Does God Exist?

This question is printed on the cover of 2009 book A Lawyer's Case for God by Jim Jacob. The same millennium-old question was used as the title of an article in the first issue of our newspaper in 1998.

“I was a committed atheist for 39 years” is the opening sentence of the book, in which the author discusses conflicting arguments and the road he travelled in becoming a believer in God and the Bible. “Don’t talk religion with friends,” is mentioned on page 10 of the book, and this is a wise advice, if you do not want to lose a friend when your point of view does not coincide with his. I am fortunate. I was an atheist only for 36 years and now I believe that God exists. I can talk about religion with Jim and discuss the question if God exists. For sure, we would not hurt each other’s feelings because we both agree that God exists. Jim treats the question as a lawyer. I treat the question as a scientist. Jim is a prominent attorney. You can find additional information on him in his book. I studied and practiced physics, math, electrical and mechanical engineering.

As a lawyer, Jim presents facts, examines the evidence, and asks each reader to render his or her own verdict. As scientist, I collect facts, analyze them, and make conclusions. We both came to the same conclusion that God exists. Jim can criticize my arguments and I can criticize his, but does it matter? I think that it does, because there exists maybe hundreds, if not thousands of books on this topic, but to find a correct answer is not easy. Jim knows better than me how it is important to impress a jury of laypeople with evidence in a convincing fashion. On the other hand, Jim knows better than me that good lawyer can try to impress a jury and win the case by manipulating the facts. It is the jurie’s job to sort of the fact from the fiction. The views of atheists are set forth in more detail in other books that can be used as a point of comparison. The role of Judges should be played by a panel composed of clergymen and laymen. Jim used eight pages in his book to describe how complex a human being is and why this could not happen by chance. Stephen Hawking is the famous scientist known for Black holes, Theoretical cosmology, Quantum gravity, and Hawking radiation. He wrote in one of his books that he did not believe that there was any chance that some crazy monkey can by chance type one of Shakespeare’s verse even if he typed for millions of years. Stephen Hawking had in mind that he did not believe that human being could be created by evolution. We can even believe that everything is a work of evolution, but the trick is that it is a miracle how perfectly the Laws of the Nature work. It seems that a supernatural creator (God) is behind them. This is what bothered Albert Einstein when he wrote “I want to know how God created the world…” By the way, it is amazing that thousands of laws of nature never contradict each other. Who designed this intricately complex system, if not God?

Existence of many religions and denominations in the same religion is confusing. For instance, Christianity has over 40 denominations. All of them consider their teachings mostly correct, while the Bible is practically the same. The difference is, perhaps, in interpretation of the Bible. Each religion or denomination has its own interpretation, which makes them somewhat different. However, most branches agree on the core beliefs. In our democratic society one can find and join congregation in accordance with his believes, and there are many options. One can join congregation of his friend or relative and accept their beliefs. Another person would find his way by reading the Bible. This process can take years. Some people need help and guidance, others can go through the Bible on their own. Some questions can be answered by reading the Bible, but not all. Some questions could be never answered.

The book A Lawyer's Case for God by Jim Jacob helps readers examine and analyze many questions which confront people in their pursuits of God and the Bible. As one of my religious friends told me, following any religion is better than not to have any religion at all (he is a Christian). He respects all religions, including Judaism, which does not share his own belief. He believes that God is one for all people and everybody has the right to worship him as they chose. Hundreds of religious books teach you. A Lawyer's Case for God encourages you to think and discuss these important issues. The book can be purchased on Amazon or at www.prophecyrevealed.com