Stephen Hawking was one of the world’s greatest minds, and his thoughts on whether or not there is a God are worth reading.
In his 2002 book The Theory of Everything: The Origin and Fate of the Universe, Hawking wrote: “For centuries, it was believed that disabled people like me were living under a curse that was inflicted by God.
“Well, I suppose it’s possible that I’ve upset someone up there, but I prefer to think that everything can be explained another way, by the laws of nature.
“If you believe in science, like I do, you believe that there are certain laws that are always obeyed. If you like, you can say the laws are the work of God, but that is more a definition of God than a proof of his existence.”
He went on: “We are each free to believe what we want and it’s my view that the simplest explanation is there is no God.
“No one created the universe and no one directs our fate. This leads me to a profound realisation, there’s probably no Heaven and no afterlife, either.
“We have this one life to appreciate the grand design of the universe and for that I am extremely grateful.”
Hawking was a renowned British theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and author. Born in 1942, he made groundbreaking contributions to our understanding of black holes, particularly through his theory of Hawking radiation, which proposed that black holes emit radiation and can eventually evaporate.
Despite being diagnosed with ALS at age 21 and given only a few years to live, he defied expectations and continued to work for decades. He authored the bestselling book A Brief History of Time, bringing complex scientific concepts to the public.
Hawking’s brilliance, resilience, and contributions left a lasting impact on science and popular culture.
Related: Tony Blair reveals the one thing that still surprises him