Science or Religion?

Is there only one reliable way of knowing things - science? What about religion – is it just a big fantasy? And what about artistic expression - music, literature, art - are these of any value? The real question here is how can we know which of these is better - which is more true? Which is no more than the fancy of our imagination and just down right unreliable?

What's so important about asking these questions? Why can we not just leave it to the theologians and scientists to fight it out between them? The answers affect all of our lives. They are about who has power in society and who should have that power. They are about what we teach our children in schools and where do we tell them to look for the answers to what is important in life. The answers are about how we address real life issues such as contraception, abortion, euthanasia, human cloning, rights over human embryos but to mention a few. Ask the scientist or the theologian what is going on and you’ll get very different answers. There's a lot at stake in this debate and it is hard for most of us to not have strong opinions on the issues.

The bottom line here is when we ask fundamental questions of each of these ways of engaging with the world, each will ultimately fail to answer all of our questions in entirety.

You see, even if science can measure every physical event in the universe, can it really capture what it means to be human? All religions will tell us how to live our lives, but isn't it just nonsensical for a theologian to explain scientific processes such as evolution?

A key problem with the history of human knowing is that we have continuously made claims for particular branches of learning (science, theology, philosophy etc) that cannot be substantiated. “There is only one source of truth – religion” or “science will ultimately explain everything that matters” and so on. Where has this brought us? Galilleo. The Spanish Inquisition. The Atomic Bomb. Chemical Warfare.

At the end of the day each branch of knowing has a limited terms of reference. Each has a set of questions that it is equipped to answer. Science will ask how things work and find answers by observing and measuring everything in the universe that we can possible observe and measure. Religion asks why we are here and finds the answers by addressing the questions to a higher being - God.

When a scientist, a theologian, an artist or a philosopher asks "where did we come from?" the question sounds the same but they are in fact asking very different questions. The scientist is asking through what natural biological events have we arrived at our current state? The theologian is asking what was God's intention in putting us here and to where are we returning when we are finished here? The artist is asking what the significance of our being is in this time and place. The philosopher is asking what it means to be human. Different questions answered in very different ways.

Conflicts between various forms of knowing are often less about a genuine search for truth, than about the preservation of the social, political and economic power that is assumed by those who claim to have a monopoly on truth. The pagan high priests and witch doctors of old yielded the same or greater relative power over people's lives as the research focused pharmaceutical companies of the modern world do. Power very often comes from having knowledge that is perceived by others as being valuable - whether it be knowledge of how to gain eternal life or how to cure a chronic illness.

In a genuine search for the truth about the human condition and our world there are a couple of things to keep in mind. The first might be (to put it bluntly) 'mind your own business' - concern yourself with the questions that you are equipped to answer. Don't ask the scientists to tell us how we should live. A scientist will tell you what you can do, not what you should do. Don't ask the theologian to tell you whether the world is flat or not. Instead ask him whether we should make a better effort at protecting it from human destruction.

The second thing to keep in mind is that a genuine search for truth will always seek more understanding - will always try to step outside what we already know. In this way we hope to come closer the real truth. Our knowing is always human knowing, so our grasp of truth will always be in human terms. Fundamentally this is the best we can really hope for. Ultimate truth, whether it be scientific, religious, artistic or philosophical is always one step beyond us. We never seem to have a clear and lasting grasp of truth - just human interpretations, theories, and analogies. Our hope is that as our understanding grows we do come closer to real truth.

There is an ultimate inevitability about human ignorance but this doesn't stop us from continuing the quest for truth.

Be careful of those who tell you they have a monopoly on truth – think first what agenda lies beneath that claim. None of us in fact have a complete handle on truth – whether it be the learned theologian or the expert scientist. There may well be absolutes out there but all we can ever have are human theories on what those absolutes might look like.

What Does it Mean to be Human?

For many people who've tried to understand what it means to be human, the focus has very often been on what sets us apart from the rest of the animal kingdom. What is it that is unique to humans as a species? What higher powers have we got? And so on.

We know that biologically we are closely related to certain animal species and some very interstice theories are out there outlining the evolutionary path we may have followed. So are we simply a more highly evolved mammal than our closest relatives; the apes? Perhaps. But this shouldn't undermine the fact that we have always behaved in ways that seem to be substantially different from other species of mammals. The earliest humans created and used tools to hunt. They wore clothes. They created art. No other species has ever come close to displaying even these earliest signs of 'humanness'.

So what is it about being human that sets us apart? Is it as simple as having a larger more developed brain than other species? Is it our higher level of consciousness - self-consciousness - the ability to reflect on what goes on inside our heads? Do we have a soul or a spiritual essence and if so did we always have it? Is it our creative and artistic abilities that make us fundamentally different - our ability to represent the world to ourselves through things we fashion with our hands? Is it the ability to use language in complex ways to communicate with others that shows that we are different? Is it our imagination that is unique - our preoccupation with creating new worlds inside our own heads? Does our emotional intelligence distinguish us from other species - our ability to understand and temper our emotions and instincts very unique ways?

The answer may lie in just some or all of these apparently unique abilities. The question however about what it means to be human cannot be fully answered with reference to any single defining ability or feature. To understand our humanness we need to take a more complete approach.

We cannot just define ourselves by our 'highest capacity' as many have in the past; thus negating the other aspects of our humanness. We are first and foremost biological entities, which inter-depend on the natural world for our existence. We are also social beings, hugely dependent on others for survival. However we are also intelligent, self-conscious, spiritual, artistic, linguistic and emotional beings. Any discussion on what it means to be human must take a more complete view.

How often do we as individuals and societies put excessive emphasis on the development of one of our attributes to the detriment of all others. In capitalist societies we tend to focus on the development of our intellectual abilities to support economic prosperity; measuring human ability and worth often solely by IQ. How many religions of world encourage us to deny the flesh in order to purify the soul? In how many societies are men not supported the development of their emotional abilities?

All such approaches to human living fundamentally misunderstand what it means to be human. Its not just about what sets us apart from the animal kingdom. Its not just about our higher capacities. Its not just what makes us unique as a species. It is these and the fact that we are also biological and inter-dependent beings.

Fresh Thoughts

The world of ideas; art, poetry, music, literature, science, and religion. All are in their own way attempts by humankind to give or find meaning in life. Why do we do this? Why are we not content to just exist - to be born, grow old and die? Why do we need purpose?

All life has purpose - the natural purpose of reproducing for one - but this has never been enough for us humans. We see, imagine, and create purpose beyond what has been given to the rest of nature.

The questions we ask are many. What does it mean to be human? Where did we come from? What is our destiny? How are we different from the rest of the animal world? What is our purpose? How should we live?

If you've never asked these questions then none of what we're about to engage in makes sense - log off now! If you have asked even some of these questions then let's try and find some answers.

The motivation behind this blog lies in a personal journey to try and get to grips with these questions. Perhaps part of the motivation is also to create purpose and meaning in my own life.

The trigger however is an increasing awareness in Ireland of the growing vacuum that has arisen amongst us for answers to the bigger questions. We had these answers presented to us in the past by our leaders; church, cultural and political. In modern Ireland these sources of meaning have all been undermined and seem less reliable than previously. The gap is not being filled. The result, unfortunately, is an increasing rate of confusion and disaffection. We were taught not to ask questions and it seems now we are unable to get to grips with what is really important. We don't have the skills to deal with life's big issues.

One of the more unfortunate results of this are increasing levels of suicide among young people, young males. There are increasing concerns about our abilities to cope with what we call 'mental health' issues. There are complex reasons behind this but certainly the ability to grapple with our own purpose and meaning in life is something that we should nurture among our young.

Calling myself Irish Philosopher may seem haughty - it doesn't mean to suggest that I have the answers - more that I love to engage with the questions.