Atheists like Philip Pullman, the writer of The Golden Compass, would have us believe that there is no God. If this is true, then what do we base our daily decisions on?
We believe it is right to help stranded motorists because we accept the validity of the maxim “do to others what you would have them to do to you.” We believe this maxim to be valid because it is rooted in our understanding that we are mutually dependent on each other for survival in a world filled with trouble and pain. We believe that we should take this mutual dependence seriously as necessary to survival because we accept without question the universal belief that society should be preserved. Virtually everyone accepts this truth as foundational. It is a universally assumed absolute adopted by all societies in all places and in all times.
Yet even this absolute stops one step short of being bedrock. Why should society be preserved? Who came up with that idea? Why does it matter? Why do we think we should believe it? Before we can trust even this seemingly obvious foundational truth to be really true, we must look beneath it to see if it has the bedrock support of an ultimate absolute. And if we find such an absolute, we can lay proofs aside and dig no deeper. We have reached the bedrock truth that must simply be accepted as a logical necessity too obvious to question.
1 comment:
Hey Josh,
It’s Cindy from CLA NJ!
Wow, we grew up in a God-fearing society, of course we would naturally think of mutually depending on each other for survival! I can’t imagine growing up in a culture that is strongly influenced with Godless philosophies. Where on earth do we begin? The Prince and Power of the air is having a field day with the minds of this generation. I really had to think about this philosophical assumption.
What do we base our daily decisions on? I would say, without a knowledge of God, one would seemingly base their daily decisions on self-preservation. Lost people generally do not think beyond “self”. So...why would self-absorbed people even think of preserving society? However, when “self” is in questioned whether or not “self” should be preserved, how would one naturally answer? Ask all who do not believe in God if they believe in self-preservation and I would venture to say that all would agree that self-preservation is the bedrock truth that must simply be accepted as a logical necessity too obvious to question! Should one be willing to lay his or her life down for the sake of a cause, someone, or something, at that point they thus believe in someone or something higher than themselves. Eternal preservation would be the next question. How?
God help us!
C. Hartline
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