Science vs Religion
SCIENCE VS RELIGION
Most religious believers accept the scientific method, and with good reason. In fact, we all display high confidence in science when we board a plane, train, or automobile, take a medication, or have our children vaccinated. You merely have to look at your Smartphone—science delivers.
But some claim there are other valid methods for apprehending truth: authority of holy books and personal revelation. However, if these were reliable the doctrines of the thousands of religions would be universal, or at least reconcilable. And unlike science, they fail to produce a testable body of knowledge open to rejection or confirmation.
Believers should take a more critical look at their religion and ask themselves, “What evidence would it take for me to abandon my faith?”
Here we’ll find another way religion diverges from science: how its adherents behave when the facts don’t support their beliefs. So far, science and critical thinking have discredited several biblical claims. The creation tale, Adam and Eve, a worldwide flood, the exodus from Egypt and the census of Augustus have all been falsified.
Yet, in a 2005 poll, 64% of Americans said they would reject the evidence if it disproved their religious convictions. As Martin Luther once quipped, “Reason is the greatest enemy faith has.”
But if your mind is closed to the facts, you’ve removed yourself from rational discourse. While conservative clergymen fight the facts tooth and nail, more sophisticated theologians reinterpret the once dogmatic assertions as metaphorical.
Nevertheless, some prominent clerics are showing signs of hesitant uncertainty. The archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, freely acknowledges his doubts about the very existence of God. I don’t blame him, as the undetectable and the nonexistent look very much alike.
While religious faiths can’t all be right, they can all be wrong. Better to trust in a truth-finding method with a proven track record.
Edwin Herbert is the author of historical / archaeological adventure novel MYTHOS CHRISTOS.
Most religious believers accept the scientific method, and with good reason. In fact, we all display high confidence in science when we board a plane, train, or automobile, take a medication, or have our children vaccinated. You merely have to look at your Smartphone—science delivers.
But some claim there are other valid methods for apprehending truth: authority of holy books and personal revelation. However, if these were reliable the doctrines of the thousands of religions would be universal, or at least reconcilable. And unlike science, they fail to produce a testable body of knowledge open to rejection or confirmation.
Believers should take a more critical look at their religion and ask themselves, “What evidence would it take for me to abandon my faith?”
Here we’ll find another way religion diverges from science: how its adherents behave when the facts don’t support their beliefs. So far, science and critical thinking have discredited several biblical claims. The creation tale, Adam and Eve, a worldwide flood, the exodus from Egypt and the census of Augustus have all been falsified.
Yet, in a 2005 poll, 64% of Americans said they would reject the evidence if it disproved their religious convictions. As Martin Luther once quipped, “Reason is the greatest enemy faith has.”
But if your mind is closed to the facts, you’ve removed yourself from rational discourse. While conservative clergymen fight the facts tooth and nail, more sophisticated theologians reinterpret the once dogmatic assertions as metaphorical.
Nevertheless, some prominent clerics are showing signs of hesitant uncertainty. The archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, freely acknowledges his doubts about the very existence of God. I don’t blame him, as the undetectable and the nonexistent look very much alike.
While religious faiths can’t all be right, they can all be wrong. Better to trust in a truth-finding method with a proven track record.
Edwin Herbert is the author of historical / archaeological adventure novel MYTHOS CHRISTOS.
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