You: For your definition of life to be of any use to us at all, it must not allow exceptions. If it is not exhaustive, then how can we know that there are no things that are living but that God did not create?

Aaron: What are you talking about? God created all living things.

You: That statement is precisely why we need to define life. If God created everything that lives — that is, everything that moves, grows, and reproduces — then I can try to find something which is alive but does not meet these qualifications and therefore is not necessarily created by God. Perhaps mules are not created by God but by mares and jackasses.

Aaron: I will say it again in case you weren't paying attention. All things, living or not, are created by God and there are no exceptions.

How do you respond?

  1. That remains to be proven. Go
  2. Then your original argument is meaningless. Go