[Stingy Jack]

Damn it! I KNEW this was going to turn into a philosophical debate on the existence of god! I just knew it! And I wanted to participate, too!

Fortunately, the other atheists in here pretty much covered it. I still want to add my two cents, nonetheless.

"Where did the Earth come from?" The answer given by Ege was quite good. The earth was actually a ball of molten magma shortly after the formation of the sun, and according to astronomers, the moon was formed when a hurtling object hit the Earth and tore away a chunk. The magma cooled, the surface hardened and released gasses that formed our atmosphere. And take it from there, because this is beside the point. Bwind wants to know where the matter came from.

I am comfortable in saying "I don't know." I am also more comfortable in believing that matter has always been, than that some sentient being created it. Before the age of reason and the scientific revolution, people habitually ascribed answers to the unknown by chalking it up to god or gods. Rain is caused by god. Earthquakes are caused by god. That erupting volcano is caused by god. People need answers, and this was an easy way to get them. In this age, people are STILL attributing the unknown to god. The "unknown", in this day and age, being: "What happened AT THE VERY BEGINNING OF EVERYTHING?" and "What happens after death?" Science has pretty much answered everything else, so these things are where many people run to in defense of god.

In my studies of religion, I've noticed this trend: As religions were born, they became more people-friendly. People would follow whichever religion gave them the most hope. As a species, we are the only animals on this planet that realize our own mortality, and at the same time, possess that evolutionary desire to survive. We want to survive and live, but we know we are going to die. Hence, over time, we've developed these mythologies to help us cope with this gigantic conflict. For example: for a long time, Hinduism was the thing. We never die! We are just reincarnated over and over again, our new forms depending on our karma. But, people were not satisfied with that ... they wanted something to escape this cycle of death and rebirth ... and so, when Christianity came along with it's idea of "Paradise for eternity", it became quite popular (except, of course, with the powerful people of the currently established religions). That is a total example, and very cut-and-dried for the sake of brevity. My point: If cats knew they were going to die (in a way other than instinct), I'm quite sure you would see little shrines to some "Great Cat in the Sky" in litter boxes around the world. And what's better than Paradise for eternity? How about SEX for eternity!!! And ultimate, Godlike power!!! (Oh ... well, that's actually the Mormons. A very new religion, and one that still follows my pattern of "give the people what they want").

Now for the atheists: How do you know what is right and what is wrong? Who's to say morality is nothing more than individual opinion, and nobody's ideas of morality are more right or wrong than another's? (I actually spent the entire summer arguing this idea with an "Ethical monotheist" last year. It's a tough question to answer, if you take God out of the equation.)