The God of the Seventh Day versus the God of the Gaps: Observations on the Relationship between God and the World in Contemporary Western Theology

Shivapoor, Hamed

doi:10.22096/ek.2024.2018388.1533

The God of the Seventh Day versus the God of the Gaps: Observations on the Relationship between God and the World in Contemporary Western Theology

Document Type : Research Article

Author

Hamed Shivapoor

Assistant Professor, Department of Theology, Mofid University, Qom. Iran.

10.22096/ek.2024.2018388.1533

Abstract

Deists, who are important and influential thinkers in the modern era, thought about God as the only creator of the world and does not interfere in the work of the world after creation. They expressed this view using the metaphor of "Divine clockmaker". Against this point of view, there is another view that is known as the "God of Gaps" and its history goes back to Newton. According to this view of God, whenever he sees fit, he intervenes in the work of the world and restores and corrects it. It seems that these two views are against each other; However, both deism and the idea of "God of Gaps" face important criticisms. Based on this, the view that can be without the problems of both views of God is the idea of "continuous creation" which has a history in Islamic and Christian theology and some new thinkers have also spoken about it.

Keywords

Deism

Divine clockmaker

God of Gaps

continuous creation

science and religion

Subjects

Science and religion

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