Why Islam is True-Lesson 6- Materialism

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I attended Why Islam Class in person this week.

• Yes
• No

Why is it remarkable that the universe never used to exist, and then existed?

• Because the universe is like you, you never existed and then you did. The universe is the same.
• Because it means that we get to make up for 13.7 billion years of birthday parties.
• Because it means that something made the universe exist, and that thing might be God.

What is the difference between The Steady State Theory and The Big Bang Theory?

• The Steady State Theory means that the universe is much more stable than in the Big Bang Theory.
• The Big Bang Theory means that the universe is expanding and the Steady State Theory means that it stays the same size.
• The Big Bang Theory means that the universe exploded into existence whereas The Steady State Theory means that it steadily grew over time.

What would it mean to someone like Dawkins, if, as he traveled back in time, the universe was the same size?

• He would use it as justification for the fact that it has always existed.
• He would use it to justify that it might be crossed in its entirety.
• He would use it to justify that it is extremely big.

What can you infer from the fact that the universe gets smaller as you go back in time?

• That it must have been in the Static State.
• That it must have never begun to exist
• That it must have begun to exist.

"As I was saying before, everything happens through a natural and material cause. Things like the sun shining or plants growing, are caused by natural and material processes like nuclear fusion and photosynthesis. We do not need the idea of God to explain anything at all.” What do you reply to this?

• “It is correct that things in the universe happen because of natural causes but God is more powerful than those natural causes.”
• “Yes of course everything in the universe happens through natural causes, that is plain to see.”
• “I don’t think you can say that everything happens through natural causes. You believe that the universe began to exist. And that couldn’t have happened because of a natural cause because there was no matter before the existence of the universe.”

Aldrich the Atheist clearly doesn’t like this kind of response. He says “God cannot have made the universe because he is not a physical thing. It’s just like saying that fairies made the universe. It would be much more correct to say that nothing made the universe–don’t you agree?” How do you respond?

• This means that you are denying the fact that an effect needs a cause. That is absurd because the only reason you search for scientific explanations is that contingent events are effects that need a cause. When you throw away causation, you’re throwing away the entire basis for science. What you should do instead is keep the principle of causation and come to the conclusion that materialism is false. It’s perfectly rational to believe that there can be non-material causes.
• Science tries to explain everything through cause and effect. But when it comes to the creation of the universe, science still doesn’t know what created it. This means that atheists have to say “nothing made the universe.” If science can’t explain the creation of the universe then that means that all atheists should be humble enough to admit that God created the universe, and everything else.
• Your point is correct, but doesn’t that make you wonder if you are wrong or not? If you don’t know who created the universe, isn’t it better to believe in God to be on the safe side? Then you do not have anything to lose.

You start to tell Aldrich the Atheist about the Kalam Cosmological Argument. Aldrich seems to be listening and asks, “This is very interesting, but why can’t we just say the universe is the necessary being?” How do you answer this?

• The universe needed someone to make it exist because there was a time when it never existed. Therefore God made it exist because He is more powerful than the universe. The universe shows you that there has to be something more powerful than the laws of nature. That being is what Muslims call God.
• Because the universe used to not exist. Science has helped the theists and has proved to be the atheists’ destruction. By proving that the universe began to exist, science has proven that God exists. The existence of the being who Muslims call God has been proven by science.
• A necessary being is something that cannot not exist. But the universe, on the other hand, began to exist. That means that the existence of the universe is contingent, not necessary.

Aldrich reflects on what you have said. He seems to be processing it deeply. Eventually, he shakes his head a bit and asks, “If you say that the universe can’t have existed forever, then surely you have to say that God could not have existed forever.” What is the best reply to this?

• God cannot have a beginning as that would contradict everything that religion says about it. All religions say in different ways that the universe was created. We have thousands of years of religions saying one thing. Although most religions have become corrupt, that doesn’t mean that they are all completely wrong. It cannot be the case that religions are correct about God and incorrect about the universe at the same time.
• We have proof that the universe has not existed forever. If it began to exist, then it needs something beginningless to make it exist. Remember those people all leaning on each other in a long line? Their leaning on something else is an analogy for the fact that they are dependent. In this case, their dependence is that they began to exist. This is proof that there is something that didn’t begin to exist, that has existed forever.