Francis Collins Quotes

I'm a scientist, not a theologian. I don't know if there is a God or not. Religion requires certainty. Revere and respect Gaia. Have trust in Gaia. But not faith.

For more than 200 years, materialists have promised that science will eventually explain everything in terms of physics and chemistry. Believers are sustained by the faith that scientific discoveries will justify their beliefs.

To be an atheist requires an indefinitely greater measure of faith than to recieve all the great truths which atheism would deny.

Nobody talks so constantly about God as those who insist that there is no God.

Naturalism is a counterpart to theism. Theism says there's the physical world and God. Naturalism says there's only the natural world. There are no spirits, no deities, or anything else.

I have friends who are scientists, strict materialists, who don't think science and religion are compatible, but I just think most of us - unless you're a strict atheist materialist, which there aren't many of - most of us believe in something outside the material world. And if you do believe that, I don't know how you're not obsessed with it.

Most atheists bristle at the thought that atheism has anything to do with faith, but not Penn Jillette.

There is no god, so how can I consider myself a god? God is the greatest lie invented by man.

I'm not an atheist. How can you not believe in something that doesn't exist? That's way too convoluted for me.

I'm an atheist.

I'm an atheist.

Rather than say he's an atheist, a friend of mine says, 'I'm a tooth fairy agnostic,' meaning he can't disprove God but thinks God is about as likely as the tooth fairy.

I have to recognize that I am agnostic.

I'm an agnostic in the truest sense of the word. I think about these things - I grew up Roman Catholic, I've been interested in Hinduism, in Eastern religions, but I'm not dedicated to anything - I go through periods where I think maybe it's all nonsense; maybe it's 'The Matrix...' I'm open to various ideas.

The atheist, by merely being in touch with reality, appears shamefully out of touch with the fantasy life of his neighbors.

Small amounts of philosophy lead to atheism, but larger amounts bring us back to God.

I could never call myself an atheist; my parents could, quite happily. I always felt like there was a little bit more out there, and was always into observing the world from a slightly more spiritual, as opposed to scientific, perspective.

I'd be perfectly happy with a mathematically precise description of how time began. I see science and religion as being two completely different things. I don't see science as relevant to the question of whether or not there's a God.

I do not believe in God because I do not believe in Mother Goose.

There is no conflict between the ideal of religion and the ideal of science, but science is opposed to theological dogmas because science is founded on fact. To me, the universe is simply a great machine which never came into being and never will end. The human being is no exception to the natural order. Man, like the universe, is a machine.

I call myself a naturalist as opposed to an atheist, but there are different styles. Some people just like to be close to nature. And some people actually worship nature, which is too wishy-washy because - like a lot of religious believers - they don't depend on facts.

Religion cannot and should not be replaced by atheism. Religion needs to go away and not be replaced by anything. Atheism is not a religion. It's the absence of religion, and that's a wonderful thing.

In spite of all the yearnings of men, no one can produce a single fact or reason to support the belief in God and in personal immortality.

We are all atheists.

It is often said that science must avoid any conclusions which smack of the supernatural.