Fr. Barron comments on Stephen Hawking & more tired atheism – http://www.wordonfire.org

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24 COMMENTS

  1. Science is the universal language that God speaks. a really simple concept. God speaks through the stars just as well through the hearts of men.

  2. Atheists usually contradict themselves, eventually. In my opinion, they hold a bit of arrogance, in the sense, that they are smarter than God, or are too smart to believe in God. When I believe, that those who are truly intelligent, hold to the fact that there has to be a God, and know it to be true.

    • possibly the most unintelligent statement I’ve read.

      “hold to the fact”, not even the most gifted theist would make the claims of hte Bible to be fact the same way we can factually claim Hitler existed. They believe by faith not because of any evidence or known facts. You can not factually claim Jesus is the Son of God.
      “know it to be true”, doesn’t even make sense. You can’t know it the way your emphasising. Not even the most faithful Christian knows it as an absolute true fact. God hasn’t even given that option.

      Check the arrogance of your own statements before you claim others are arrogant.

      • I can know things like courage, friendship and fidelity when I see it. Can I truly measure them scientifically? Absolutely not. I can still “know” it to be true. Some things are immeasurable and yet still true. I can know Jesus as the son of God. If you truly experience him in this way you would understand. Believe it or not, there are things out there that are beyond your experiences so far but are still there. Open your heart and mind and you will eventually see.

      • Thanks Martin, I say this because I’m speaking about Atheists that I know. Maybe I should have stated that. But, yes, I find that they are arrogant because they fancy themselves “smarter “than God. Another thing that I find is that they say things or act in a way that makes me believe that they do believe, but won’t they admit it.

        Also, I’m not talking about the Bible. I’m talking about the visceral, and daily proof ones gets through faith.

        To your benefit, I reread my comment. I doesn’t really make sense…I should have proof read.

  4. I’ve read Hawking’s writings, and he doesn’t say that the universe came from nothing. No physicist says this. The prevailing theories are that changes in the quantum subatomic energies caused the creation of the universe. Also, for the record, most atheists (myself included) don’t say there is no God, but that His existence is unlikely and unsupported by evidence.

    • Stuart, I think in my mind (and that’s not saying much), the issue is kind of a putting the horse before the cart. I’m sure I’m not going to say it as eloquently as Frs. Barron or Spitzer, but…

      If there was ‘nothing’, then there was no gravity. If there was ‘nothing’, then there was no quantum subatomic energies. Nothing is nothing. So to say that gravity or quantum subatomic energies ’caused’ the creation of the universe, it’s like you’re saying gravity caused gravity; quantum subatomic energies caused quantum subatomic energies. That just doesn’t make any sense.

    • Check out “The Grand Design.” Hawking does, indeed, say that something can come from nothing. Also, the postulations involved in M theory are as much an issue of faith as is the postulation of God. But the implications of the postulations are quite different.

  5. I believe its fair to say that you are both being unreasonable. I’m not sure Stephen Hawking is skeptical but rather simply states his position on know scientific facts and know laws of physics. What I find to be problematic is that Scientists even those as respected as Hawking (and I do respect him), forget that there is so much more to be known about the universe that they tend to forget that our view or perception of the Universe is very limited. that which we see,touch, taste and feel is rather inferior. If you don’t think so then you haven’t really studied life on this planet. If I only had the night vision of my cat and the sense of smell and hearing of my dog….. Oh but you will say that our brains and sense of intellect should be able to compensate for our other inferior physical attributes..well one would hope, but we must humble ourselves and realize that weather it’s blind faith or the presumption of total knowledge, we are quite inferior beings that should never underestimate something I learned a long time ago …..and that is, the more we learn and the more knowledge we seek, the more we come to realize that we really know nothing at all.

    • Matt, Thanks for sharing. I had read once that humankind is only able to measure about 5% of existence or reality. I discussed this with a friend who has a degree in physics. His response was 3%, and he is not a theist. He did conclude the same as you that there is so much more to know that humankind has not even tapped. After reading Gerald Schroeder’s Genesis and the Big Bang and The Science of God, I have come to find the combination of various literary devices from a myriad of cultures, ancient cultures for that matter, and science to be rather fascinating. I like your statement that we are “quite inferior beings” who are on a journey. In this I see an interesting combination of science with faith. There is so much growing ahead that I just want to keeping moving forward in my limited understand. All the best!

  6. Dear Hawking, I don’t wish to ridicule you, but you do a great job of it on your own with your theories of the universe somehow coming together out of an explosion. This magic, I call God.

  7. To those to whom God has given the grace to believe, no proof is necessary. To those who haven’t received that God given grace, no proof would be enough.

  8. Viva Father! Bulls eye! Our specie experience in life is nothing if we dwell on sceintism…..we cannot assure things from a great mind is science. Because what is mans greatest is Gods least….

  9. Some ARROGANCE IS ABSOLUTELY UNBELIEVABLE! U argue foolishly cos u dont take your time to understand the facts and their roots! I shall say one thing byillustrating pointing to those who claim that its not reality to take Jesus as Gods son simply because we dint see Him.and i say,most people have nener seen their great grand parents who existed n only stories are heard of them passed from one generation to the other nut they believe without seeing.so my dear friends just because u never saw your forefathers do you mean you claim of their non existance yet you talk about genetics? NOt at all! JESUS iS THE SON of GOD believe it or leave it.we are all invited in the kingdom of God but not all shall go because u are simply arrogant n ignorant and you want to compete with your creator! That science you develop is all in Gods creation n thats why so far you have tried to create man kind and all has been in vain.u have gone from puppets n now testtube babies! God is a supernatural being n the Gospel states clearly n so i say to you ATHEISTS as u claim, “REPENT n BeLIEVE in the GOSPEL of JESUS christ” otherwise shut up and LET things be JUST as they are!

  10. Hawkings feels he writes from a sound mental judgement. Wrong!
    He is not writing from his inner self, even as a natural person.
    He might have been influenced what superceed his natural being to write such.
    Denying the existence of God must be attributed to a cause that stands contrary to God, knowingly or unknowingly.
    There is a way that seems right to a man, but the end is destruction.
    We owe him a duty of prayer.

  11. For us who have been reborn in the Trinity, let’s thank the Lord. For those who are still in the valley of darkness, let’s pray they will come to faith like St. Thomas and declare the Lord Jesus as “My Lord and my God”.

  12. We become and live like animals if there’s no God in our heart who owns and loves us whether welike it or not. But it still happens to some of us when we allow this love(God) vanished and become hatred and self centeredness. This time chaos in every
    way. Love balance everything, immeasureable wisdom that holds all universe in place in which not a single % of our foolish mind and short life span can grasp. Blessed be God Forever!;)))

  13. Bravo! Fr. Barron has it on the ball. May God see and bless your efforts to the glory of His holy Son Jesus….without who nothing was made that was made.

  14. The current theory of gravity that is making conclusions of the origin of the universe, I would say to those physicists without fear of contradiction that , Their understanding of the universe is as good as that of Galileo , Newton and those scientist of old. Making comments on sensitive issues such as creation would in the nearest few years to come turn back to them when we prove that the current theories are a subset of some other theory or that they break down down in some limits. I know they think they are unified, but we are yet to find one.

  15. BIG BANG THEORY

    There once was a Christian-scientist and an evolutionary-scientist at a science fair. The Christian-scientist was mocked by the evolutionary-scientist, as the evolutionary-scientist claimed the so-called Big Bang was an inarguable fact.

    The scientists later met at another science fair. The Christian-scientist presented a large plastic orb with two smaller orbs inside of it. The two smaller orbs revolved around each other. The evolutionary-scientist was amazed at this presentation and asked how the Christian-scientist made it. The Christian-scientist said he did not make it. He claimed he woke up one morning, and it just happened. Of course, the evolutionary-scientist did not believe this.

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