Christians and cannibals

Irish Times science columnist admits possibility of God. The end is nigh.

Eamonn McCann, 12 Sep 2006

I hear that the Yanks are torturing Saddam Hussein by forcing him repeatedly to watch the episode of South Park in which he has a gay relationship with Satan.

SP aficionados will remember that sensitive Satan finally dumps Saddam, hurt at realising that the dead dictator wants him only for sex.

Is William Reville a SP fan? Has he ever watched the one about Mormons being the answer? Students at University College, Cork, may care to investigate.

Reville is associate professor of biochemistry at UCC, and writes a weekly column, ‘Science Today’, in The Irish Times. On August 24th, he argued that, since it is not possible scientifically to prove or disprove the existence of god, scientists must admit the possibility of god’s existence. Indeed: “There is sufficient evidence in favour of God to make it reasonable to believe. Many scientists have pointed to the fact that the universe is exquisitely fine-tuned to facilitate life. If any of a great number of the physical constants of the universe were only slightly different, life could never have evolved...”

If the universe in its billions of years of existence had been differently constituted and organised, it would have evolved differently? Well, yes.

The fact that it has evolved in the way that it has proves that there has been an exquisite fine-tuner at work? Hell, no.

Irish Times readers are entitled to wonder how their newspaper has so dumbed down as to put such arrant nonsense in print in a column headed ‘Science Today’. ‘Superstition Yesterday’ more like.

Convinced that he has established that it’s OK for scientists to believe in god, Reville goes on to suggest that there’s also evidence about which religion god favours.

“Jesus Christ claimed to be in close contact with God, whom he referred to in familiar terms as his father. If we judge that Jesus was sane, if his teachings stake a claim on our hearts and minds, and if we find that abiding by the principles that Jesus taught brings peace and joy into our lives, then it is reasonable for us to accept the word of Jesus about God just as it is for us to accept the word of any tried and tested friend on some matter about which we have no direct experience.”

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