered Bigfoot also count as evidence, albeit of a different degree.
Evidence, then, can be indirect signs suggesting the existence or truth of another entity or concept. To evaluate evidence, one must question: If this entity or theory were real, what signs would manifest? For example, wet surroundings indicate recent rain.
Let's extend the analogy. Why do adults generally dismiss the existence of Santa Claus? It's because the expected evidences, like spotting Santa in mid-flight or his North Pole residence, are absent. Moreover, the 'Santa myth' and the playful admissions from our parents overshadow any potential Santa-related evidence, like presents under the tree. Thus, the consensus: Santa isn't real.
Turning to God, one might argue: Shouldn't the belief in God follow the same fate as Santa? Not quite. Interestingly, while belief in Santa wanes with age, faith in God often doesn't. What's the distinction?
God, as traditionally understood, isn't merely an entity within our universe. Philosophers, from various cultural and religious backgrounds, have long argued that the very nature of our contingent world points to a necessary divine entity. They believed that the existence of our world, with its intricacies, serves as evidence of God's presence.
Contemplating God's traditional attributes—immateriality, eternity, omnipotence, omniscience, and perfect goodness—one might expect a world like ours, filled with rational beings, moral challenges, beauty, harmony, and opportunities for moral growth and discovery. These expectations align with what we observe: consciousness, morality, fine-tuning of the universe, and so forth. In other words, these rather broad-scale features of reality, properly understood, are all significant evidence of God’s existence, since they are just what is to be expected if classical theism is true and not at all expected if naturalism were the case.
A critical question remains: If a perfect God exists, why is our world imperfect? Why the prevalent suffering? While a comprehensive answer exceeds this discussion's scope, I posit that even the world's imperfections align more with theistic beliefs than atheistic ones. This claim and more are explored in my newly released book, The Best Argument for God.
About the Author
Pat Flynn, author of The Best Argument for God (October 2023) and How to Be Better at (Almost) Everything, is a re-converted Catholic, philosopher (MA), writer, musician, fitness and martial arts enthusiast, and proud father of five. He resides in Wisconsin. Dive deeper into his insights at Chroniclesofstrength.substack.com and tune into the "Philosophy for the People" podcast co-hosted with Dr. Jim Madden.