A question of belief (In God)

Do you think life is random?


I think that if you believe in God you should believe life is not random (everything happens for a reason.

However if you believe in Science ... (like evolution) you must believe that life is random.

U?

Thanks

Why does evolution mean life is random?

Craving a doughnut and then being offered one 5 minutes later is not random.

What do you mean by "believe in science"?

I believe that God predetermines a lot of the randomness in the universe. Evolution, for example, I believe was guided by God in his design of the universe so that the first life form would evolve and develop into the diversity of life we have today. I believe that a lot of things don't happen for a reason, as I believe that humans have a reasonable amount of free will, which is one random element I think that God chooses to have little influence over. Therefore, anything that is caused by humans is not necessarily part of God's or anybody's plan.

Because evolution is all to do with random changes to DNA (mutation) which cause random changes to physiology

This could change the way you think + feel .......

what I was trying to get at is if you believe in God then that means you believe that God is controlling it therefore it cannot be random as some thing is predetermining your future

Obviously you may believe it is God who made evolution but then you mean that it is not random as 1. he created it and 2. he is probably controlling it

Is evolution random? The mutations in the DNA that can lead to advantageous characteristics are indeed random. But the process of natural selection is not random at all. It selects those that are more likely to survive and produce offspring. That in itself is not a random process.

Well exactly. It is perfectly possible to believe in both God and evolution.

Actually, it is."Natural Selection" is random (otherwise we would have found a physical law expressing it). What make a particular organism to thrive is the conjunction of 1) a particular random mutation and 2) a particular environment (random as well). It's only when an environment changes that a particular mutation can give an advantage to an organism. Environments, like the weather, arise randomly.
There are only 3 choices: either something is random, or it is not. If it's not random then it's a natural physical law or it's designed by someone. Evolution is not a physical law. By definition, it is not designed, therefore it's random. Simple.

Although you can say the 'starting materials' of natural selection are random (mutation, the environment - although neither of these are completely random), the process itself, as the name 'selection' implies, is entirely non-random.

If I put 100 people into a room full of poison gas and randomly give one of them an antidote, it is NOT random which one survives.

Why does evolution mean life is random?

Do you think life is random?


I think that if you believe in God you should believe life is not random (everything happens for a reason.

However if you believe in Science ... (like evolution) you must believe that life is random.

U?

Thanks

Although you can say the 'starting materials' of natural selection are random (mutation, the environment - although neither of these are completely random), the process itself, as the name 'selection' implies, is entirely non-random.

If I put 100 people into a room full of poison gas and randomly give one of them an antidote, it is NOT random which one survives.