GENS4010 Week 1

According to Richard Bube's book, Putting it All Together, there're 7 categories on a person's opinion of science versus religion. They are:

1. Science Reigns Supreme
2. Religion is Pre-eminent
3. Science and Religion have Nothing to do with Each Other
4. Science Demands Theology
5. Science Redefines Theology
6. A New Synthesis of Science and Theology Must be Made
7. Religion and Science give Complimentary Insight

I never really liked typologies. There's just something inadequate about forcing someone's opinion to belong to a specific category. But if I had to choose from the above, I would say that, while religion and science give complimentary insights (No. 7), I also think that science redefines theology as well (No. 5).

Religion and Science give Complimentary Insight
The reason why I think this is simple - science and religion have two different purposes. One is not trying to outdo the other, but science seeks to prove or disprove certain things while religion offers a peace of mind. It is only because some of the explanations that they offer overlap that a debate of science versus religion has started. But of course, there're instances where religion has been sought to explain things that can and should be explained by science, which is where the 5th category comes in.

Science Redefines Theology
When I say theology, I don't mean the modern views of Christianity or any other religion, but the primitive age where various natural occurrences such as lightening and floods were believed to have been caused by God of Thunder or God of Water, et cetera. This 'God of Gaps' instances needs to be address.

It will be interesting to see whether my position changes throughout this course or my belief in those two categories only strengthens.

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Before I progress further with my journal, it might be useful for me to outline what my thoughts are on the subject of science and religion:

SCIENCE
To me, science isn’t something that exists to contend with religion, nor is it always right. It is important to remember that being right or wrong is entirely subjective, and while the evidences may look clear to some people, zealously religious people may think that other explanation – a more theological explanation – is right. What science is and does, therefore, is subjective depending on whom you ask. To me, however, it is the study of factual data, and I believe it weights more than religious theories.

RELIGION
Religion has always been a psychological factor for me. It offers the believers a peace of mind and guidance on the issues of morality and ethics. I do find most religions sceptical because no God has communicated so clearly that we as human beings are left in no doubt as to their existence. The way they communicate to us are large through personal interpretations of various events or signs, like miraculous incidents.

Even the idea of heaven and hell are psychological to me. People are generally most afraid of things that they do not understand (hence the God of gaps), and at the moment, such thing that is beyond our understanding seems to be our death. Because we have no clue what happens after we die (something that is quite terrifying to lots of people, in addition to the horror of dying itself), it is easy to invent such place as heaven to comfort ourselves. And hell is there as a moral compass.
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At this point, it is probably very clear that I’m not very religious. But this is not to say that I do not tolerate religion. Religion simply offers different things (psychological comfort) than science (facts).