Re: If god exists, what created god? corrected followup

Collene Pearce (collene@freeside.fc.net)
29 May 1995 21:17:26 -0500

In article <3p4g07$om0@kelly.teleport.com,
Michael J. Bertrand <fruvous@teleport.com wrote:
>In article <Pine.LNX.3.91.950507185301.6807E-100000@mail.inhb.co.nz>, Lisa Morton (lisa@inhb.co.nz) writes:
>>There are 2 modes of thought. Scientific and Religious. Science delivers
>>fact. Religion delivers opinion. All fact is opinion. Therefore science
>>and religion are one and the same.

In a sense you are correct. In essence science and religion are pointed
toward the same end : explaining the universe. What is it, how does it
work, who if anyone is running it, etc.

The primary difference is that religion's focus is on providing answers
and satisfying the questioner, and science's focus is on the truth.

The way I see it, the way religion developed is something like this :
human A thinks of a question. A doesn't think of his or herself as
smart, but B is pretty smart. A asks B. B has no idea but makes something
up that sounds reasonable. A beleives it, because it does sound
reasonable and B is so smart. B really enjoys this. He gets believed!!!
Coool! In fact, he likes this so much that he believes it himself. He
thinks he is figuring out reality when he makes up good answers. After
all, if he beleive it, and they beleive it, it must be true, right? He
starts calling this process 'divine inspiration'. If he is good at it,
charismatic and intelligent enough, he can start a religion this way.

For an illustration, I will call upon that font of wisdom, The Lion King.
In this film, there is a discussion of what stars are. Timon says
they're fireflies, trapped up in 'that big bluish-black thing', an
answer he obviously made up on the spot. This, after Poomba says "Ever
wonder what those twinkly lights up there are" or something like that,
and Timon saying "I Don't think poomba... I know. " Which I think is a
very accurate description of the religious process : knowing without
thinking. Poomba, to add to the irony, supllies the correect answer, and
is dismissed out of hand because he's not a 'smart person'. If Timon and
Poomba were in the position to be soceity starters, or charismatic enough
to be leaders, their 'firefly' view could become dogma.

Now it might be said that science is just another version of this. But
there is a very important difference. The difference is, anyone can
verify something scientific. We have the scientific method for that, No
authority is required.

Well, I could say tons more but I gotyta go... more later! :)