To a Westerner like myself with religious ideologies all around, the possibility of proving the existence of God has always been instilled into me as like discovering cold fusion or the Holy Grail. Nobody told me it had already been done many times, such as the proof by Leibniz. Proof, though, is a Greek idea. It is not primarily for convincing people but more for starting a dialogue and maybe even a school of thought, as with Zeno’s proof that movement is impossible. There is also the Hebrew concept of proof which is more about giving sanction to what already has traction, such as when early Christians ‘proved from scriptures’ that Jesus is the Christ. None of this is for persuading. Persuading might depend on factors such as social pressure and government laws. Mafia use violence to ‘persuade’. China and North Korea use imprisonments. West uses media. God uses His words and the power of His Spirit.
