President of the Ghana Humanists Association Michael Assibey has said there is no evidence that there is God.
According to him, until God is able to speak to his hearing and that of people who think like him, they will stick to their belief that He does not exist.
Speaking on the Morning Starr Wednesday, Assibey told host Francis Abban that religiosity can be blamed for the underdevelopment of the country.
“It is not true that there is God but one can believe there is. If God pops his head out and says ‘hello’, I’ll believe He exists. The idea of God is a receding packet of ignorance. Religion can make you more selfish than logic. Religion divides us along the lines. It’s only in religious settings that people sin for 6 days and ask for forgiveness in a day. As a nation, instead of asking the hard questions, we over-rely on the ‘Fa ma Nyame’ (Give it to God) syndrome,” he said.
He also discounted the existence of miracles saying miracles are unexplained events.
“Miracles are mostly coincidences because it happens to people of different Faiths as well,” he said.
But in a sharp rebuttal, a lecturer of religion at the University of Ghana Dr. Ben-Willie Golo said religion must not necessarily be evidence-based.
“Depending on the way you look at religion and how you define it will determine whether it is anti-development or pro-development. Science does not mean that religion cannot be explained. Religion is a double-edged sword just like Science. Talking about development in terms of Science and Faith, the lens you are wearing matters. Life is not only about Science but also how people make meaning of it. Religion is not a product, you’ll hold that view if you are looking at it from the extremist point of view,” he said.
Source: Ghana/StarrFMonline.com/103.5FM
