Speculations about God (or gods), the visible universe and the place of human beings in these creations has been with thoughtful people since long before the days of the Assyrian empires. It is surely no surprise that they have become much more acute in recent centuries, perhaps especially with the Abrahamic religions, following the dramatic progress of modern and especially Western sciences. In engaging with some of the enormous questions raised by the resulting compendium of issues, a good way to start might be to begin with several separate but interrelated matters: what science has so far told us about…