you can say god is the product of man while still staying very far from any paradox's..It doesn't work to say God is the product of man. You would be suggesting that belief in a "higher power" is psychologically beneficial to us as a species and a product of evolution. Even if you could put together a sociological study to support such a theory it would be ridden with logical paradoxes. C.S. Lewis illuminates many of them in his work The Abolition of Man. Even then it becomes a moot point really. If God exists and he revealed himself to us visa vi his Word then its beneficial to know and draw close to our creator. If not then you should still believe in God because obviously it was a beneficial enough of a human trait that it has been instill via evolution for our benefit for the past thousands of years The only time God becomes a negative influence in the lives of people is when we reduces him to religion, i.e. a set of rules i have to follow to be "good", not a relationship i experience because my creator loves me.
Not everything that leads to an organism's fitness is going to be beneficial in every aspect of that organism's life. Walking upright is one of the hallmarks of what makes us human and allows us to use tools with our free hands and run long distances. Walking upright also leads to degenerative vertebra and arthritis in our spinal columns.It doesn't work to say God is the product of man. You would be suggesting that belief in a "higher power" is psychologically beneficial to us as a species and a product of evolution. Even if you could put together a sociological study to support such a theory it would be ridden with logical paradoxes. C.S. Lewis illuminates many of them in his work The Abolition of Man. Even then it becomes a moot point really. If God exists and he revealed himself to us visa vi his Word then its beneficial to know and draw close to our creator. If not then you should still believe in God because obviously it was a beneficial enough of a human trait that it has been instill via evolution for our benefit for the past thousands of years The only time God becomes a negative influence in the lives of people is when we reduces him to religion, i.e. a set of rules i have to follow to be "good", not a relationship i experience because my creator loves me.