SPECIAL PLEADINGS:
“Special pleading is a form of fallacious argument that involves an attempt to cite something as an exception to a generally accepted rule, principle, etc. without justifying the exception – from the Wikipedia.”
When it comes to philosophical arguments and scientific theories, special pleadings are permitted, but they have to be JUSTIFIED.
What does it mean for a special pleading or an exception to be justified? How does such a thing become justified?
An exception or a special pleading is justified by observational evidence or by a preponderance of the evidence. A special pleading is also justified when a NEED for its existence has been established by the scientific evidence or the philosophical argument.
For example, most honest deep-thinking philosophers, scientists, and theologians readily see the NEED for a Designer, Programmer, and Engineer Builder when it comes to a Genome of any kind. It is so clear that a Genome NEEDS a Designer, Programmer, and Engineer that a NEED for a “special exception” has been generated by the scientific evidence itself. The same exact thing can be said about the First Living Cell. It’s so clear from the scientific and philosophical and mathematical evidence that such a thing had to be Designed, Programmed, and Built by some kind of Intelligent Entity, that once again a NEED has been generated for some kind of “special pleading” for an Intelligent Designer as a solution for the NEED.
Scientific observation, physics, and mathematical models have demonstrated that the Big Bang and this Universe are effects. The scientific conclusion that this universe is an effect generates a NEED for its Cause. We actually NEED some kind of “special pleading” or “special exception” to act as the Cause of our universe, according to the scientific evidence and scientific conclusions.
So, once it has been established by scientific evidence and logical reasoning that there is a philosophical and empirical NEED for some kind of “special exception” Designer or First Cause, then the next step is to try to find a Cause or a Designer that is JUSTIFIED by the available observational evidence and scientific evidence. Special pleadings are permitted into philosophical arguments and theoretical proofs, but they have to be JUSTIFIED.
Most of the world will agree that if a NEED for a “special pleading” ever arises, the Biblical God is the most JUSTIFIED solution.
Why?
It’s because many people have seen the Biblical God, talked with the Biblical God, and even walked with the Biblical God. The Biblical God has written commandments in stone for us to follow with His own finger. In the case of Genomes, the first living cells, and this universe, the Biblical God has actually stood up and said, “I did it.” The Biblical God has actually fessed up to doing the job. The Biblical God has pleaded guilty to doing these things! It doesn’t get more JUSTIFIED than that! That’s quite a special pleading! In any court of law, an admission of guilt is sure to get the individual convicted of the deed.
Whenever the NEED for a “special pleading” arises, most people in the world consider Allah from the Muslim religions to be the next-most logical and JUSTIFIED candidate. If a NEED for a Designer or a First Cause is ever generated by the scientific evidence or a philosophical argument, then Allah is a JUSTIFIED candidate also.
It is interesting to note that among people who are neutral where the Christianity vs Islam debate is concerned, they consider God the Father (Elohim) in the Bible to be the same exact person or entity as Allah from the Quran; whereas, Christ Jehovah (the son of God the Father) seems to be excluded only to the Bible. Jehovah in the Old Testament is the same God as Jesus Christ in the New Testament; and, I have taken to calling him Christ Jehovah.
If we can agree that Elohim (God the Father) and Allah are the same exact God, then Allah Elohim pretty much becomes the only JUSTIFIED designer or first cause whenever scientific evidence, scientific theories, and philosophical arguments generate the NEED for a first cause or for a designer. Remember, special pleadings are permitted in philosophical arguments so long as they are JUSTIFIED.
The pink unicorn and the flying spaghetti monster don’t qualify because they are not JUSTIFIED by the available observational evidence, scientific evidence, revelatory evidence, theological evidence, and philosophical evidence. Likewise, nobody has ever seen the gods of other religions or received revelations from the gods of other religions, so these gods are hard or impossible to JUSTIFY as any kind of “special exception” or “special pleading”, whenever there is a NEED generated for such a “special pleading”.
Darwin Max Bagley
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