> -----Original Message----- > From: Jerry Johnson [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: Tuesday, December 27, 2005 1:12 PM > To: CF-Community > Subject: Re: Religion and Science my $.02 > > I would have to disagree with your simple, closed definition of religion.
I'll agree completely that the definition is fluid and personal - but that's not really the point. The point is that the "trouble makers" are NOT those that believe as you do: what I would label spiritualism and you would label religion (and we'd probably both be right more or less). They are those that believe in the infallibility of the church (whatever church) and biblical literalism. However you define terms it's those people I was talking about. They are not going to accept a non-biblical, contradictory solution to a problem. Any problem. Ever. They will not compromise. It doesn't matter how many of the faithful come out and say that Religion and Science aren't in conflict simply because _they_ see no conflict. They have been willing to compromise their churches dogma, or they've migrated to churches willing to compromise. Those people able to peacefully incorporate both science and religion are, as a rule I think, able to compromise on God. They are the ones that tend to "push back God". To flippantly play back the last few hundred years: God created man out of clay. New scientific evidence. Okay, God created man out of cells. New scientific evidence. Okay, God didn't create man. God created the Earth and allowed man to eventually rise from it. New scientific evidence. Okay, God didn't create the Earth. God created the atoms and used them to build the universe. New scientific evidence. Okay, God didn't create the Atom, he created the Quark. And he didn't use them to create the universe, he just set off a series of events which eventually created the universe. This is essentially what a LOT of people believe today: God nebulously "set things in motion" and "keeps things on track". It hasn't been codified into any religious dogma that I'm aware of, but it's a pervasive belief nonetheless. There are however, as you know, a very vocal, very religious minority (but growing) population that will not advance beyond the first step: God created man from clay in his image. Religion and science are, for these people, in deep, mortal conflict. Since there is no compromise in their belief and the science clearly doesn't prove their point there can't NOT be conflict. Science and religion can only be free of conflict if religion is as willing to change as science is. For most people this ends up being a personal (I would say spiritual) choice rather than an organized (I would say religious) one. Jim Davis ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~| Discover CFTicket - The leading ColdFusion Help Desk and Trouble Ticket application http://www.houseoffusion.com/banners/view.cfm?bannerid=48 Message: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=i:5:189812 Archives: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/threads.cfm/5 Subscription: http://www.houseoffusion.com/lists.cfm/link=s:5 Unsubscribe: http://www.houseoffusion.com/cf_lists/unsubscribe.cfm?user=11502.10531.5 Donations & Support: http://www.houseoffusion.com/tiny.cfm/54
