2007-05-12 11:52:32 · 11 answers · asked by twinsall13 1 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
You bet he has done it including your last jewel 8756 times right here in good ole R&S
2007-05-12 11:59:41 · answer #1 · answered by nikola333 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It is not true that God can do anything. For example, He cannot learn, since He is already omniscient. It is true that there is nothing God cannot do because of lack of power. But there are certainly things He cannot do for other reasons. In the case of your silly question, if He couldn't lift it He would not be omnipotent, and therefore would not be God. So you are really asking if God can make a situation in which He is not God. No, He can't, because God is eternal and omnipresent by nature, which means He is God in all times, places and situations. God cannot do things that contradict His divine nature.
2007-05-12 12:02:40 · answer #2 · answered by PaulCyp 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
The solution to this question lies in the fact that the question itself is logically flawed. It is actually asking multiple questions at once. And the overarching question itself is logically incoherent.
Part of the problem is that the question is actually trying to answer more than one question at once:
1) Is there any limit to the size of stone God could create?
2) Is there any limit to the size of stone God could lift?
The answer to BOTH questions is "No!"
God can create any size stone. Imagine a stone as big as you like, and God can create one bigger.
God can lift any size stone. Imagine a stone as big as you like, and God can lift it.
So, when we parse out those two parts to the question, the answers are quite simple to come by. Thus, the answer to the question is simply, "No." God cannot create a stone to big for Him to lift, because He can lift any size stone.
But this does not mean there is a limit in the size stone God can create. It is not as if the answer of "no" to this question means that God can only create a stone yay big, and no bigger. Rather, His omnipotence is equally ultimate in both areas. He is all-powerful in stone creating ability, and He is all-powerful in stone lifting ability. This fact actually *supports* the fact of His omnipotence, rather than detracting from it.
But, then, why is the original question itself such a doozy? It is so problematic because it not only asks two questions at once, but it also simultaneously includes its own incoherence and inconsistency. This fact becomes clearer if we rephrase the question in more general terms. After all, we are not worried about the specifics of giant stones, but about God's power itself, as demonstrated in the creation and lifting of them. So let's rephrase the Omnipotence Paradox thus:
Can an all-powerful being demonstrate such great power that he renders himself powerless?
As you can see, I have substituted "all-powerful" as a synonym for "omnipotent", "great power" for the creation of a big stone, and "powerless" for the inability to lift the big stone.
Once we rephrase the paradox as you see above, I hope you can see why the question itself is hopelessly flawed, and internally incoherent. It is like saying, "Can a number get so close to infinity that it becomes zero?" It is like saying, "Is it possible to get so smart that you become even smarter than yourself?" At the end of the day, the question is asking whether God can be more omnipotent than himself. But the phrase "more omnipotent" is self-contradictory. It is simply nonsense.
Thus, trying to answer the question is so baffling, because the question itself is incoherent and flawed, not because there is anything illogical about God's existence.
2007-05-12 11:56:18 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Wow gee!!! That's an original question. If your are looking for something that God can't do, then try lying. God can't lie.
2007-05-12 11:59:51 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
The earth is his foot stool, so yes, he can lift this rock.
2007-05-12 11:56:46 · answer #5 · answered by Here I Am 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Can God make an argument against his existence so sound, even he won't believe he exists?
2007-05-12 11:57:58 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Can an atheistic make a logical fallacy so deceptive, that even he believes it?
2007-05-12 11:55:36 · answer #7 · answered by ignoramus_the_great 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
good times! i'm surprised i haven't seen any JW 2 page dissertation spam on this question
2007-05-12 12:20:22 · answer #8 · answered by blackroserequiem 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes -- it's in the heads of people who believe in him.
2007-05-12 11:56:41 · answer #9 · answered by Resident Heretic 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
How many more times is this question going to be asked???
2007-05-12 12:14:23 · answer #10 · answered by Candace A 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋