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Science and Religion
Rotholz (jrotholz@WSUNIX.WSU.EDU)
Fri, 6 Oct 1995 19:51:53 -0700
D. Read comments:
"The distinguishing characteristic of science is...its insistence on
public scrutiny and verification of its claims by empirical obervations
that must be publically replicable."
It seems to me that religion comes very close to fulfilling these
criteria. Most religious activities are open to public scrutiny and find
a verification of sorts through the replication of religious experience
among those "outsiders" who come to an experiential religious knowledge,
thereby "verifying" the given religious belief(s) on a personal level.
Most religious groups actively invite nonbelievers to put their claims to
the test. And somewhat like the scientific method, religious movements
which fail to deliver a verifiable experience (of God/peace/etc) fall by
the wayside like disproven scientific theories.
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