On the speculative philosophy of atheists and deniers of the Existence of God
On the speculative philosophy of atheists and deniers of the Existence of God:
Atheists and deniers of the Existence of God begin with premises that are speculative, hypothetical, baseless and unsupported. The following are a sample:
They say that matter is eternal (azali); it cannot be created or destroyed. That is incorrect. Modern science has demonstrated that matter in any of its identifiable forms is not perpetual; it can be broken down or transformed into other forms of matter or energy.
It is common knowledge that anything which can be broken down or transformed is not eternal or uncreated; indeed, it is by definition created (haadith).
Therefore, actual matter is created and impermanent.
We present the following example:
If we were to tell someone conversant in chemistry and physics that matter can cease to exist and then proved it, offering the example of death, his response might be to object, saying, "No, I will not be cease to exist. My body will simply change form." Then, we could say to him, "But these other forms of matter will also cease to exist."
He would say, "But they in turn will be transformed into other forms of matter."
We could continue, saying, "And these in turn will cease to exist, and what they have transformed into will cease to exist."
He would insist on his opinion that behind all of this there would be matter which could not be destroyed.
Then we could say to him, "And what is this form of matter that cannot be destroyed?"
We would find him unable to venture a response.
That is because, in reality, he is not referring to actual matter; he is referring to a substance that is in the mind, philosophical, hypothetical and conjectural.
There we have it. This 'eternal substance' has no existence in the material world; it exists only in the mind. But in our everyday and scientific lives, we deal with material substances, not mental substances.[1]
In short, beyond all this matter and its existence, there must necessarily be a real cause for everything we find in nature, and it must be: eternal—without beginning or end. Indeed, it is Allah, the Supreme Creator.
An example of these mental, philosophical conjectures:
Imagine that a small group of aliens from some stars came down to earth. They could hear, but they were incapable of speech, and they wanted to search for a way to communicate with human beings. While they were searching, a wind blew and the limbs of one of them rubbed up against the other, producing a sound. They repeated the process more than once until the wind stopped, so they thought they had found the secret to human speech, which is that the human mouth consists of two jaws full of teeth. In the friction of the upper jaw against the lower jaw, speech occurs, for without a doubt, when one thing rubs against another, a sound is produced. However, could such an incident be said to be the discovery of the secret of human speech?
Of course, not![2]
That would be conjecture—an invalid and baseless conclusion.
Likewise, the speculative philosophy of atheists and deniers of the Existence of God can be considered to discover the organization of nature, but not the explanation for the universe.
This is nothing but a trick and a false claim, as we pointed out in the previous example.
As such, we repeat: the philosophy of atheists is merely speculative and hypothetical. Its claims are invalid, and it has no basis in truth.
The likes of these atheists and deniers of the Existence of God have shut their eyes to obvious facts and built imaginary archways of assumption, as demonstrated in their uncommon reasoning.[3]
They are none but slaves to passion and desire. They submit to vanity and pride.
Another example of this fanciful, intellectual philosophy of atheists and deniers of the Existence of God is the following:
Such a person who denies the Existence of Allah Almighty might say, "Could your Lord create a stone that cannot be moved?" Such a question assumes that we would be forced to answer yes or no, and in either cases, he would get the answer he wants.
If we were to say, "Yes, He could." He would say, "Then there is something he cannot do: move that stone."
But if we were to say, "No," he would reply, "Then there is something He cannot do, so He is not All-Powerful!" But we will not give either answer. Instead, we say:
Your question conceals a fundamental incongruity, for it is a logical contradiction. The Power of Allah Almighty is not contingent on impossibilities, for that which is logically impossible is not in reality anything.[4]
Atheists and deniers of the Existence of God propose that experimentation and observation are the only two ways of discovering facts. This is a false claim.
We will give an example that will prove that experimentation and observation are not the only two ways of discovering facts. Science is not limited to that which can be directly experienced. There is knowledge that can only be acquired through narration, knowledge that can only be acquired through logical deduction, and still more knowledge that can only be acquired through prophets, messengers and divine scripture.
Among that which proves that knowledge is not limited to what can be directly experienced is:
People in ancient times used to build sailboats made of wood, believing that water would only carry that which is lighter than it. When some of them said that an iron boat could float on the surface of the water, just like wood, people rejected the idea and ridiculed him. They would come to him with a metal shoe in a bucket of water to show people that this piece of iron settles to the bottom instead of floating on the top of the water. This was an experiment.
Yet, we all know today and we admit that this experiment was wrong. Had they used a metal dish instead, they would have seen with their own eyes the truth of what he said about iron boats.[5]
Such is the case with atheists and deniers of the Existence of God: their knowledge is limited to what they have seen with their own eyes or in direct experimentation, and they use this to prove the truth of what they say.
That is why atheists deny the Existence of God the Creator, arguing that they cannot see Him. They have limited their knowledge to that which they can see with their own eyes or directly experience, which is, without a doubt, a speculative philosophy and a false, invalid claim.
Another proof of this is:
At the start of the 20th century, the telescope was still weak, so when astronomers would look at the sky with this instrument, they would observe many cosmological objects like light. They deduced that they were clouds of vapor and gas which were in the phase right before turning into stars. But after more powerful telescopes were built and these cosmological objects were viewed again, they learned that these multiple bodies of light were a grouping of many stars that only looked like a cloud because of the incredible distance between them and the earth.[6]
This is one of the many examples which confirm that experimentation and observation are not the only two methods of discovering hard fact. Knowledge is not limited to things which can be seen with the eye or directly experienced.
Everything we believe in was at one time a mere supposition, until new facts were discovered to support the truth of the claim. Scientists do believe in the existence of things they cannot see as a result of the appearance of their products and effects.
This is the principle which determines our belief that, behind this universe, there is a Supreme Creator, since we can see His Signs and effects which point to the greatness of His Attributes and Abilities in creating this astonishingly sublime universal order.
They say that matter came together by accident, taking the forms from which our whole world is designed, including life and consciousness. This is a false claim.
Chance alone—especially in this case—is useless; there must necessarily be design behind it.
To give an example: if all beings were formed from a combination of atoms, it would have to have been by chance, but that contradicts the fact that the atoms themselves were designed, such that if they come together in one way, they form gold and if they come together in another way, they form water, and so on.
Chance alone does not solve this conundrum, for it is not free of design.[7]
Among that which confirms the Existence of this Designer and Maker is these atoms and their pattern of coming together, and by extension, this entire universe.
All we can say is that, behind this well-designed, exquisite universe is God, the Supreme Creator.
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[1]Ibid.
[2]The Challenge of Islam(Al-Islam Yatahadaa), by Wahiduddin Khan
[3]Ibid.
[4]The Method of Argument and Debate in Settling Matters of Belief(Manhaj al-Jadal wal-Munadharah fi Taqrir al-I`tiqaad), by Dr. Uthman Ali Hassan
[5]The Challenge of Islam(Al-Islam Yatahadaa), by Wahiduddin Khan
[6]Ibid.
[7]Physics and the Existence of the Creator(Al-Fisiyaa' wa Wujood al-Khaaliq), by Dr. Ja`far Shaikh Idris
