Along the Way

Calculating God

Just completed reading (listening to) a novel by Robert J. Sawyer: Calculating God. It's a Sci-Fi story about aliens who visit earth on a search for God. The aliens have discovered scientific proof of the existence of god and are on a galactic expedition to find clues that will lead to his whereabouts. One of the visitors is a paleontologist, Hollis, who lands his space craft at the ROM (Royal Ontario Museum) in order to collaborate with a human counterpart. He is introduced to Thomas Jericho who is a scholar on vertebrate fossils. Hollis is bewildered that Thomas, who is an atheist, cannot accept the existence of an intelligent designer of the universe. In one key intercourse Hollis challenges Thomas that his conclusions are based on more than empirical evidence; it is possible that he is being influenced by something else.

Hollis - "What sort of evidence would convince you that there is a god?"

Thomas - "A smoking gun . . .incontrovertible evidence . . . that's what I want . . . indisputable proof."

Hollis - "There is no indisputable proof for the Big Bang and there is none for evolution and yet you accept those. Why hold the question of whether there is a creator to a higher standard?"

Thomas thought, "I didn't have a good answer for that."

Thomas - "All I know is that it will take overwhelming evidence to convince me."

Hollis - "I believe you already have been given overwhelming evidence."