BRUCE LICHT
FOUNDER OF MY ELEVATOR PITCH FOR GOD, ENTREPRENEUR, AND AUTHOR
Bruce grew up in Lafayette, California and received a BA in Political Science from UCLA as well as a Graduate Gemologist degree from the Gemological Institute of America. After graduating, Bruce operated his family’s 100 year-old retail fine jewelry business for twenty-two years. Bruce had a passion for computers and graphic arts, so he changed careers and joined his best friend at a national technical publishing company for seventeen-years as the company’s Publisher, where they invented the modern labor law poster industry, including the first “All- On-One Labor Law Poster” and “Labor Law Poster Compliance Plan.”
Aside from being the Founder of this website, My Elevator Pitch for God, Bruce was the co-editor of the book titled, Elevator Pitches For God: Volume 1, and author of the cookbook titled, Immediate Chef: No Previous Experience Required.
Bruce’s goals for this website are: To introduce more people all around the world to God and strengthen the faith of those who already believe in a non-political and non-religious way, to bring people together, find common ground between different faiths, create meaning in people's lives, and start to move the world in a better direction.
You can help by sending this website to friends and family and posting it on social media!
You can also connect with the website project’s LinkedIn page below:
Jaw-Dropping Creation
BRUCE LICHT
The teleological argument posits that the apparent purpose and complex design of natural phenomena point to an intelligent creator. (1) The human mouth offers a particularly compelling example. Its multiple interdependent functions, enabling everything from basic physical survival to complex communication and spiritual expression, suggest an intentional construction that far surpasses a purely biological explanation.
For mere physical survival, aside from being an orifice for breathing, the mouth’s specialized teeth, varying in shape and function which allow for a diverse diet, work with the tongue to maneuver food for chewing and swallowing, while salivary glands secrete enzymes for preliminary digestion. While evolutionary theory provides a framework for how such specialized parts could have developed by random mutation and natural selection, the sheer synchronicity of muscle, bone, and chemical action makes it seem highly unlikely. The idea of this sophisticated system, with each part dependent on the others, and needing to have come into existence simultaneously, seems impossibly remote to consider attributing it to evolutionary forces alone.
Yet, the mouth's function extends far beyond physical survival. With the aid of vocal cords, precise tongue movement, and nuanced lip-shaping, it becomes an instrument for intricate communication. The human capacity to translate abstract thought into a structured sequence of sounds—language—is unparalleled in the animal kingdom. While many animals communicate, no other species possesses the anatomical and neurological structures necessary for the wide variety of human phonetics, enabling the articulation of complex concepts such as “justice,” “hope,” “gravity,” etc. Also spreading happiness by telling jokes, which I love to do. (2) This doesn’t even include non-verbal communication such as expressions of love and affection like kissing someone. A purely biological explanation may account for the eating function, but it struggles to explain the emergence of a system profoundly adapted for transmitting intellectual thoughts, emotions, and culture. This unique leap points to evidence of a designer who intended for humanity to transcend mere physical survival.
Finally, the spiritual purpose of the mouth elevates its capabilities beyond biological and social functions to include what many believe is the ability to have direct communication with the divine. The vocalization of prayer, hymns, and chants is a feature of countless faiths to worship and approach a higher power. Through the mouth, humans articulate requests, express repentance, and offer praise, making a bridge between the mortal and the transcendental. The existence of this nuanced capacity for vocal prayer, and the widespread human impulse to seek spiritual connection, again suggests a designed ability to have a spiritual relationship between the Creator and the created.
The mouth, therefore, provides a compelling lens to view the collection of evidence justifying the teleological argument. Its efficient, coordinated biological purpose for sustenance is impressive, but its coinciding capacity for intricate social and spiritual language, points to a sublime, multi-layered intentionality. The mouth's capabilities testify against a purely accidental origin and is best explained by the thoughtful intention of a mind behind its masterful design that enables humanity to have a meaningful physical, social, and spiritual life.
Footnotes:
1. A “Teleological Argument,” also known as the argument from design, is a philosophical argument that suggests the apparent intricate, purposeful order, patterns, and complexity observed in the universe and life imply the existence of a divine designer or creator. It draws an analogy between complex human-made artifacts and the natural world, arguing that if a complex watch implies a watchmaker, then the complexity of life and the universe implies a more powerful designer, often identified with God.
Examples of natural phenomena cited in the teleological argument include:
Cosmological phenomena (Fine-tuning)
Fundamental physical constants: Many physical constants of the universe, such as the gravitational constant, the strong nuclear force, and the electromagnetic force, appear "fine-tuned" to incredibly precise values. If they were slightly different, life as we know it would be impossible. For instance, a minuscule change in gravity's strength would prevent stars and galaxies from forming or would cause stars to burn out too quickly for complex life to evolve.
The Big Bang's initial conditions: The expansion rate of the universe from the Big Bang is cited as evidence of fine-tuning. If the expansion rate had been even slightly different, the universe either would have collapsed back on itself or expanded too quickly for stars and planets to form.
The existence of specific elements: The precise values of forces and constants allow for the nucleosynthesis of heavy elements, like carbon and oxygen, within stars. Without this precise balance, only hydrogen would have formed, making complex life impossible.
Biological phenomena (Irreducible complexity)
The human eye: Often cited as an example of an "irreducibly complex" system, the eye requires numerous intricate parts to function. The teleological argument suggests that such a system could not have evolved through gradual, successive, random mutations because it would be useless or even detrimental until all its parts were perfectly assembled.
Bacterial flagellum: A microscopic rotating motor used by some bacteria for propulsion. Intelligent design advocates, like biochemist Michael Behe, point to its multi-part structure and argue it could not function if any component were missing.
The blood-clotting cascade: The body's system for clotting blood is a complex biochemical pathway involving multiple interacting proteins. Teleological arguments propose that the absence of a single factor would render the entire system non-functional, making it unlikely to have arisen from unguided evolution.
The origin of life: The transition from non-living matter to the first living cell, with its immense and "specified complexity," is presented by some as a phenomenon inexplicable by chance, thus requiring a conscious agent.
The fit of organisms to their environments: Classic arguments note how organisms are well-suited to their surroundings, such as the wings of a bird for flight or the fins of a fish for swimming. This apparent purposefulness is interpreted as evidence of design.
Planetary phenomena
The structure of Earth: Arguments point to Earth's specific characteristics as being ideal for life. This includes its distance from the sun, the presence of a large moon to stabilize its axis, and the composition of its atmosphere.
The ozone layer: This phenomenon is viewed as serving the specific purpose of protecting life from harmful ultraviolet radiation, suggesting a deliberate and intentional arrangement.
Overall universe (Anthropic principle) *
Order and regularity: Ancient philosophers like Plato and Aristotle saw the predictable, regular motions of the planets and stars as evidence of cosmic order pointing to an intelligent cause.
Human capacity for reason: Some versions of the argument use the anthropic principle, noting that the universe not only allows for life, but also for conscious, intelligent observers who are able to discover its underlying laws and order. This is framed as suggesting a purpose behind existence itself.
* The “Anthropic Principle,” in essence, states: that the conditions and laws of the universe we observe must be compatible with the existence of conscious observers like ourselves. There are two main versions: the Weak Anthropic Principle (WAP), which suggests our existence is a result of selection bias (we can only exist in a life-supporting universe), and the Strong Anthropic Principle (SAP), a more controversial idea that the universe is somehow compelled to produce life.
2. Maybe I was a stand-up comedian in a previous lifetime? I sometimes can’t help myself. Of course, my family members call most of them “Dad Jokes” but some of my friends and acquaintances sometimes seem to think I can be somewhat funny, sometimes bordering on hysterical, and really appreciate my clean, quirky sense of humor.