A Stone Too Heavy For God?
How does one respond to the question, “Can God make a stone too heavy he can’t lift it? If he can, then there is something he can’t do, which is lift the rock, but if he can’t, then there’s also something he can’t do, which is create the rock.”?
Key takeaways:
- Understand the questions’ flaw
- Define omnipotence correctly
- Prove why the objection fails
Understand the Question's Flaw
This question misunderstands the idea of omnipotence and partakes in a “straw-man” fallacy.
A straw man is a logical fallacy in which an opponent's argument is misrepresented to make it easier to attack. The arguer then pretends to have refuted the opponent's original position.
It starts by distorting the opponent's argument by exaggerating or oversimplifying it. Then, it refutes the distorted version of the opponent’s argument. And lastly, it pretends to have refuted the opponent's original position correctly.
For example, a candidate might use a straw man argument in a political debate to attack a competitor's position on tax policy:
Candidate A:
"We should slightly increase taxes on the wealthiest Americans to help fund infrastructure and education programs."
Candidate B:
"My opponent wants to punish successful people for working hard. They think the government should take all of your money and redistribute it to people who don’t even work! That’s socialism, and it doesn’t work."
Candidate B is misrepresenting Candidate A’s position. Candidate A only proposed a slight tax increase on the wealthy, but Candidate B distorted this to an extreme, claiming that A wants to take all the money and implement socialism. This misrepresentation makes it easier for Candidate B to attack the argument, even though it's not what Candidate A said.
Define Omnipotence Correctly
The term omnipotent comes from the Latin root words “omnis,” meaning “all,” and “potens,” meaning “powerful, producing the definition of “all-powerful.” This word is often used in ambiguity to describe God as all-powerful with the capabilities to do anything.
But what does it mean that God can do anything? Well, it depends on your definition of “anything”. If “anything” means “anything that you can say.” this involves logical contradictions, the straw-man fallacy. You could say anything, such as God can create 6-sided squares, three-horned unicorns, and other logical inconsistencies.
Prove Why the Objection Fails
The Christian theological view of omnipotence is that God can do anything logically possible without logical contradictions. The objection is obsolete if the definition does not involve logical contradictions by excluding them entirely.
The Bible acknowledges that God cannot do things, such as lying or denying Himself (Hebrews 6:18; 2 Timothy 2:13; Titus 1:2). This is not a limitation of His power but rather a reflection of His nature and the nature of reality.
God cannot do what is logically impossible. Just because words can be combined in a sentence does not mean they describe something possible. Logical contradictions remain impossible, no matter how they are phrased.
According to the Christian definition of omnipotence, God has infinite lifting power. God's strength has no maximum or limit. If the stone is too heavy for God, the stone will have to weigh more than infinite, which is a logical contradiction.
The stone will fall into the same category as the 6-sided squares and three-horned unicorns. These logical contradictions are nonsense, and the original question is worth nothing.
May God bless you.
