originally posted in:Secular Sevens
Personally, I find the idea of simultaneous support for both religion and science wholly incompatible. Here's my thought process:
- Scientists support the [url=http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/overview_scientific_method2.gif]scientific method[/url].
- Faith-based religion conflicts with the scientific method, as religion skips/ignores steps in the scientific method.
- One cannot support the scientific method while simultaneously supporting faith-based religion.
One cannot truly support both science and religion; you're compromising your support in one or the other.
Thoughts? Explain your position.
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Edited by Trad: 9/16/2013 11:33:15 PMIt is certainly possible. However being possible does not necessarily mean that it is compatible. The question also covers quite a broad amount of information. It is possible to create a religion that completely revolves around science. If there isn't one already, then just go make one. Bam, you've got yourself a compatibility. However that brings into question what each person deems as compatible. You can certainly hold an irrational position by supporting both faith-based belief and simultaneously supporting a scientific method. Now when posing the question of "is this compatibility", you're going to get different answers depending on the person. Perhaps it is a compatibility, but probably not in the true sense. Things like catholicism, an extremist sect of islam, or judaism probably wouldn't reach a true compatibility depending on how they teach their views and reasoning behind their respective books. This is an important line to draw because someone can interpret each teaching in a completely different way than someone else. Again though, the large amounts of ambiguity in those teachings/texts may cause someone to say it isn't a true compatibility. Though, if you were to limit down each sect of every religion and have them give their teachings and interpretations to you in a straight and concise form, it would probably be easier to reach a decision. Just come to an agreement on what each party considers to be a compatibility and then you can start progressing through the issue. So as of the current moment, teh puma's opinion is that they hold the possibility of being compatible. However he sees no amount of sufficient reasoning behind the idea of them being compatible by his terms at this current point in time. So for right now, they aren't compatible.
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Edited by Butters: 9/16/2013 7:37:23 AMWe wouldn't be where we are if it weren't for religion (seeing how up until recently most scientists were of religion and based their research on "better understanding God's creations"). Religion opens up questions and causes ambitions and desires along with mystery and thus many many times it has led to scientific advancement. The fact that the Catholic Church accepts evolution and places emphasis on scientific advancement is enough to answer your question.
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The fact that we as Humans are questioning our existence means some thing.
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There's no maybe option, but in regard to what you have said, that seems like the more likely possibility. Maybe.
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I'm taking Philosophy of Science right now. Once I finish the course I'll get back to you.
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If God exists.. Let him strike me dead now.... opps still here.
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They are wholly compatible. Just because some religions contradict the scientific method does not mean that all do. The forms of christianity that most people seem to practice are pretty incompatible with science, because that form of religion drills into your head that questioning God is wrong. Personally, I think that questioning your faith is really the only way to truly believe it. Never questioning why your beliefs are the way that they are isn't called religion, it's called brainwashing. Faith and science at their base levels don't get in each other's way. Faith is the belief that something is true, even if there is no proof of it being true. Science is the knowledge that something is true because it has been tested and proven, as well as the pursuit of that proof. If no evidence is there to wholeheartedly prove one side of an argument, both sides could be equally as correct or incorrect. Therefore, as we can't really disprove or prove the existence of a God, either side could be correct. Picking a side doesn't contradict the scientific method, it's simply hypothesizing. I believe that a God exists, and that he built the basic building blocks of our universe. However, I believe that was the extent of it. This belief is often referred to as Deism, or the "Great Clockmaker" belief. Deists believe that some divine being exists, that he put the gears in motion, and then let it run. I don't count on a God coming in to help me in my life or in anyone else's life. We will probably never be able to figure out why the universe exists or why certain forces happen, and I simply prescribe to the hypothesis that the universe exists because it was created, and that those natural laws have brought us to the point we are in now, following the slow process that created our stars, galaxies, planets and the evolution that shaped us into the species we are. They don't necessarily contradict each other, but not every religion mixes very well with science.
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Raven speaks in spoilers until we can get his situation fixed. [spoiler]yes, science exists as a way for us to understand and describe Gods universe. The more science the more awesome we realize God is.[/spoiler] *the opinions stated may or may not be the same opinions of the host profile above.
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Most religions have a creation story which isn't compatible with evolution. Dinosaurs also seem to contradict most creation stories. I think it's possible to be a religious scientist but it probably limits you in some areas of study.
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Yes, scientifically God created everything.
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*enters thread* *reads few posts* *tries to think* *brain fries and dies from extreme LOL's and horrible excuses/proof* *Goes back to reading biology book*
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Yes, I believe they are. Religion isn't necessarily about finding out how or why things work, but the purpose of such things. It's about finding peace with yourself. They may both be about finding answers, but honestly, they're finding answers to different questions, if that makes any sense.
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Yes.it obviously is since its happening right now
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[quote]"Does it mean, if you don’t understand something, and the community of physicists don’t understand it, that means God did it? Is that how you want to play this game? Because if it is, here’s a list of things in the past that the physicists at the time didn’t understand [and now we do understand] [...]. If that’s how you want to invoke your evidence for God, then God is an ever-receding pocket of scientific ignorance that’s getting smaller and smaller and smaller as time moves on - so just be ready for that to happen, if that’s how you want to come at the problem." - Neil deGrasse Tyson [/quote]
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You hit the nail on the head IMO. Science and religion are based on two different epistemic theories, which happen to be mutually exclusive. The former is based on some form of empirical and logical analysis (although I don't want to understate the broadness of the philosophies is the philosophy of science). The latter, in general, is based on faith. It is possible to be both in support of religion and science, but I think this would require some amount of cognitive dissonance, since there is no unified epistemic theory which accounts for both science and religion AFAIK.
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It depends on the religion.
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Edited by Onion Beetle: 8/27/2013 9:07:47 AM
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Science is a really skinny nerd who's really interested in his video games and comics and religion is that really slutty redhead who gives it up easily. I'm pretty sure science could make it with religion, but science is much too interested in his own stuff to do anything about it.
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Edited by Sparty 017: 8/27/2013 8:25:10 AMI think it can when there is logical and spiritual inquire into the matter. I certainly don't think that the people who wrote them intended to dumb anyone down at the time of their writing, the words sound like they were supposed to be empowering. However, this is a whole new world and the books and methods need improving.
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Stop making threads about this. This appears every week. If not, every day.
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Lol this thread. It sounds like you're saying that with the scientific method we will eventually find the answer to everything known to man.
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As long as no one is an asshole about it, but, that's not going to happen, is it?
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Can they coexist peacefully? Yes possibly. Are they compatible? Not really no. At least concerning all major religions as of the moment, no they cannot be compatible.
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Well, while religion insists upon faith and belief, science will not stop until a reason is found for everything. For example, if scientists were to discover a god or gods, then they would try to find the science behind it and then claim it to be a product of science and the universe.
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Edited by Entraps: 7/30/2013 8:09:49 PMOf course they're compatible. I get rather angry when people say they aren't. Also it is annoying when people think you and I are the same person :/
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Absolutely. Science is the search of "how", while religion is the search of "why".