Following is a summary of my three published books.
Is God a Reality?—A Scientific Investigation (502 pages)
This book investigates whether a God created us or we created him—a figment of our imagination. It contends, as a basic premise, that whether God exists or not is a scientific question: in other words, we should be able to figure out whether there is enough evidence for a Creator in our universe; just as science could postulate the existence of atoms even though they are invisible. A written book, for example, implies an intelligent author; similarly we can deduce an Intelligent Creator from what we see in the universe. I presume God can protect his own interests, and that he is on the side of truth: so, I see no reason for trying to defend his cause; I look for the truth, and let the dice fall whichever way they will. The book looks mainly at the origins of the universe and of life showing, beyond any reasonable doubt, that a Superior Intelligence was their cause: intelligence is the language he speaks to us in.
The book starts by looking at the huge quantity of matter (which is a form of energy—E=mc2) in our universe, and how difficult it is to produce it. According to basic physics, energy cannot be created or destroyed (it can only change form: from heat to light, say). It begs the question, therefore, where did all this matter come from? And why is there something rather than nothing?
Until just over a century ago, scientists thought that matter and energy were eternal. This concept was flustered when it was discovered that the universe is expanding (the big bang theory). An expanding universe implies that it was smaller yesterday, even smaller a week ago, a month ago, and a year ago; much smaller a thousand years ago, a million years ago, and a billion years ago. If one keeps reversing the clock, one comes to a time, about fourteen billion years ago, when the universe was just a point. This, interestingly enough, implies a moment of ‘creation.’ It also begs the question: what or who made the universe start expanding?
Consequently, the only way matter could be eternal, at the same time allowing for the expansion of the universe, is if we assume the universe is oscillating in size. However, such a scenario is precluded by the second law of thermodynamics, which is the principle that everything in the universe deteriorates and runs down if undisturbed. Anyone can tell if a shattering glass is filmed in reverse.
The book then looks at how fine-tuned the universe is and determines the astronomical odds against producing a starry universe (most chemical elements are produced in stars) and the even more astronomical odds against producing a life-sustaining universe. These ‘impossible’ odds practically leave no doubt that the universe had to be ‘coaxed’ to its present existence: chance alone is not a viable option.
The book then denigrates some mainstream scientific hypotheses for the origin of the universe, like the multiverse, string theory, and the anthropic principle.
The book then changes gears and examines life: the intelligence in DNA, the catch-22 structure and the coordination (factory-like structure) in the living cell. It then calculates the astronomical odds against producing a viable replicating living cell by chance alone—since evolution cannot act before a replicator occurs: finally showing that the age of the universe is far from enough time to produce the most primitive of cells—a bacterial cell.
The book then shows that there is no evidence for macroevolution (large-scale evolution) in the fossil record (especially in the Cambrian explosion) or from genetic engineering laboratories. Indeed, the fossil record shows that species appear and disappear, without showing any transitory forms: according to Darwinian evolutionary theory they should be the norm not the exception. It seems God intervened several times: causing a ‘down-up’ (from less complex to more complex organisms) evolution.
The book then examines our consciousness (self-awareness) and qualia (senses, feelings, color, etc.) which science has no clue how they come about from our physical (chemical) bodies. It then gives percentages (as reported by medical doctors) of near-death experiences: accounts of people who reported being lucidly conscious while clinically dead—including a well-documented case.
The book finally looks at a few well-witnessed as well as medically-examined miracles: so we also have positive evidence (rather than just circumstantial) for the existence of a Powerful Supreme Being.
The book ends by assuming God’s existence and examining the meaning of life—why we are here. It seems we are here to develop a personal relationship with God and to participate in God’s ‘continuing creation’—the procreation of other human beings who can likewise have a personal relationship with him.
Is the Bible Infallible?—A Rational, Scientific, and Historical Evaluation (826 pages)
Most Christian denominations assume the Bible was directly or indirectly dictated (‘inspired’) to its various authors by God himself; consequently, they consider the Bible as God’s Word and every verse infallible. This book respectfully questions this claim by evaluating the Bible text rationally, scientifically, and historically.
After a brief description of the history and English translation of the Bible, the book shows clearly that Adam and Eve’s story of the Fall of Humanity into sin (original sin) and Noah’s Ark story of the Flood are both myths templated (adapted to monotheism) on the Epic of Gilgamesh, which was etched on clay tablets about a millennium prior to the book of Genesis—the first book of the Bible. A definite giveaway is the talking serpent, which obviously belongs to the realm of fables. In other words, a fable is not reality, so original sin never really happened; consequently, there was no need for Jesus to redeem us from it. This begs the question, however: is the Bible God’s special ‘revelation,’ or is it a human collection of previous ancient myths?
Probably the best ‘litmus’ test for verifying the Bible’s infallibility, and therefore its being God’s Word, is whether there are any contradictions in its text. The fact is we do find many irreconcilable contradicting versions of biblical accounts if we read it in its entirety. Now, contradicting versions cannot both be God’s Word—at least one version, if not both, must be false.
The book then looks at science in the Bible. The cosmology of the Bible far from conforms to modern science. For example, it says the universe and the earth were both created within a week and they are roughly six thousand years old; while, in fact, from the big bang theory the universe is about fourteen billion years old and from radiometric dating, the earth is about four and one-half billion years old. It also says all animals and humans were created within a week of each other; radiometric dating of fossils shows they (e.g., dinosaurs and people) lived millions of years apart. It also says that the earth is flat, while it’s common knowledge it’s spherical. It also postulates the sky to be a shiny brass vault, and that stars are very small (the size of figs, say) while, in fact, they are as huge as the sun, and maybe even larger. Although it seems to be right regarding large-scale evolution (macroevolution): namely, that God seems to have acted directly (like ‘coaxing’ a down-up evolution, say), all the above scientific errors don’t say much for God’s inspiration: it seems to reflect the contemporary authors’ beliefs.
The ballpark historicity of the Bible is reasonably correct, but it’s inexact in a few years here and there: again undermining the hypothesis of God’s authorship.
The Bible’s treatment of the soul (consciousness/self-awareness) seems to be better than that of modern scientists: so far, science has no clue what consciousness is all about. Science says the soul is inexistent, but evidence from near-death experiences suggests otherwise. Some marginal Christian institutions, like Jehovah’s Witnesses, although they use the same Bible, also believe the soul does not exist. The book explains why they believe so, and why they are, at least biblically, wrong. It then examines the biblical heaven and hell, and why Christianity grossly misunderstood hell to be an eternal fiery pit.
Although Jesus is probably the Messiah (the Christ/Anointed One) promised to King David, he was nothing like the world leader his contemporary Jews expected him to be—so much for biblical prophesies. On the other hand, he was definitely not the Son of Man, as the gospels (especially John’s) contend; nor was he the suffering Servant of the Lord, as later Christians contended trying to explain why he suffered such a shameful, painful death. I contend Jesus had to suffer a public death so that there would be no question about his resurrection: his suffering was collateral damage. (Saint) Paul’s authentic letters seem to give enough evidence for Jesus’s resurrection since Paul was originally a skeptic who even persecuted Christians.
The kingdom of heaven (or equivalently the kingdom of God) is not in heaven, but on earth: as we pray in the Our Father (“Thy kingdom come, on earth, as it is in heaven.”). God’s kingdom is a kingdom of justice, truth, love, and sharing on this earth: where God ‘rules’ in our ‘heart.’ According to the gospels, Jesus foretold this kingdom of God would flourish in his own (or rather the apostles’) generation: he seems to have jump-started it, but unfortunately it stalled. Salvation in the Bible means to live a full life in this kingdom of God, and gospel means the ‘good news’ of the imminent coming of this kingdom.
Now, if you ask Bible-inerrancy believers, the most common reason why they (and most Christians) believe the Bible to be God’s Word is because of its claimed prophesies: the assumption being that only God knows the future. However, while I generally don’t question biblical miracles, prophesies claimed in the Bible text itself (especially in the New Testament), historically, never transpired; likewise, prophesies claimed by most religious institutions, say from the book of Daniel. Thus, the Bible fails both ‘litmus’ tests for God’s authorship and infallibility—contradictions and failed prophesies.
The last chapter of the book exposes God’s ‘duality’ in the Bible, which portrays God with a Jekyll-Hyde personality. God is described both as a benevolent, unconditionally-loving Father (as Jesus taught us) but also as a violent, vindictive Judge (e.g., the Flood, Sodom & Gomorrah). At times, he is even given a character with diabolical traits, nonetheless: why? That’s the way we, humans, want him to be—tit-for-tat. We have been lied to about God. I contend Jesus was conceived by God to show us God’s real character and so set scriptures right—that God is absolutely non-violent (like Jesus)—not to redeem us from original sin.
Faith and Reason: Disturbing Christian Doctrines (602 pages)
In the interest of this book’s integrity (wholeness), the first third of the book revisits some of what was said in the previous book: in order to set up an autonomous basis for the arguments that follow. It does away with the ‘axiom’ of the Bible’s infallibility, which induces Bible-inerrant Christians to quote a verse from the Bible to prove their point of view conclusively. I contend the Bible is simply a human book; once this axiom is shaken, a number of disturbing doctrines come to our view strictly through our reasoning.
To do this, the book first shows there are contradictions in the Bible; consequently, both versions cannot be God’s Word. Secondly, prophesies claimed in the Bible itself, historically never transpired; likewise, other prophesies claimed by religious institutions. Thus, the Bible fails both significant ‘litmus’ tests for infallibility.
False or disturbing Christian doctrines treated in the book are:
(1) The portrayal of the Christian hell (an eternal fiery pit) is a gross misunderstanding of the gospels. Jesus described (corpses) being burnt in Gehenna after one’s death rather than enjoying oneself in ‘God’s kingdom’ on earth if one does not cooperate in establishing it. But Gehenna was only a valley, south of Jerusalem, which contained the city’s garbage dump, where there was always enough refuse to keep it burning incessantly. The earliest canonical (official) gospel written (Mark’s) described this fire as “unquenchable,” but the second canonical gospel written (Matthew’s), in using Mark’s as a template (synoptic), paraphrased it to “eternal.” There is a big difference between ‘unquenchable’ and ‘eternal’: ‘unquenchable’ means the fire never stops until it is allowed to consume itself, while ‘eternal’ means it never ends. The worst thing that could happen to a Jew of Jesus’s time was not to be properly buried—to be thrown in a garbage dump, say. Jesus used contemporary beliefs to make his point; he never questioned contemporary ‘wisdom’: he never intended hell to be eternal or fiery. I contend Jesus was only human; consequently, he knew nothing about the afterlife. Such scare-tactics might help force us to live better lives, but they also tend to distance us from God. Our Lady’s apparitions ‘revealing’ hell are also discussed.
(2) Jesus’s divinity is never claimed in the first three gospels written (the synoptic gospels: Mark, Matthew & Luke), it’s only the last gospel written (John’s) that mythologizes him and ‘makes’ him divine. John wanted to make Jesus equal, or better, than contemporary Roman Emperors (e.g., Augustus), who were worshipped as gods; so, in his gospel, he claimed Jesus was divine. By assuming the infallibility of every biblical verse, the later Christian Church came to the absurd and illogical conclusions that God is one, yes, but also a trinity, and that Jesus is both human and divine. The book shows that the pronouncement of the dogma of the Trinity, historically, was politically coerced by the then Roman Emperor (Theodosius I) before universal agreement was reached by the entire Christian Church.
(3) Adam and Eve’s story of the Fall of humanity into sin (original sin) and Noah’s Ark story of the Flood are not original; they are myths adapted from the Epic of Gilgamesh, which was etched on clay tablets about a millenum prior to the book of Genesis—the first book of the Bible. A definite giveaway is the talking serpent which belongs in the realm of fables. In other words, original sin never happened: consequently, there was no need for Jesus to redeem us from it. I contend that Jesus died a public death so there would be no question about his resurrection. The dogma of the Immaculate Conception is also discussed.
(4) Roman Catholics (and several Protestant denominations) believe that no one outside the Church can be ‘saved’ (go to heaven). Indeed, the original Christian Church Fathers preached, “Outside the Church there is no salvation.” So, according to this teaching, at most only 1.3 billion people (Catholics) can be saved; at least 6.5 billion people will surely burn in hell eternally. Now, all Catholic dogmas (main beliefs) must be believed by the members: to the extent of believing something white even if it looks black; otherwise they would be excommunicated, and therefore destined to eternal hell fire. Some Protestant denominations, like Presbyterians, believe in predestination: that God predestines those ‘deemed’ Christians for eternal salvation but non-Christians for eternal damnation: thus, still creating them despite his knowing the final outcome. I contend God doesn’t know the future as far as we’re concerned, and that we are completely free to save ourselves or not—one cannot have it both ways. I also believe that eternal salvation (be with God) can be achieved even after one’s death and that everyone can be saved if they only want to. Belief that Jesus is the Son of God is unnecessary.
(5) Most Christians (especially Roman Catholics, but not Presbyterians) believe that Jesus is fully present in the Eucharist (Holy Communion): they claim the bread and wine become truly the body and blood of Jesus during the ceremony: making the sacrament sound like cannibalism and vampirism when they eat and drink the Eucharistic species. Again, this is a gross misunderstanding of the New Testament texts. What Jesus intended for this sacrament, besides promoting commensality (it seems there was also a bread and fish Eucharist), was symbolic. For example, the immersion in water during baptism represents the death and burial of the old (wicked) self and the rebirth of a new (reformed) person. The true meaning of the Eucharist was explained by Augustine of Hippo in the fourth/fifth century, but somehow it was discarded. The bread represents Christian unity (many grains in one loaf) and the wine represents their love, which is the ‘life’ of the community—in Jesus’s time blood was considered the ‘source’ of life. Wishful thinking made early Christians continue to believe that Jesus was still with them physically, rather than spiritually in his mystical body—the Church.
(6) The doctrine on confession in Roman Catholicism is also skewed: most of the emphasis is on the actual act of confessing mortal (grave) sins to a priest; imperfect contrition hardly insists on repentance and inner personal change (e.g., it’s enough to be sorry for gaining hell or losing heaven). But sacrifices in the Old Testament were only a symbol of an inner-disposition change: an outward sign that the invisible God has forgiven one’s sin. God forgives sin if we truly repent of it, it does not have to be confessed officially to anyone: auricular confession should only be an outward sign to satisfy one’s doubts, if necessary.
(7) Christianity has tabooed sex since the fourth century, mainly because of the theologians Augustine of Hippo and Jerome of Stridon, who thought it a necessary evil for procreation purposes. In enforcing priestly celibacy and contraception in Roman Catholicism, historically, the pope (Paul VI) misquoted the Bible and manipulated the ecumenical council into a status quo. He even disregarded what his own birth-control commission of forty-eight members had decided. Unfortunately, however, the world is fast approaching an overpopulation crunch around the ten billion people mark; we are currently pushing eight billion people: (non-abortive) contraception will soon become a necessity. However, the world’s population can easily be controlled if every woman, voluntarily, decides to limit her childbearing to two children in her lifetime. On the other hand, I tend to agree with the Catholic Church that abortion is evil because it harms another ‘person’ (zygote, embryo, or fetus), which, although helpless, should be protected—like a baby: there is no way of reproducing the same ‘individual’ once it is destroyed. Homosexuality is also deemed a mortal sin by Catholicism, but it’s the ‘wrong’ hormones that alter a person’s sexual orientation: it is to be tolerated, of course, but nothing to be proud of (why pride parade?)—it’s not quite normal: isn’t it better to keep it private? Jesus’s virgin birth and Mary’s perpetual virginity are also addressed.
(8) According to the Catholic Church (as in most Christian institutions), masturbation is a mortal sin—despite its harming nobody and there being nothing condemning it in the Bible; it is therefore effectively lumped together with rape or adultery (strangely enough, there is no ‘triviality of matter’ in sex). This is equivalent to the Church’s planting a Trojan horse in our own bodies; thus frustrating our chances for ‘eternal salvation.’ I contend masturbation is God’s gracious gift for sexual release to the unmarried. Apparently, the clergy want to keep the faithful dependent on them, through obligatory frequent confession, so they can feel important—a power trip. They want to hold on to that aura of ‘miracle-workers’ in both confession and the Eucharist.
(9) We are told to always trust God completely, and that God is in control of everything. Such passivity in letting God handle all our problems is a formula for disaster. “God helps those who help themselves.” God made us ingenious at solving problems, so we must do everything in our power, as if God doesn’t exist. Very rarely does God help pull us out of a jam; neither is God an irritating vending machine, which does not always deliver the goods. We are also told that with faith alone we can move mountains: I’ve never seen or heard of such a feat.
(10) Although God’s creation of the universe from ‘nothingness’ is probably true, which is the doctrine upheld by practically all of Christianity, it’s not what the Bible says; it says God created (or rather, constructed) the universe and earth from chaotic matter—as a sculptor uses a piece of raw marble: so, in this case, the Church disregards what the Bible says.
(11) The book finally revisits God’s nature in Christian doctrine (rather than in the Bible): God is portrayed as violent, self-centered, arrogant, manipulative, and condescending. For example, we are told he made Jesus suffer for our sins (especially original sin—which never happened); not to mention his asking us to do penance to compensate for our offences he constantly puts up with. God does not punish us for our sins: like a good Father he hates sin, but not the sinner: a good parent hates a disease killing the child, but not the child; nor does the parent punish the child for being sick. God forgives repented sin: forgiveness implies non-repayment (refer to the parable of the prodigal son). Moreover, in the Our Father, Christians pray, “Thy will be done.” This portrays God as the ultimate self-seeker—like the devil. If you ask God what he wants you to do, he’ll tell you “I don’t know, son; what would you like to do?” God has no master plan for any of us; he gave us our life as a free gift, without any strings attached, to live it as we desire: his will is for us to enjoy a full and happy life, possibly having a loving relationship with him if we so desire. Furthermore, we blame God for everything. “Everything happens for a reason,” is false teaching: life is simply made stressful so we are challenged and, consequently, we can become the best version of ourselves. If a team always wins a football game, it stops being exciting, indeed it even becomes boring: so does a life devoid of challenges. Finally, even the gospels tell us that if we’re generous with God, he will be generous with us in return; this portrays him as a manipulator—again like the devil. It also gives license to religious institutions, and televangelists, to extort money from their followers. In reality, God is impartial and loves everyone unconditionally, whether they are generous or not, because he is everyone’s Father: he pours rain indiscriminately. If you want to contribute to society, do it because you are convinced of the need and to alleviate the pain, not to be rewarded by God in return.
Author’s Books
For those readers who might be interested in buying any of my books, following are the publisher’s (iUniverse’s) links. If you find the hard copies expensive, the soft copies are only US$3.99 each. Should you decide to buy any of my books, kindly also remember to leave a review after reading it (2 or 3 sentences would do).
(1) Is God a Reality?—A Scientific Investigation:
https://www.iuniverse.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/740913-Is-God-a-Reality,
(2) Is the Bible Infallible?—A Rational, Scientific, and Historical Evaluation:
https://www.iuniverse.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/792987-is-the-bible-infallible, and
(3) Faith and Reason: Disturbing Christian Doctrines:
https://www.iuniverse.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/812598-faith-and-reason.
My books are also available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Indigo-Chapters, etc.
Faith, Science & Reason 