THERE IS NO GOD?
There is no God. All of the wonders around us are accidental. No almighty hand made the billions of stars. They made themselves. No power keeps them on their steady course. The earth spins by itself to keep the oceans from falling off toward the sun. It gave itself night and day and tilled itself so that we gel seasons. It stays the perfect distance from the sun, so that we don't fry or freeze to death.
Why does snow sit on mountaintops waiting for the warm spring sun to melt it at just the right time for the young crops on the fields below to receive water to grow? Also, how does each tree know when it's time to burst into leaf in the spring and when to drop the leaves in the autumn? These built-in clocks of nature are all timely accidents.
Who taught the bees how 10 form themselves into high!) structured societies and hov. to communicate with each other where food is? How did the bees and the trees begin to cooperate with each other, so that one produces honey and the other bears fruit, both for (he benefit of people? Did beautiful flowers invent themselves just so that we can admire and enjoy them? How about the sugar thermostat in the pancreas? It maintains a level of sugar in the blood sufficient for energy. Without it, all of us would fall into a coma and die. The human heart will beat for 70 or 80 years without stopping. How does it gel sufficient rest between beats? A kidney will filter poison from the blood and leave good things alone. How does it know one from the other?
Who gave the human tongue the flexibility to form words and the brain the ability lo understand them, but denied all ihis lo other creatures? Who showed a womb how to take the love of two persons and to keep splitting a tiny ovum until, in time, a baby would have the proper number of fingers, toes, eyes and ears, all in the right places, and come into the world when it is strong enough to sustain life? There is no God?
Discuss the questions:
What is the writer's purpose in this article?
What are some of the wonders of nature mentioned in the article?
What other amazing things in nature can you think of? How do you think that they originated?
Do you believe in God or in some other power over your life?
Does religion or having faith in God make one's life easier?
Do you think it is good for people to believe in God?
If there is a power in control of our lives, do you think one can or should resist it? Why?
Vocabulary
accidental (a) [asksi'dentl] — happening by chance or accident
and not deliberately intended..................................................
almighty (a) [otl'maiti] — all-powerful.......................................
burst into leaf (phr) [batst intu li:f] — to suddenly open with
leaves .......................................................................................
coma (n) [kauma] — stale of deep unconsciousness...................
deny (v) [di'nai] — to refuse to give............................................
drop (v) [drop] — to let fall.........................................................
kidney (n) [kidni] — organ that removes waste matter from the
blood and sends it out of the body in urine............................
ovum (n) [auvam] — woman's reproductive cell which is
fertilized by a man's sperm to produce a child......................
purpose (n) [patpas] — reason for something............................
resist (v) [ri'zist] — lo stop or prevent: to fight or oppose
spin (v) (spin] — to turn quickly around a central point
split (v) [split] — to divide into two or more parts.....................
steady fa) [stedi] — without interruptions and not likely to
change quickly.........................................................................
sufficient (a) [sa'fijnl] — enough or adequate............................
sustain (v) [sas'lein] — to continue or maintain.........................
tilt (v) [till] — to move into a position with one side higher than
the other...................................................................................
womb (n) [wu:m] — part inside a woman's body where a baby
grows before it is born............................................................
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