Grand design

The great man has spoken. Stephen Hawking, the world’s leading intellectual, unilaterally proclaimed in his latest book, the Grand Design, that “the universe was not made by God, but is a consequence of all known physics”. So there we have it. Why did we make it so difficult for ourselves. The master has spoken and he must be right.

One can’t help feeling a little sorry for a man so trapped in his own frailty, condemned to a lifetime of immobility, but does he have to vent his bitterness against God by discounting the same?

I am not ready to stoop to his level. Sir Isaac Newton, arguably the greatest of the big three, affirmed that the universe could not have evolved out of chaos. He held a remarkably theistic view of creation, despite his secret alliance to Arianism.

Einstein the second of the big three, also conceded to the notion of a created universe, but stopped short of acceding to a personal God. That is pretty hefty company to tangle with, but Hawking, unfazed by all that yet dares to boldly go where few would dare to go.

In the process he also discredits eons of established theistic thinking and a mountain of evidence in support of creation, to somewhat arrogantly state his view that we got it all wrong, as though he is the only one who can march in time.

What really surprises me is that the same school of thought that Hawking attended, when he was not playing truant or getting up to no good, is of the view that theists are glib and arrogant in their confession of a creator God.

They have gone to extraordinary lengths to discredit exhaustive commentaries in support of the creationist viewpoint. They have so gagged on the idea of creation, that we can only thank the creator for ensuring the durability of our frames, without which such enlightenment would never have endured.

So six thousand years of human thought and the contributions of eminent intellectuals adds up to glib and sweeping judgments, when it suits the detractors, but its okay for them to glibly sweep aside all that has gone before.

Well if that is good for your career Mt Hawking, good for you, but will it hold water in the courts of God or man? I doubt it.

It is no wonder that top scientists are already predicting that, in this latest argument, science is likely to be the biggest loser. Indeed, as Hawking’s argument now reduces the entire debate to a choice between religion or science, many will doubtless opt for religion, leaving science in a kind of wilderness.

To me the greatest travesty in Hawking’s own logic, is his statement: "If we discover a complete theory (of the formation of the universe), it would be the ultimate triumph of human reason ... for then we should know the mind of God."

I agree, for different reasons, that when we unlock the last mystery of the universe, we will find ourselves face to face with God, but if Hawking already concedes that fact, he is either confused or glib enough to try and impose his original thinking on that creator.

(c) Peter Eleazar @ www.4u2live.net