“If only we laymen could simply trust our scientists, without thinking critically for ourselves, as we once trusted priests and rabbis.” Or so goes one creationists. You know the folks who think all scientists are liars for not placing their religious beliefs regarding creation on the same plane with scientific thought and reason regarding evolution.
Ah, if only our Mid-Eastern fundamentalists religions did not require such blind adherence to their faith then the world, never mind you know where I’m going with this. Spirituality doesn’t have to be this way and to quote another great spiritual leader, the Buddha regarding critical thinking:
“Do not believe in anything simply because you have heard it. Do not believe in anything simply because it is spoken and rumored by many. Do not believe in anything because it is found written in your religious books. Do not believe in anything merely on the authority of your teachers and elders. Do not believe in traditions because they have been handed down for many generations. But after observation and analysis, when you find anything that agrees with reason and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and all, then accept it and live up to it.” (Siddhartha Gautama – The Buddha), 563-483 B.C.
Can you imagine a priest, fundamentalist preacher or imam saying this to their flock? Not a chance in…
However; the original comment speaks volumes about critical thought among creationists. In fact that’s an oxymoron: critical thought and creationists. Science is very much about critical thinking and questioning the status quo. And while adherence to dogma does exist among the scientific ranks, it doesn’t last long when faced with the onslaught of new observations and facts. It doesn’t matter who’s theory is being challenged as for example when Newtonian Physics became challenged by the Theory of Relativity and the Time Space Continuum.It’s all fair game and all subject to the same unrelenting peer review. Years ago creationist beliefs were subjected to the same rigorous scientific review and rejected as being matters of faith and not belonging to science.
It’s so simple: science is not faith and faith is not science. The two shouldn’t play together despite the protestations of religious fundamentalists and their political sycophants.
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