Elsewhere on this site, I contend that the circumstances of my transformation and its effects on my family provide “objective evidence” of the existence of God. This claim raises two issues: (1) what I mean by “objective”; and (2) whether there really can be “evidence” for a claim that I cannot ultimately prove.
1. What I Mean By Objective
“Objective” means “expressing or dealing with facts or conditions as perceived without distortion by personal feelings, prejudices, or interpretations.” As I skim through my family’s story, I see a lot of events or circumstances that fit this definition. For example:
The Bible directs us to tithe (i.e., offer the first tenth) and instructs that obedience to the Lord brings blessings. (That the Bible says this is an objective fact. See, e.g., Leviticus 27:30; Numbers 18:21- 32; Deuteronomy 14:22-27.)
Christine and I never tithed prior to September 2004, and we rarely offered more than a nominal amount to the church.
As of September 2004, we could not afford to give 10% of our income to the church. We could not afford to give anything. Our expenses outstripped our income.
On October 3, we started to tithe.
On October 10, Christine received a job offer that would pay several times my then-current salary and ultimately would result in her elevation to partner − particularly remarkable given that she had not been in the full-time workforce for two years.
These are readily verifiable facts, the perception of which is not at all vulnerable to distortion by personal feelings, prejudices or interpretations. They are objectively true.
But it does take another step − perhaps a gargantuan step for some − to conclude that these facts are probative of the existence of the God of the Bible. This brings us to the next issue: whether there can be evidence for a claim that I cannot prove.
