Atheists: There's no deity of any sort now, but could one evolve?

Question

Might there, someday, somewhere, be a creature who evolves to the point of basically being "god-like"?

some of that edges toward self-contradiction, and I'm not sure how far I'd go with this.
How about the idea that in an infinite universe, everything that *is* possible must happen, eventually?

Enraged Parrot - I meant something more than just lack of technological sophistication.
I guess I'm looking somewhere between your ideas and those of zero cool.

Answer 1

Sure.

But I think it's more likely that a human, or humans, will obtain that status with another life form. This will happen in one of two ways -

Many scientist feel that the ability to initiate life is scientifically possible, and likely within the next century. If that life has any sentience, it is likely that they will view their creators in some god-like manner. Of course, they may also view their creators as an inferior race and attempt to take over.

The other possibility is similar, but I think far more likely to happen first. Synthetic (computer-based) intelligence may evolve with human help to become sentient life, or at least independent consciousness. This life would definitely view humans as a diety, since their perpetual existance within the computer software would depend directly on their human hosts (they can always pull the plug!). Reproduction would also require supreme intervention. Most interesting, humans would probably regard this life source with only partial attention, sort of like the way we play "Sims", where we wouldn't handle every action of the life form, but we'd control the general environment to pursuade a certain culture or test the reaction of the subject. Sound familiar?

Answer 2

Yes. We have to a degree.

Look at modern technology. We can produce our own food, and now humans have sequenced the genome, meaning in the future people may be able to change themselves at a cellular level, however they wish.

I don't think it's possible to be omnipotent, omnipresent, or any of the other traits associated with a deity (logical fallacy), but it's possible for intelligent species to acquire traits or the kind of complexity only formerly associated with deities.

That doesn't make us into gods, of course. Just technologically savvy. Gods are fiction, anyway. I think most people in western society have evolved past the crude moral framework seen in some religious texts, like the old testament (we aren't exactly burning witches, for example)

Answer 3

Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic. So yes, there could potentially evolve a race so advanced that we viewed them as Gods. In fact, I imagine that if we were to time warp back to the dark ages with a Buick and a toaster we'd be hailed as Gods ourselves.

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As to your edit, probabilistically speaking, yes, a godlike being could spontaneously pop into existence. Remember, given an infinite amount of time and an infinite number of tries =anything= can happen. Statues could walk, monkeys could write Shakespeare, and all the laws of physics could just say sod it all and throw in the towel. Unfortunately, we don't have an infinite amount of time to see any of that happen in. In fact, the universe hasn't been around long enough to see any even remotely improbable things happen.

Answer 4

First you need to define god-like.

I foresee a day when human intelligence becomes non-corporeal, perhaps even omnipresent, but I doubt we will ever become omniscient, or omnipotent.

I can envision a scenario where we merge with technology on a quantum level, and then perhaps somehow "leap" into the quantum fabric of the universe, thus imbuing the universe with intelligence.

Answer 5

The Field of Potential may not be commonly referred to as a deity, but can you name any characteristics attributed to a deity that are not shared by the Field of Potential?

Science accepts the existence of the Field of Potential.

Answer 6

It's possible, but, IMO, it would be more of a comparative "godhood".

Homo sapiens could be viewed (hypothetically) as 'god-like' by earlier hominid species, such as homo habilius, or homo erectus. As such, there is the possibility that further up the evolutionary ladder, there could be a species that we too could, hypothetically, view in the same light.

However, that doesn't mean that being would be omnipotent; just further advanced.

Answer 7

Who in the world would know a anwser to a question like this, Life is random according to athiestic ideals so that means evolution is random so other words could be and might not be who knows.

Answer 8

A being that is all knowing, all powerful, all good, present everywhere...

No. Nothing like that could emerge from the evolutionary process.

Answer 9

I see no reason it couldn't be but of course whatever it is it can't have contradictions and it certainly won't be all-good because good has no objective meaning.

Answer 10

If you believe that there is no God then you will perish forever in your sins. It's just that simple. Not because i say so, but because God Himself says so.

I won't try to convince you of this unless you ask because that would constitute forcing my beliefs down someone else's throat.

Post your questions. You will get some great answers. Then YOU must choose whether to believe them.