God - Does God Exist? The Age Old Debate

Whether you believe or not, the existence of God has been a question faced by human civilization for millennia. From the early concepts of sun worship to advanced theological thinking and philosophy, humans have argued and debated the existence of some higher spiritual plane, or some ubiquitous deity characterized as God.

In this context, God refers to the wider spectrum, beyond Christian connotations, to include Gods and Goddesses of other faiths and beliefs, and even energies and spirits without physical form from elsewhere. Without scientific proof, many people find faith hard to justify, whilst others think that science and religion are not mutually exclusive considerations.

The starting point for a debate about the existence of God has to be with the creation of the world in which we live. Has our life, our planet, our solar system, our galaxy, our universe come as the by-product of chance? Is it a fiction of science and chemistry? Theories have been proposed in a number of directions, including prominently the evolution theory and the creationist theories. The theory of evolution as pioneered by Darwin and his contemporaries is widely considered to be the most probable and accurate, and is favored by scientists the world over.

For some however, this theory is lacking in definition, and still poses some awkward questions. Creationists adapt the story of the world according to the bible, and the conventional Christian understanding of how we came to be. Likewise, there are those skeptical of the validity of this theory, who fail to understand unjustified faith in the substance of a text. Both of the major schools of thought have gained widespread support, and the debate over God's existence still rages on.

The Mathematician and Philosopher Pascal came up with a proposition which has come to be known as 'Pascal's Wager'. Pascal's wager suggests that it is safer to believe in a God than to not. The rationale behind this is that if there isn't a God, and you have believed through your life you will simply rest without consciousness for eternity, thus you've lost nothing. However if there is a God, and you have disbelieved or denounced his existence, you may be subject to adverse treatment after life.

Although this might be a neat summary of why it is better to believe in God than not, some people think that in spite of this, there is a distinct lack of proof on the spiritual side and as such faith simply cannot be logically and rationally justified.