A Rational God

Can one rationally believe in God?

Is there a concept of a rational God that we can believe in? One of the greatest obstacles to a belief in a divine being in this scientific age is the apparent conflict of belief with reason. It seems like a lot of people compartmentalize their lives into the rational part that believes in the dictates of science, and the religious part that believes in magical beings. They switch their consciousness effortlessly between these “compartments” depending on the circumstances, perhaps only vaguely aware of the inherent conflicts betweens them.

Before you can really begin to investigate this problem you have to first figure out what you actually mean when you say “God.” As George H. Smith writes:

 Knowing what one is talking about is of inestimable value in any dialogue, so the theist, before he sets out to explain why we should believe in god, must first explain what he means by the word “god”.

Atheism: The Case Against God, George H. Smith, p. 29

Unfortunately the many attributes associated with the Christian God are hopelessly imprecise, contradictory, and in the end mostly unintelligible. For example most Christian theologians attempt to defend these three aspects of God:

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The Gods of the Bible (Part 1)

“All truth is logical once it is understood.”

“Perhaps the greatest common denominator among the followers of New Age Thought is the belief that one has to look no further to find God than within himself.   They are true followers of the injunction of Jesus that “The kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21) If, then, the kingdom of God is within it must stand to reason that God resides in his own kingdom and he is also within. If God is within your brother then when you see his face you also see the face of God. If God is within you then when you look in the mirror you also see the divine face. When you feel within with no illusions then you must be feeling the presence of God.”

The Gods of the Bible (Part 1), Joseph J. Dewey