Tag Archives: Unbelief

Friday Phraseology: Secularism


Secularism: A belief system, attitude or style of life that denies or ignores the reality of God. Derived from a term that means “worldly,” secularism (and its articulate philosophical expression, secular humanism) focuses on the natural order of things as the only reality. Increasingly, however, secularism can be viewed as an attitude that even affects people who claim to believe in God and the supernatural. Much in modern culture pressures people to live in such a way that God is marginal and insignificant to their daily existence. See also humanism.


 

Evans, C. Stephen (2010-03-17). Pocket Dictionary of Apologetics & Philosophy of Religion: 300 Terms & Thinkers Clearly & Concisely Defined (The IVP Pocket Reference Series) (Kindle Locations 1587-1591). InterVarsity Press. Kindle Edition.

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Sabbatum Excerpt: The Fine-Tuning Argument Against the Odds of Life Emerging from Non-Living Matter


The fine-tuning argument for God is strong and getting stronger, as the astonishingly precise balance of physical constants is continually clarified by science. For many folks, such as Antony Flew, the inference to God has become irresistible. But Flew’s third major reason for abandoning atheism is perhaps the strongest of all—the impossibility of life emerging spontaneously from non-living matter. Even given a universe hospitable to living systems, one that is tuned to the “life-station,” there remain insurmountable odds against life forming anywhere, even given the 15 billion years since the Big Bang. In the early 1980s two scientists, Fred Hoyle and Chandra Wickramasinghe, calculated the odds of life emerging from non-living matter to be one in 1040,000. To put this enormous figure in perspective, consider that the number of atoms in the known universe is 1080—a paltry sum by comparison. Moreover, consider the fact that statisticians, as a general rule, consider any “possibility” less than one in 1050 to be impossible.

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Spiegel, James (2010-01-21). The Making of an Atheist: How Immorality Leads to Unbelief (pp. 47-48). Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.