Firstly, how does science detect anything?
At its simplest level, science detects the effect of something by measuring or observing its effect on something else. For example:
- We know how much electricity is flowing through a conductor because of the effect it has on a voltmeter - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voltage
- We know about gravity by measuring how objects move in a gravity field.
- We know about photons by measuring the effect they have on photo-sensitive chemicals or photo-electric plates.
- We know how hot water is by measuring how much the heat expands a column of mercury, a metal bar, how it changes resistance of an electrical conductor, etc.
- We know about wind-speed by measuring how quickly it rotates a wind-speed detector or anemometer.
Try this for yourself. Can you think of anything science can detect which doesn’t depend on detecting its effect on something else?
In other words, to be detectable by science, something must exert an effect, and to exert an effect on anything means that that effect can be measured. Therefore, anything which cannot be detected cannot possibly be influencing or changing anything in any way, otherwise we could measure it.
An undetectable god is an impotent god and is indistinguishable from a non-existent one. Such a god would be utterly incapable of communicating anything or of creating anything. A universe in which such a god, or gods, exists would be indistinguishable from one with no gods whatsoever.
So, theists, when you use the ‘undetectable by science’ excuse for your god, you are actually telling us your god is utterly impotent. (Tweet this)
So, if your god isn’t impotent, why can’t it be detected?