Being somewhat of an anglophile, I have encountered Stephen Fry many times in movies and TV from the great land of Downton Abbey. That said, there is an arrogance of Fry's atheism that seems convincing but which is in reality a lot of bluster.
Fry claims that God is the problem, that He created such misery that is "not our fault" and that this God is hardly worthy of any respect or even belief for creating a world so filled with injustice and pain. Really. I thought that Scripture had a pretty good explanation of why things are the way they are. Read Genesis 1-3 and see how things that were very good ended up with death reigning in and through them all.
Fry would not want to get into heaven on God's terms. They are wrong in his estimation. He will not bow down to such a cruel and capricious God. No sir.
Fry finds the Greco-Roman mythology far more acceptable because their gods did not pretend to be different from humans but were merely larger versions of the good and band in humanity. If God is God, he is, in Fry's estimation, a complete and utter maniac, selfish, and a monster who deserves no respect at all.
The trouble with all of this is that I once rather enjoyed Fry's acting and humor (think of him as the bumbling police inspector in the movie Gosford Park). But wait, perhaps that is the point. Atheists the likes of Fry are intellectually as bumblers as his character there -- they ignore the evidence, discount the truth, and prefer to live in the world of their own opinions.
Well, I guess I will just have to focus on the parts he plays and try to forget his blasphemous and foolish attempt to disgrace God. In the end, the only one diminished by Fry's words were, well, Fry.
Theodicy is the "intellectual's" way of suppressing the Truth in unrighteousness. A little dose of G.K. Chesterton would help. What is wrong with the world? "I am."
ReplyDeleteDid you notice the reaction of the interviewer? He is almost pained by Fry's answers. It is as if he is thinking, this guy is going hell for sure.
ReplyDeleteI read a line once. We use half of our intellect to deceive ourselves and the other half to justify the deception. When it comes to proving God's existence, we deny the evidence and proof we use to live our ordinary lives if that evidence or proof would be used to prove the existence of God. In other words, no one can live their life without accepting eyewitness testimony and yet we deny the eye witness testimony of biblical writers.
ReplyDeleteMr. Fry states that the world is filled with injustice and pain and yet every act of injustice and pain is the act of man. God is not the author of evil, man is.
Good line, anonymous!!
ReplyDeleteFry protests too much...
ReplyDeleteI have always suspected that the people who seem to be furious with God, are actually the ones who love Him.
I would not be the least bit surprised to hear of him, someday, reverting to Christianity. (not an easy thing for him, considering his homosexual nature)
I was disappointed when I first saw this interview. Like you, I am a fan of Brit TV. I loved Stephen Fry in "Kingdom". I simply can't get past the arrogance and, frankly, the intellectual poverty of this kind of atheism. It is painful to watch. He needs our prayers.
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