Divine Creation: Information, Death and Suffering, and the Origin of Life

Life on earth started remarkably quickly, so quickly as to raise the question of whether the origin of life was preprogrammed. Several uncanny events in the earth's development raise questions of divine ordering, but never so much as to provide direct evidence for God's hand in creation. Where did this information come from, what significant events affected the development of life, how did life begin, and what are the current limits of naturalistic processes? If the universe is an open system with free will, then are death and suffering compatible with divine guidance, and if so, where is God in the process? The presentation will provide background for some of these questions interspersed with time for discussion.