science versus religion

Last updated on: November 21, 2006 at 3:35 pm by David Hayward

science versus religion 2006-11-21T15:35:20-04:00 David Hayward

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After reading both Times magazine and MacLeans from the week before last (Nov. 13, 2006), I want to post some thoughts on the increasingly heated debate between science and religion. We can feel some of the heat between a scientist who is also an atheist (Dawkins) and a scientist who is also a Christian (Collins) in both these articles.

Although Christians have rightly been accused of arrogant hatred towards atheists or even people of other faiths, I donâ€™t think this excuses the arrogant hatred of Dawkinsâ€™ towards people of faith. When the issue arises concerning Collinsâ€™ difficulty being accepted even among some Christians, fundamentalists mostly, Dawkins says, â€œâ€¦heâ€™d just save himself an awful lot of trouble if he just simply ceased to give them the time of day. Why bother with these clowns?â€ Oh ya, now THATâ€™S helpful! Collins responds in a more humane way: â€œRichard, I think we donâ€™t do a service to dialogue between science and faith to characterize sincere people by calling them names. That inspires an even more dug-in position. Atheists sometimes come across as a bit arrogant in this regard, and characterizing faith as something only an idiot would attach themselves to is not likely to help your caseâ€ (Time).

Because Dawkins quotes another atheistic scientist, Sam Harris, as support in his book The God Delusion, he comes into the picture. Harris says of Collinsâ€™ book, The Language of God: â€œTo say that he fails at his task does not quite get at the inadequacy of his efforts. He fails the way a surgeon would fail if he attempted to operate using only his toes. His failure is predictable, spectacular and vile.â€ Where does this vilification end? Because Harris (one among many atheist scientists) questions Collinsâ€™ credentials as a scientist because he is a Christian, Collins feels â€œthe squeezeâ€ is getting worseâ€¦ from both sides: â€œI hear louder and shriller claims from atheistic scientists and ever stronger reactions from religious peopleâ€ (MacLeans). MacLeans says that Dawkins book is a â€œfull-bore assault on all forms of religious belief as the root of (virtually) all evilâ€. Dawkins believes all believers are sinister and a menace to humankind. â€œAnd they are child abusers to boot, because they raise their children religiously, just as they too were raised (and abused) as childrenâ€ (MacLeans). I hear a whistle blowinâ€™. Itâ€™s cominâ€™ round the bend!

Collins is not well received or respected among scientists who are atheists, nor among Christian scientists who are fundamentalists. He is considered a â€œmoderateâ€, which I think is a poor label that conjures up ideas of â€œweak conformistâ€. I donâ€™t think Collins conforms to try to appease both sides. I think he is a serious geneticist as well as a serious Christian who can live comfortably and inquisitively in these two worlds. He himself says, â€œâ€¦ over more than a quarter-century as a scientist and a believer, I find absolutely nothing in conflict between agreeing with (Dawkins) in practically all of his conclusions about the natural world, and also saying that I am still able to accept and embrace the possibility that there are answers that science isnâ€™t able to provide about the natural worldâ€”the questions about why instead of the questions about the how. I find many of those answers in the spiritual realm. That in no way compromises my ability to think rigorously as a scientistâ€ (MacLeans).

Hello people! Arenâ€™t we seeing whatâ€™s happening? It isnâ€™t the issues that are the issues, but rather the hatred behind our attitudes toward others. Canâ€™t we see that it is disdain towards a person that leads to murder, not that personâ€™s thought-patterns? Can we stop this train before it leads to persecution of a newer kind?

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