Are science and faith mutually exclusive?
Last week, I had the pleasure to be a guest on the Motherhood Uncensored Blog Talk Radio show, discussing my thoughts on raising children without religion. In my post here, I mentioned the challenges of raising children to be critical thinkers. Jen, from Get In the Car!, left a comment noting that I seemed to imply that children who are raised with religion – and those who hold religious beliefs - are NOT critical thinkers.
I’ve received similar feedback before, from Jamie at Blonde Mom Blog. And another blogger – Blog Antagonist at Blogs Are Stupid – was taken to task by a reader who objected to her sidebar button that said: “Don’t Pray In My School and I Won’t Think In Your Church.”
It’s a touchy topic, even among friends and acquaintances who know and respect one another.
I don’t look down upon those who hold religious beliefs simply because they believe in a deity and I do not. But what will spark my ire, as I mentioned in last week’s radio show, are those who look down upon me for not sharing those beliefs. Question me, pity me, pray for me – I don’t mind. But don’t jump to the conclusion that I cannot possibly be a good person merely because I don’t have the threat of hell hanging over me or the Ten Commandments to tell me right from wrong.
But fundamentalism – especially in Christianity – is where I start to wonder about the capacity for critical thinking among the devout.
Jerry Falwell had been the leader of fundamentalist Christians for decades, and he ”preached that all things were created by God in six historic days, that Satan was the agent of evil in the world and that the Bible was entirely true, without error and authoritative in all matters.” While Falwell and other fundamentalists may have the capacity for critical thought, they haven’t applied it to such tenets.
Today at The Imperfect Parent, I’ve written more about my frustration with the fundamentalist Christian political agenda pioneered by Jerry Falwell – that frustration stems from their refusal to analyze their beliefs in the context of scientific discoveries and theories, and from their persistence in pushing a legislative agenda using those unsubstantiated beliefs as its basis.
Go. Check it out. Tell me I’m wrong. Do you dare incur the wrath of mothergoosemouse?
May 22nd, 2007 at 6:04 am
How funny…I just posted about this today. I do believe in religion and I posted about the dilemma in raising children with myths.
It is essential to me to raise critical thinkers, and we are a very science-oriented family. I also send my children to Catholic school.
In the end, I want them to have the tools to make an informed, thoughtful decision about what they do or do not believe.
That’s the part that matters to me.
I not only don’t think people should all think like me, I don’t want them to. I believe beliefs ought to be dynamic, and one part of that is to constantly chalelnge them with other ideas.
I am regularly frustrated with the “voice of the religious” in the US. It’s not even close to reflective of my beliefs or goals. It’s an ugly and judgmental, exclusive and punitive voice usually. I come from the other angle entirely.
Great topic and I’ll go see your article at the Imperfect parent.
May 22nd, 2007 at 6:07 am
P.S. chalelnge = challenge (I can spell but I can’t type.)
I also wanted to add: I don’t think real belief of faith can be forced. As with anything, it must be something you find, choose and believe from within yourself, voluntarily.
Therefore I most respect (and trust) honest opinions. By this I mean I don’t assume a lack of morals if someone doesn’t believe in a religion. Science and faith are not mutually exclusive, and morals and religion are not mutually inclusive.
May 22nd, 2007 at 6:18 am
You have written how I feel about religion pretty accurately. I will go check out what you wrote at The Imperfect Parent.
May 22nd, 2007 at 10:14 am
On my way to Imperfect Parent to check it out – after the bathrooms are scrubbed. That should put me in a real good place
Your Unitarian Blogger Friend,
Jen
May 22nd, 2007 at 10:16 am
You are so right. Great post (here and there).
May 22nd, 2007 at 11:08 am
On my way to check out the post. This is definitely a touchy subject. I’ll wholeheartedly admit I don’t want to stir up the pot on my blog and avoid writing about politics and religion, but I definitely want to go read what you’ve written.
Ugh..Falwell. I must wipe that unfortunate mental image from my mind!
May 22nd, 2007 at 11:26 am
“Jen, from Get In the Car!, left a comment noting that I seemed to imply that children who are raised with religion – and those who hold religious beliefs – are NOT critical thinkers.”
Believing in something purely on emotion and faith is clearly a lack of critical/skeptical thinking IN THAT AREA. It’s not a blanket statement about the overall intelligence of the religious person.
As for critical thinking being possible at all in religion, I had a pastor growing up that made the bold statement at our evangelical church that perhaps it was possible the days of creation weren’t a literal 24 hours each and that God used evolution to create life on Earth. While of course I disagree, I can at least respect that level of thought and open mindedness.
May 22nd, 2007 at 11:42 am
Have you ever seen that newspaper column where a priest and a rabbi
walk into a baranswer questions from readers? Once someone asked whether, if you took the Communion host and tested its chemical makeup, it would be made of human cells, or flour and water. And the response is, of course, that the transubstantiation of the host is an article of faith. That’s how I see a lot of things. I’m not sure what exactly I believe in when it comes to God, or especially organized religion; but that’s my problem–not anyone else’s, because they are welcome to their own beliefs. That means you Jerry!May 22nd, 2007 at 1:22 pm
well, I won’t be incurring much wrath, since I agree with you: faith, in and of itself (to me), implies an acceptance of something one doesn’t fully understand. Acceptance. Not further scrutiny or questioning.
Having said that, I do believe (for lack of a better word) that many aspects of many faiths have some excellent ideas that can provide a lot of food for thought – to be adapted and edited to fit anyone’s spiritual system. But none are infallible. And those that claim to be should welcome the scrutiny and questioning.
off to the Imperfect Parent!
May 22nd, 2007 at 6:50 pm
I started a bible study recently in hopes of finding answers because to me, the bible just doesn’t make much sense. And honestly, as I get more into the study, I’m even more confused.
I do agree with you. I think it is VERY important to raise a critical thinker.
Once when I told my dad I didn’t know if I believed in a deity, he said, “Well, if you don’t believe in god, why don’t you just go out and steal or kill people.” I told him that a person shouldn’t be truthful, loyal, kind, just in case there’s a god — a person should be truthful, loyal, and kind because it is the RIGHT thing to do. I thought his line of thinking was incredibly stupid. But he’s been trained to think that way since he was a baby… That people without a religion are lost and less good than those with religion. I definitely don’t agree. In fact, some of the most moral, upstanding people I know don’t belong to a church.
May 22nd, 2007 at 6:59 pm
I’m dying to listen to that talk radio. Have been up to my eyeballs in birthday partying.
You know where I stand on this one!
Now, off to Imperfect Parent.
May 22nd, 2007 at 9:37 pm
bowing.
May 22nd, 2007 at 10:42 pm
The difference between religion and science is that beliefs need no evidence and “believers” are expected not to question. Science is founded on evidence and scientists are taught to question and challenge. Science On Trial by Douglas Futuyama is a good read and it focuses on this debate.
May 23rd, 2007 at 7:04 am
you don’t scare me. i just beat my husband at “try and get me out of bed early” this morning. so pppbbbbbt.
May 23rd, 2007 at 11:46 am
I do have a low regard of the critical thinking skills of even good friends who unquestioningly believe whatever their church/holy book/dogma/flying spaghetti monster tells them to. Living in the midwest as I do, the number of people I know who meet that criteria is disturbingly high.
You can be a person of faith and still be a good critical thinker, I just don’t believe you can be a person of *unquestioning* faith and be taken seriously by any rational person.
May 23rd, 2007 at 1:26 pm
Oh thank you for writing this. Where I live, it is always a risk to admit that you don’t believe in God. People are either scared of you, or try to “save” you. If my child ends up believing in a god, that will be fine with me, but it is our responsibility to allow our children to make that decision for themselves. Any real critical thinking about religion is sure to demonstrate its faults. Fundamentalists either are unable or unwilling to do so.
May 23rd, 2007 at 1:42 pm
I was raised in a Fundie church and school who thought that Falwell and Robertson were too liberal. I can tell you first hand accounts of how the fundamentalists blatantly and patently ignore scientific fact for the literal interpretation of the Bible.
I was taught that dinosaurs were “just a myth” and carbon dating was a fallacy. These people turn a blind eye to anything that takes a detour from what the Bible says. It’s frightening and sad and the fact that there are children being taught this way is just plain wrong.
May 31st, 2007 at 8:50 am
I actually wanted to call in when you were on the show, but my hatred for the sound of my own voice prevented me. While I never really thought that you were saying that Christians cannot be critical thinkers, I was concerned that you seemed to imply that participating in organized religion excludes you from doing good for the sake of doing good. I am a seminarian (I would therefore consider myself very religious) and I don’t worry about Hell. I don’t think about Heaven. I try to live a righteous life because I believe it is the right thing to do.
But I’m right there with you on the Jerry Falwell set.