Earthquakes Quote by Neil deGrasse Tyson
“If that god is described as being all-powerful and all-knowing and all-good, I don't see evidence for it anywhere in the world. So I remain unconvinced. If that god is all-powerful and all-good, I don't see that when a tsunami kills a quarter-million or an earthquake kills a quarter-million people. I'd like to think of good as something in the interest of your health or longevity.”
About This Quote
Source Interview: The Cosmos Series, 2014
The speaker argues that an all-powerful, all-knowing, all-good deity is inconsistent with the existence of massive natural disasters causing immense suffering.
In simple terms: Divine perfection conflicts with observable suffering.
Key Takeaway
Question the compatibility of omnipotence and evil.
Themes
theology
philosophy
ethics
science
suffering
Mood
skeptical
inquisitive
Type
philosophical
critical
When to use this quote
- debates on religion
- disaster response
- personal belief formation
- ethical discussions
- public lectures
Key Concepts
theodicy
problem of evil
empiricism
Questions to Reflect On
- How do you reconcile faith with observable tragedy?
- Can moral good be defined independently of divine attributes?
A Different Perspective
The argument assumes natural disasters are morally relevant to divine goodness, which some may contest.
![“They [scientists of centuries past] call on God only from the lonely and precarious edge of incomprehension. Where they feel certain about their explanations, however, God gets hardly a mention.” quote by Neil deGrasse Tyson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/0b0/neil-degrasse-tyson-143_century_they-scientists-of-centuries-past-call-o_12921.jpg)
