A friend notes that this review of Stephen Hawking’s about-to-be aired Discovery special “Did God Create the Universe?” “shows more insight into the science faith problem than many professional critics in the science and faith disciplines.”
LA Times ’ TV critic Mary McNamara writes (August 6, 2011),
… a better title perhaps would be “Stephen Hawking Explains Why He is Quite Certain God Did Not Create the Universe.” Hawking, like many scientists, believes in “a simpler alternative” to a participatory God — that the fixed laws of nature not only rule the universe but explain its creation.
How, I cannot tell you. Although Discovery is liberal in its CG usage and Hawking comes up with all manner of easily understood metaphors, his attempts to explain how, exactly, the big bang emerged from a state of nothingness required an understanding of physics that was beyond me. “If you are not a math head,” he concedes far too late in the proceedings,” this may be hard to understand.” Indeed.
Which, she goes on the point out, means that we the rest of us are expected to take it on faith. Hence the title question.
Wonder how many TV critics will pick that up? Here’s the trailer:
See also: Still trying to understand what Stephen Hawking meant (about Darwinism)