[AnotherUnixGeek]

What a giant leap of faith if you ask me.

Nope, not at all - just the conclusion drawn from the evidence we have so far, which points to an expanding universe and therefore implies an age and initial state for the universe.

[James C. Bennett]

The giant leap of faith is considering sentient entities that exist beyond time - a logical impossibility because without time, there can be no separation between the acts performed by the said sentient being. If you bring in time, such entities themselves have a beginning.