No, no, *you *throw the bottles at the teller of the bad jokes. Traditions and values, man !
Getting back to the original question… (ok - I’m a bit slow)
I think that a well-ordered universe strongly suggests (but does not prove) the existence of some sort of intelligent Creator (or perhaps a group of creators with such unity of purpose that they can be considered as a single entity), so that would be kind of like asking mathematicians if they ever use a different pi.
But maybe that’s the point of the question? That it doesn’t make sense to ask a non-existent being to reveal itself? If so, I can’t really argue with that. But I gather you’re a long-term atheist, and when you say “I don’t believe in God” you mean something like “I don’t think the available evidence supports the existence of a being such as you describe” and feel no particular distress about it.
In contrast, it often happens that believers in the midst of a crisis of faith say “I don’t believe in God” when they mean “I don’t trust God.” That is, it’s not a dispassionate observation but a turmoil of emotions brought on by difficulties that seem to mean that maybe God does exist but has betrayed or abandoned or rejected them. In that case, praying can be helpful. The idea is that instead of getting all passive-aggressive about it, the person should speak frankly with God - just as you would in a relationship with another human being. This is what happens in the book of Job: Job confronts God, who then speaks from the whirlwind. And although God never does explain what it was all about, Job takes comfort in knowing he’s been heard.
No, no no. How in the world do Laws of Physics and natural chemical reactions imply an intelligent force? They don’t! Doesn’t mean I don’t think there is a Creator, but nothing about the natural state of the Universe suggests one.
We know that human intelligence exists (sort of) and we know that lesser creatures possess what appears to be rudimentary intelligence. It’s perfectly reasonable to assume that there are higher intelligences than ours, up to and including some kind of “universal intelligence” that pervades all of Existence. Insisting on some kind of scientific explanation based on laws of physics (of which we’ve only begun to scratch the surface, never forget that) doesn’t change anything about whether or not such a “universal intelligence” actually exists.
That said, there’s no reason to unite this presumed “intelligent force” with any kind of Creator Being. That’s illogical. As far as modern science can determine, there is/was no “Creator” in the anthropomorphic sense – the Universe created itself.
Do I really have to rephrase this? Okay. “No, no no. How in the world do Laws of Physics and natural chemical reactions imply a Omnicient, Omnipotent Creator of thr Universe, the Entity commonly known as God to most of us? They don’t! Doesn’t mean I don’t think there is a Creator, but nothing about the natural state of the Universe suggests one.”
They don’t. But you should never limit your knowledge of the world to science only. That’s crazy talk.
That was funnier when you thought of it than it was when you posted it.
In an attempt to drag this back near topic(if not on): SirGalahad, are you willing to concede that atheists do not make a habit of going door-to-door trying to get Christians to abandon their faith?