Wednesday, April 3, 2013

Religion and Science Should be Allies, Not Enemies




I had to respond to this one, as there are several issues with it. For those that choose not to read the article, the basic point is that, as we in America and by extension other developed nations, have turned towards science, we have also seen a decrease in miracles; by choosing to believe in science, we have turned away from God. The smaller problem is that God has repeatedly said that He likes it when people help themselves, and that you should not test Him through meaningless miracles. This is an important point; we have learned that point, and so we don’t rely on God. Admittedly it has becomes a source of pride, and therefore its own sin, but we have nonetheless found a certain degree of truth to God’s desire regarding His people becoming self-reliant.

At the same time it is likely that miracles are still happening, but that we don’t perceive them as such. After all, a miracle that is just a slight change of odds is not going to be seen as a miracle. One of the problems with having such an improved medical service is simply that what we saw for miracles at one point is now everyday. Ultimately, there isn’t anything wrong that as long as we recognize that we have come a long ways, and that we still have a long ways to go.

It also comes off as preferring ignorance over knowledge. Religion at its best encourages science; it encourages people to look around at the creation. It may sound weird, but for some knowing that there are rules encourages them to find out what they are simply so they can rebel against them. Almost every field of study owes its origins to religious study; to ignore that history isn’t just ignorance, it’s self-destructive. Worse, a leader encouraging his flock to disregard science’s advances or, worse, saying that they are dangerous is a leader that needs to serious debate his position. It’s fine to have an opinion but when that opinion is dangerous that opinion needs to be debated.

In short, if there seem to be fewer miracles in the developed countries, it may simply be because we may lack the ability to see them, or be looking in the wrong place. It’s been suggested that as a race we are still in our adolescence; if God is truly acting as our father, He may just be letting us do our own thing for a little while to give us our space to do our own thing and see what happens, just as good parents do. And just like a good parent He may be acting from behind the scenes to keep an eye on us, and occasionally run interference for us once in a while when He thinks we won’t notice. I’m just hoping that we live to see adulthood…

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