Seen this one yet? Guess what, folks! Science and religion are incompatible, and I don't care what the Pope has to say about it.
Edited to add: And by the way, I find the assumption that faith is the only basis for morality and civility to be insulting in the extreme.
Friday, January 27, 2006
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6 comments:
I thought that universities stopped being fundamentally religious institutions around.... what, the 18th century? 19th at the latest.
If they're going to add values and religions to the curriculum, four years ain't gonna be enough for most students.
The social sciences too are incompatible with religion! I completely agree with you on this. religion belongs in religious studies classes. Period. Case closed.
How would religious folks like it if we (natural and social scientists) decided to butt in their curriculum?
BTW, angry professor, nice to see we both read PZ Myers. His review of Daniel Dennett's book and debunking of the overlapping magistere notion was excellent.
And by the way, I find the assumption that faith is the only basis for morality and civility to be insulting in the extreme.
I actually label myself "Christian," (albeit, with many, many caveats), and I still find this incredibly insulting -- annoying, actually. My choices to do the right thing (or not) really have little or nothing to do with my involvement (or lack of) in the church. To think that one can only be a good person by being Christian is stunningly ignorant.
I've come to the conclusion that the people who are most aggressive about faith being the only basis for morality are actually terrified of the unspeakable acts they'd commit if they didn't have the threat of eternal torment keeping them in check. They can't concieve of a mindset that works otherwise.
Here's another perspective. I believe we're of the same ilk (I'm am agnostic, but I use the word "atheist" to the less informed, but that is another topic)
Right now, the clash between science and religion is being dictated by the fundamentalists. I fully support the efforts of more moderate religionists to try to shift the direction of the current science/religion debate and reclaim some of it from the fundies, even if I may actually disagree with these religionists on most points. They will at least help reframe the debate.
When the Christian battle lines right now are between the fundies and moderates in most religious movements, those with more humanist perspectives are just "in the noise" for now.
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