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EVIDENCE AND GOD

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 September 2012

Oliver Leech
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Extract

For many contemporary atheists a significant justification for their belief is the claim that there is no evidence for the existence of God. They compare the lack of evidence for God to the lack of evidence for such beings as leprechauns and goblins. And they point out that for belief in the non-existence of alleged entities such as these it is not necessary to prove the negative, which would not be possible, but it is sufficient to show that after due scrutiny there is a lack of affirmative evidence. We reasonably believe, they argue, that there are no such beings as leprechauns and goblins not because we have found proof that they do not exist but simply because we have found no evidence to suggest that they do exist. And similarly in the case of the existence of God.

Type
Research Article
Information
Think , Volume 11 , Issue 32 , Autumn 2012 , pp. 53 - 63
Copyright
Copyright © The Royal Institute of Philosophy 2012

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References

Notes

1 A.Z. Williams, ‘Faith No More’ in New Statesman, 25th July 2011, pp 34–37.

2 Wisdom, J., ‘Gods’ in Western Philosophy: An Anthology, ed. Cottingham, John (Blackwell, 1996).Google Scholar

3 Flew, A., ‘Theology and Falsification’ in The Philosophy of Religion, ed. Mitchell, B. (Oxford: Oxford University Press. 1971).Google Scholar