Why Do We Believe? What Do We Believe?

By Rich Kozlovich

Allow me to state categorically that I believe in the Theory of Evolution.  Why?  Because it clearly presents incontrovertible scientific evidence that there must be an Intelligent Designer!  Wow; now that’s a somewhat startling observation; don’t you think? Let’s explore this.  On Saturday, December 10, 2011 I posted the article Shall Every Knee Bow? This is a recap and expansion of that commentary, and I will probably repeat this article with more expansions on this issue every December. 

There was an article that I came across that stated, “Many atheist scientists take their kids to church”! The article went on to say that; “about one in five atheist scientists with children involve their families with religious institutions even if they do not agree with the teachings, according to a study done by Rice University and the University at Buffalo.” The article pointed out that “The findings surrounding atheists shouldn't be too surprising, since the Pew Forum Religious Survey taken back in 2008 that showed 21 percent of self-described atheists responded that they believe in God.”

Does everyone really find this to be all that extraordinary? Anthropologists have noted that in every culture in the world, and in all of human history, religion has played an important role in people’s lives. There was one prominent atheist, Antony Flew who claimed at the end of his life he was now a believer. Why? Is it true ‘there are no atheists in foxholes’? Of course the explanation was the he had lost his mind; yet even Albert Einstein, who was not a religious person in any sense, and absolutely rejected the idea of a personal God, rejected the idea of atheism.

For the believers among my readers the explanation is simple; we are designed to believe. For the unbelievers among my readers the explanation is simple also. There is no other logical explanation!

For many years I have said that “everything is the basics”.  What does that mean?  It means that in order to understand anything we must explore the foundational thinking of what it is we are trying to understand.  If the foundation is flawed the entire structure of thinking is built on a false premise and will collapse under scrutiny from its own weight; that is if we wish to really see the truth.  And that is the crux of the matter isn’t it? 

Believing takes on many forms. For some it has to do with a higher power. For others it can take on the worship of oneself, for others it can take on the worship of some philosophy or other; but we all seem to have the desire to look to some higher explanation for existence, and human existence in particular. But one thing seems clear; ‘believing’ is inherent to our genetic code. Otherwise how can anyone explain why so many have believed so much over so long a time of human history, and  in so many different cultures? Of course, the problem for the unbelievers among my readers with this explanation is that they would then have to explain how that genetic code was designed in that manner…or designed at all for that matter…. if there is no higher power.

I do find it fascinating how some can believe that Intelligent Design is “a pig that won’t fly”! The design is so complicated that it defies explanation as to how infinitely small mutations over millions of years could bring us (and all else in the universe) to what we are now. Whether one disagrees or agrees with evolution, I question how anyone can say that there is no designer. Some feel that an intelligent designer used evolution. Some feel evolution is a mistake constantly making more mistakes and changing everything all the time all by accident. I wonder how anyone can explain how this can happen by accident and develop successful organisms since "geneticists estimate that 99 out of 100 mutations are harmful, and about 20 out of the 99 are lethal."

According the Theory of Evolution life started when electricity in some form such as lightening charged some cells existing in a chemical rich ocean soup and thus became life.  There is absolutely no evidence that this ever occurred, and there is no evidence that it can occur since no one has been able to duplicate this mythical event in a lab….ever.  They have been able to get cells to group together, but it isn’t life.  These cells are all lacking in all the things that make life possible, including DNA.  If life started in the ocean in some chemical rich soup, through some accidental electrical discharge; how did that cell, or group of cells, replicate themselves?  That's foundational!

Evolutionally thought would require millions of years of mutations before the next step to propagation would come into being. If that is so; how did they replicate?  If we are to believe what proponents of evolutionary theory claim, then we have to recognize that these mythical cells would have died within seconds, minutes or days; but they would have ceased to exist long before they could have reproduced.  How do I know that?  

Let's go back to the foundational question once again!  If life could only advance from active cells in the ocean in some chemical rich soup, which came into being as a result of some accidental electrical discharge; how did that cell, or group of cells, replicate themselves to become what we are all now through a series of mutations occurring over millions of years?  As we explore this we see this leaves a very serious is crack in the foundation of their theory….and logic.    When you think this out correctly the very foundation for the explanation propounded by scientists gets even more complicated and incomprehensible.  If such an event really did take place, the first order of business would not be propagation; the first order of business would be survival!

Survival means that this mythical cell, or cells, would have to have a system that allowed them to recognize the need for nutrition.  In order for any of this to occur the cells would have to be self aware to some extant no matter to how small a degree; that in itself requires some sort of advanced design.  Then it would have to be able recognize the need for nutrition, it would also have to be able to recognize what was nutritional and what was not; it would require a digestive system; which would require an internal biological mechinism for the organism to recognize nutrition from what would become waste during the absorption process, and then an energy storage and utilization system, and that would require a system for waste elimination.  Then and only then would propagation come into play!  Once again; the organism couldn’t have survived without these advanced fundamental functions.  That seems to me to be an entirely complex organism with multiple advanced biological systems in place, with each being absolutely dependent on the other for this whole scheme to work.  Does that seem rational if it takes millions of years of mutations as atheistic scientists claim?  And…once again…..  we are expected to believe came about after an electrical storm. 

Okay, let’s, for the sake of argument say that it did happen, it still meant the organism had to have some advanced biological functions.  If so; doesn’t that imply planning and design? Doesn’t planning and design require intelligence?   For all of them to come into existence at once seems impossible without some predetermined design.  Don’t you think?  Which brings me back to the beginning! 

 

Evolutionally thought would require millions of years of mutations before any of these absolutely necessary biological systems would come into being before the next step to propagation, so presuming that the organism’s survived, we have to wonder how any organism could “know” which mutations were beneficial over a million years or so since the complexity of the design would require some kind of organizational planning.

Take a woman’s monthly cycle. It is amazingly complex! The right amount of chemicals, hormones and enzymes would have to come into play in exactly the right sequence of time in order to finish the cycle. However, if a woman becomes pregnant during the cycle another whole set of chemical conditions would come into play. How could any organism "know" how to plan for two diametrically opposing end results? Remembering that there are untold species in the world that have cycles unique unto themselves. That means that this would have to be done an incalculable number of times in an incalculable number of organisms. We are to believe that this happens through a series of positive accidents that would overcome all of these deadly accidents! Isn't that a form of belief, i.e. faith? It does seem to defy logic...or science as it were!

How would an organism know what chemicals to develop over millions of years; and more importantly; how would these organisms know how to make them? How did the organism know that hormones and enzymes were needed along with other chemicals?  How would the organism know how to organize them? How did the organism know which chemicals would work harmoniously together and in conjunction with enzymes and hormones, and how did the organism know what the end result be would follow afterward without some sort of plan?

However,  even with a design; how could incredibly small mutations be of value during the whole process of millions of years, and in point of fact it seems reasonable that these mutations would hinder continued existence; not enhance it.  But even if you accept the idea of small changes over millions of years the question still remains; how could all of that come into being without intelligence behind it?    How could so many complex systems come into being all at once without some sort of design and an application of the design?  Wouldn’t the presumption be that these cells already had an amazingly complex chemical make-up that would create an end result? If so; doesn’t that imply planning and design? Doesn’t planning and design require intelligence?  And if these events actually did happen, and cells came into existence with all these complicated biological systems in place; what would you call it?  Creation? 

I can understand anyone’s reason for not subscribing to any religious group. The sanguinary history of the world’s religions has not done much to inspire confidence over human history. So I can understand someone being un-religious, and I can understand why someone would believe that there may be a higher power that doesn’t interfere in the lives of humanity. I can understand why people might not be sure and proclaim to be agnostic…although I consider that to be pragmatic atheism. What I can’t understand is how anyone cannot believe that there must be a planner behind this phenomenally complex reality we call....existence!  And that is why I say that I believe in the Theory of Evolution.  Because it scientifically proves that there must be an Intelligent Designer!  A Creator!