Science and religion

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'''Science and religion''' represent two views of the world. While some say these views can be [[Non-Overlapping Magisteria|complementary]], others regard them as mutually exclusive.

[[Science]] appeals to the human intellectual desire to learn more about the world we find ourselves in, whereas religion [[Emotional appeal|appeals to the emotional]] desire to mitigate uncertainty, misfortune, and fear. In principle, both can be used to advance humanity, but in practice, the vast majority of established religions have very strong [[dogma]]tic standpoints, which work to suppress any deviation from said standpoints, let alone human development, even in areas such as [[moral]] responsibility, social conduct, or global issues, where religious organisation would have a great potential. Instead, they tend to only focus on gaining more followers and public funds.   

==The relationship between science and religion==
===Christianity===
Historically, the relationship between [[Christianity]] and [[science]] has been difficult. Many ideas, such as the idea of a [[heliocentric]] [[solar system]], as advocated by people like [[Galileo]], were suppressed to an extent by the Church. The Church did eventually, however, decide that science was okay because it dealt with a different sphere of knowledge than [[religion]]<ref>See e.g. the encyclical [http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/leo_xiii/encyclicals/documents/hf_l-xiii_enc_18111893_providentissimus-deus_en.html Providentissimus Deus] (18.11.1893), §18: "There can never, indeed, be any real discrepancy between the [[theologian]] and the [[physicist]], as long as each confines himself within his own lines, and both are careful, as [[Augustine of Hippo|St. Augustine]] warns us, 'not to make rash assertions, or to assert what is not known as known.'"</ref> and that it could be used to understand more fully about "[[God]]'s creation".

===Islam===
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In the [[Middle Ages]], Islam was very encouraging of science, helping the Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphates and their successors be at the forefront of [[mathematical]] and general scientific advances. However, Islam in general took a turn towards [[anti-science]] [[fundamentalism]] centuries ago.<ref>One possible introduction to the topic can be found [http://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/why-the-arabic-world-turned-away-from-science here].</ref>

===Bahá'í===
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A central teaching of the Bahá'í faith is that science and religion are interconnected. Since Bahá'ís view God as unknowable, the only way they can understand "him" is through what "he" created.<ref group=note>Bahá'ís don't believe God has a designated sex, but it's apparently degrading to refer to God as "it".</ref> This also fits in with a second pillar of the faith, the evolution of the world. As more discoveries are made, the world changes.

===Judaism===
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Many of the Christian issues with science listed above stem from the [[Old Testament]], so Judaism has also been plagued by [[young earth creationism]] and [[geocentrism]], for example. These still exist in some sects, such as [[Chabad]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20151215045106/https://www.chabad.org/therebbe/letters/default_cdo/aid/2387635/jewish/In-Defense-of-Geocentrism.htm ''Translated Correspondence by Rabbi Menachem M. Schneerson'', May 14, 1964, accessed Sep. 15, 2019.]</ref> Many elements of the Orthodox branch, particularly, remain [[Superstition|superstitious]].<ref>Mintz, Jerome. ''Hasidic People: a Place in the New World''. (Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 1992)</ref> Nevertheless, there have also been attempts at rationalism within the religion, including {{wpl|Maimonides||.}} Like the Bahá'ís, Maimonides felt that all we can know about God was what He created. Most branches now embrace science, and since the time of [[Einstein]], people of Jewish background (not all practicing Jews; many are atheists like [[Carl Sagan]]) have been prominent among scientists: see {{wpl|List of Jewish Nobel laureates||.}} Inevitably, this has led to [[antisemitism|antisemitic]] [[International Jewish conspiracy|conspiracy theories]] that [[Didit fallacy|science is a Jewish plot]].

==Modern fundamentalism==
In the modern world, the [[War on Science|principal opponents]] of scientific [[progress]] are the [[fundamentalist]] [[sect]]s of several religions. Although many educated theists do, in fact, accept theories such as [[evolution]], many others who are more literal in their reading of their "[[holy book]]s" believe it to be false.<ref>Living proof is [[cp:Evolution|here]].</ref>

They have attempted to support their view by much grabbing at straws, for example, (refuted) claims of evolution violating the [[Second Law of Thermodynamics]], or so-called [[irreducible complexity]]. They construct arguments like "the [[Bible]] says that the first [[human]]s were just like present humans", then go off into a long [[circular argument]]. Evolution has not been disproved yet, but [[Falsifiability|is possible to disprove]] &mdash; that is, if evidence were found against it, which it has not, the theory would be modified, or even discarded &mdash; see '[[Disproving Evolution]]' for details.

==Creation Science==
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The term "Creation Science", coined by modern fundamentalists in a bid to get their theology and [[mythology]] taught in science classes, is an [[oxymoron]]. [[Creationism]] is not science. In fact, it is often explicit anti-science. Creationist activists will gladly [[Lying for Jesus|misrepresent]] scientific concepts in order to indoctrinate their audience with the view that [[faith]] is [[Other ways of knowing|superior to reason and more valuable than (empirical) knowledge]].

==Science vs. God==
God is often said to be "outside of science". While this is all well and good, it in effect states that the nature of "God" is outside the scope of rational inquiry. The notion of "[[blind faith]]", as is often the basis of religion, is quite contradictory with the [[scientific method]]. This is not to say that a person cannot be both a scientist and theist (though among modern scientists, the theistic population is a minority),<ref>[http://www.stephenjaygould.org/ctrl/news/file002.html Leading scientists still reject God]</ref> as many theists view science as the "Study of God's Creation"; this definition is often used by theistic scientists, and often crops up in debates about science and religion. It is not an immediately damning view, as one can certainly conduct substantive work in a scientific field while believing that a [[supernatural]] entity created the [[Universe]], but as we have absolutely no evidence that this is the case, it may indicate that the scientist will apply skeptical thought to his or her own field(s) while deliberately or unknowingly avoiding it otherwise.
 
If one accepts the common claim that God is supernatural, one must conclude that any investigation into the nature of [[monotheism|God]] (or [[polytheism|gods]]) is in fact outside the realm of science, and potentially outside the realm of any form of human inquiry. Since science only addresses phenomena that can be observed and tested, any pursuit of knowledge about supernatural entities can only be considered unscientific.

==See also==
*[[Non-Overlapping Magisteria]]
*[[Creationism]]
*[[Intelligent design]]
*[[Expelled: Leader's Guide]]

==External links==
*[http://ncse.com/religion Science and Religion] From the NSCS
==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[category:religion]]
[[category:science]]
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Categories: religion, science, Science and religion