On 3/9/07, ravi <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
Well, I am an atheist, but I consider the non-existence of god a fact only in the sense in which I consider the non-existence of mermaids a fact. It is a contingent but well-supported fact (as with all empirical facts). I am assuming here some particular interpretation of existence. There is another aspect to my atheism: I also consider god an ill-defined hypothesis, if it is a hypothesis at all.
Each religious person has a different version of the "god(s) exist" hypothesis. Maybe (though I doubt it), "god" exists that's like the Force in Star Wars. In that case, it's hard to tell whether "god" has the same ontological status as mermaids. We don't understand physics very well. Some people (not including me), have had personal revelations. They would say that it's clear that "god" exists. Can we say without a doubt that they're totally deluded? -- Jim Devine / "The truth is more important than the facts." -- Frank Lloyd Wright
