Important Questions For Atheists: No. 1

[Khandro]

Why is there something instead of nothing ?

[Hymie]

As an atheist, I’d say that there is nothing instead of something.

[Hopkirk]

Because the something evolved

[THECORBYLOON]

What do you mean by, "something"?

[andy-hughes]

I have no idea, but neither do you, so it's not something either of us need to waste any more time on. 

[Old_Geezer]

You only think there's something; it's all an illusion.

[Old_Geezer]

Besides nothing is difficult to maintain due to the uncertainty principle, so it's likely to turn into something faster than you can say...

[beso]

An infinite and eternal nothing would require infinite order. A truely random distribution of all possibilities on an infinte scale would included highly ordered members.

[beso]

Turning the question back on you.

According to science, the Universe appears to have begun from single pixel of intense formless energy from which everythng we see today can be derived with no need for a designer. Started simple and complexity inevitably grew.

According to Theism, the Universe began with the unexplained preexistence of the most complex thing ever. It isn't an explanation for anything.

[Canary42]

Power

[Sven666]

Because God chose to create the universe.  And then, having done so, left no evidence whatsoever of His existence.  He created around two hundred billion stars in our galaxy alone, almost all of which (as far as can be ascertained) have planets of some kind orbiting them.  But our galaxy is – to quote Monty Python – just one of millions of billions in this amazing and expanding universe.  Which kind of begs the question: if God did create the universe with the intention of creating mankind on Earth, why did He bother creating all the other “something”?  Doesn’t that look like a complete waste of His time?  What would be the purpose of all the other something?

The other explanation as to why the universe exists could be because of some as yet unknown natural mechanism.  God isn’t required.  Just because we don’t understand why something exists does not infer the existence of God.  That’s just lazy and simplistic thinking.  For example, very young children cannot comprehend why presents spontaneously appear under the Christmas tree on Christmas day morning.  So they believe that a supernatural being delivered them as they cannot comprehend an alternative scenario.  Needless to say, belief does not reality make.

I’m not saying that God does not exist.  I’m just saying that inferring God does exist because we don’t currently understand why something exists is a non-sequitur.  But if that floats your boat, knock yourself out.

[Sven666]

beso – “… According to science, the Universe appears to have begun from single pixel of intense formless energy from which everythng we see today can be derived…”

Considering recent evidence obtained by the James Webb Space Telescope, the Big Bang theory is looking increasingly unlikely.  Fascinating times.

[mibn2cweus]

To understand why something is you must first learn what it is.

[10ClarionSt]

Yeh, what is dark matter? 

[rowanwitch]

I don't know... But I am confident one day mankind will work it out

One idea I rather like is our universe compressed beyond any imagining dropped through a wormhole from another dimension and being in empty space was able to expand .... And continues to do so, eventually to fall back to the centre , and maybe expand again.... In the great scheme things you can believe what you like it's totally irrelevant because our lives, the whole of humanities existence is infinitesimally short.

[Mozz71]

Why does there have to be a reason? Can't it just be?

[Old_Geezer]

That's a little like simply pushing the query back a bit. You then have to wonder where that other dimension came from.

 

Re all this "why so much other something". It's not really a waste as all that is needed is enough to fill the area your creations will get to be aware of,  due to the combination of expansion and the maximum speed allocated, as applicable to light in a vacuum. Beyond that there could be nothing; or dragons even.

[Khandro]

But there's something more than matter in the universe; there's consciousness. How did that get there?

[Peter Pedant]

What do you mean by, "something"?

look around you

and so we ask, where did it come from?and that come from? and we get back to god - first brought to you by Thomas Aquinas 1280

[Peter Pedant]

if you want to break your barlz on a sunday

try this one

https://iep.utm.edu/anselm-ontological-argument/

[Peter Pedant]

Because God chose to create the universe.  And then, having done so, left no evidence whatsoever of His existence.

yes: us