Thought Provoker
Posts: 530
Joined: April 2007
|
Introduction: Francis Collins', Dr. Dembski's and mine.
I have a confession to make about an ethical dilemma. The copy of Francis Collins; book I found is obviously in violation of copyright law and Collins' implied agreement with me. I have little doubt we will get into how and why an atheist would be worried about ethical issues like this. However, I am. My resolution to this dilemma is to only post review-like snippets which is in keeping with the copyright agreement. I will also spend the $15 necessary to download a legitimate copy even though I don't need one.
Dr. Dembski chose a very interesting quote for his introduction on the syllabus...
| Quote | What you believe to be true will control you whether it’s true or not.
–Jeremy LaBorde |
This is a multi-edged sword that generally goes to the heart of many philosophical discussions. If a belief in God is good and necessary what difference does it make "whether it’s true or not" just as long as we believe it?
I doubt Dr. Dembski would openly admit to this, but it is rather obvious he feels a moral obligation to "...replace materialistic explanations with the theistic understanding that nature and human beings are created by God..." regardless of the truth of the matter. link
Francis Collins' introduction can be summarized with this quote from his book...
| Quote | | So here is the central question of this book: In this modern era of cosmology, evolution, and the human genome, is there still the possibility of a richly satisfying harmony between the scientific and spiritual worldviews? I answer with a resounding Yes! In my view, there is no conflict in being a rigorous scientist and a person who believes in a God who takes a personal interest in each one of us. Science's domain is to explore nature. God's domain is in the spiritual world, a realm not possible to explore with the tools and language of science. It must be examined with the heart, the mind, and the soul—and the mind must find a way to embrace both realms. |
This is pretty much a restatement of Stephen Gould's Non-overlapping magisteria (NOMA)
Dr. Dembski is doing his students a disservice if he doesn't at least mention Gould's ideas. I noticed Gould is not on the required reading list.
I happen to embrace NOMA but that is probably a subject for later discussions.
|
