Why is it any easier (or more logical for that matter) to believe that matter is eternal and God is not?
You are faced with one or the other. Is matter eternal, or a being that created it?
You are faced with one or the other. Is matter eternal, or a being that created it?
Anonymous
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It's a false dichotomy. Why couldn't matter create itself out of nothing? It doesn't really make any more sense to say that God created the universe out of nothing than to say that the universe just popped into existence out of nothing. Both violate the laws of physics as we know them, but the laws of physics as we know them could be wrong.
Matter isn't exactly eternal, in that it can be converted into energy, or energy can become matter. However, it is simpler and more consistent to say that the universe is eternal, than to say that the universe can't be eternal but God can.
"God is not eternal" implies that God exists but is not eternal. That's why nobody is saying that "matter is eternal and God is not". I don't know where you got that idea.
Mr.Samsa
Because there is evidence that matter actually currently exists. So fewer assumptions are required to believe that matter is eternal, as opposed to a God which lacks any evidence of existence.
This is not to say that either conclusion is actually correct. I am only demonstrating why one is easier to believe than the other.
cosmo
Matter is just one type of energy. Energy exists in positive and negative forms. The net total amount of Energy in the Universe is likely to be zero. Therefore, energy (and matter) need not be past or future eternal. This has nothing to do with the existence of God.
Caps Lock (TRS_BC)
If it's one or the other, I will go with the one that exists. At least to believe that matter is eternal I don't have to add a whole other "being" to the equation.
Matthew T
There has to be more than just matter. We have to postulate that matter has changed appearances, i.e. the laws of physics have changed. One big bang gets us one stab at a universe that can evolve life. Life is too delicately balanced for anyone to believe that one random shot is enough.
So now, we have to postulate an expanding, then contracting universe in order to get many big bangs. But it doesn't look like the universe is going to contract. Therein, we have to postulate the multiverse.