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Suppose that around the time of the next full moon, strange events begin to occur. All clouds over the nighttime half of the earth dissipate allowing for unobstructed viewing. Messages begin to scroll across the moon's surface. The very first one says " I am God. " What follows are pronouncements and admonitions like you might expect from a god. It is soon realized that all sighted people on earth read the messages in their native language. Furthermore, blind people can " see " and understand in their mind's eye. Would such an event convince you to become a believer in God ? I have a friend who claims that this could be the work of superintelligent ETs. Also, would you change the way you behave or would you go on acting as you always have ? I don't think I would change how I live.

Cosmos57 4 June 23
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6 comments

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1

This would prove that a very powerful intelligence exists.

It would not, by itself, determine the character of such a being or the legitimacy of whatever claims it would make upon me or humankind.

Indeed, my first impulse, based on the principle that absolute power corrupts absolutely, would be to not be noticed by such a being if possible, much less trust it.

Proving the existence of a god would only be the first step on a very long road to trusting and certainly to worshiping such a being. Also, the communication would have to be a two way street. After all these thousands of years, all these wars, all these tragedies ... surely some pointed questions should be asked, and answered with candor.

0

Eh. I suppose I'd scour the news for Police Box sightings for, like, a few minutes until it stopped being funny and then I'd assume it's some kind of tech someone's been working on in secret. Or that I'm hallucinating, as happens to narcoleptics.

5

The atheist, William Rowe (late head of Philosophy at Purdue), claimed that such would count as empirical evidence for the existence of God although it would not be conclusive. He used this example (where it was a voice everyone heard in their own language) in the attempt to refute the claim that in principle there could be no empirical evidence that would support either theism or atheism--and, hence, the entire question is meaningless. So, for him, it is a meaningful issue and since in practice no such empirical evidence ever occurs (and also for other reasons), he was convinced atheism is true.

3

I don't think it would change much about who I am and how I live.

2

Perhaps - would depend on the exact circumstances as it could be very advanced ET. It might slightly stronger evidence if the blind would indeed see (have their sight restored, eyes regenerated if none existed.)

When I've been asked what it would take for me to consider evidence for the existence of god, I have replied when artificial limbs are left behind at Lourdes instead of crutches. The rapid, spontaneous regeneration of a limb would certainly be evidence of an extremely advanced technology (where does all that mass come from that creates the new limb) or a supernatural power.

For me it would take something like the lake I live by to separate at my command and I could walk to the other side and back on the lake bottom. Something that god has already done before so I would not be asking for something special.

3

Blind people seeing and understanding in their minds eye might make you wonder - but I would suspect some sort of advanced technology would be more believable than what people generally imagine to be "god". I would expect god to talk to my heart, not communicate through general propaganda.

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