I believe that a lot of
hot wind is being blown over this
amazingly simple paradox. Most earth-bound humans tend to be a little egocentric when thinking in such
relative terms as height, speed, distance,
lifting, etc...
Jhonbus had the right idea in his above node, but there is an even simpler answer to this problem, that doesnt require engulfing the entire universe (
This works in both an infinite and finite universe as well).
The answer is quite simple, and from a purely academic standpoint would fit nicely into even an athiests belief set:
All God has to do to create something so large he cannot lift is to make an object more massive than all other objects.
If you are confused, please read the explanation below.
When you think of lifting, you think of raising an object off of the surface of another larger surface--in most cases against the force of gravity--but it is all relative in that respect. when you pick up a penny from the sidewalk, are you lifting it from the sidewalk, or are you simply moving it to a position a few feet away from the entire planet? Looking at it this way, the big picture is easier to see. In relative terms, the only way to lift something is to move it away from something more massive than the object being lifted. Gravity is the opposing force that you are 'lifting' against, and an object with a greater mass also has greater forces of gravity. So, all God has to do is create the largest object, and he will not be able to lift it because there will be nothing to lift it from. By this same stipulation, God cannot lift the current largest object in our universe. He can manipulate it and change its position as He sees fit, but he cannot 'lift' it. In addition, all the other objects, in relation to this massive object (isn't relativity fun?), appear to have been already lifted from the surface of this object (Whew, talk about Omnipotent!). Einstein really hit it on the mark with the whole 'relativity' thing, because in a universe without tangible boundaries or orientation, the only way to reference an object is by reference to another.
*Breathes*
I hope this clears things up :P.