Jim Holt (philosopher). Why does our world exist? Existential Detective (№ 427569)

Where did our universe come from? Does not the very fact of its existence indicate the actions of some higher creative force? When a believer asks an atheist this question, he usually gets one of two answers. In the first case, an atheist can say that if we admit the existence of such a "creative force," then we will have to admit the existence of another such force in order to explain the presence of the first, then the third, the fourth - and so on, ad infinitum. In the second case, the atheist will answer that even if some "creative force" exists, it is not at all godlike. Why should the First Cause be a wise and kind being, and besides, interested in all the details of our thoughts and our sex life? The root cause does not have to be reasonable.