Both the atomist and the stoic traditions were eclipsed by a very different conception of God, the Christian god, an unchanging intelligence just like us, but without our frailties, an all-powerful Father, presiding over a singular cosmos. How did this happen?

Plato insisted on a creator-god who made only one universe.  Aristotle also favoured a singular cosmos.  The early Christians adopted this “one universe” approach, dismissed the atomists as hedonists and degenerates because they did not believe in  an all-embracing God.  As for the Stoic idea – that the universe is cyclical and perfect and that every world is exactly the same as the one before – offended Augustine.  It meant that souls would be created, fallen, converted or not, saved or not, and then just when they reached heaven or hell they’d be back again, living the same life.

Augustine argued that “Christ died once for all for our sins” (Romans 6:9). since this only happened once, it must mean there are no other worlds before or after ours. Can you imagine Jesus being sent to live and teach and die in an infinite number of worlds? There could only be one Christ and there is only one world. Phew!

Now we know that the atomists were basically right after all.  The universe is vast and the stars and planets are numbered in billions.  The atom is a building block of the universe. There may be many universes, and new ones are being created all the time. The implication is that there may indeed be a Maker (your choice)  but, as Epicurus and others said, this God, if God there is, does not get involved in the minutiae of our daily lives. Sheer scale prevents it. We are infinitesimal specks, accidents of chemistry and combinations of elements.  There is no place called heaven, no angels and choirs, no particular reward for belief or punishment for sin, except in our own minds and consciences. (Partially based on an article by  Mary-Jane Rubenstein, but interpreted through the eyes of an Epicurean)