Science and Religion

Science and Religion

Peter Atkins once said that "science is almost incompatible with religion", and thus expressed the opinion of the majority. Relying on the definitions of science and religion, the difference seems to be obvious because these two concepts originate from different dimensions of human activities. Science is usually referred to as the study of processes, forces, and development of nature, which is based on the analysis of evidence. When applying scientific approach, one assumes that various processes and events we observe take place due to natural causes instead of some divine forces. Moreover, science is precise, and the matters of morality, spirituality, and holiness lie beyond its areas of interest.

Religion, on the other hand, is closely connected to faith that is a profound concept in Christianity. Often, the main bases of religion is revelation given by a deity that is either orally transmitted from elders to their offspring and later immortalized in a holy book (like the Bible and Koran), or revealed to the believers in the process of prayer. The core of the conflict between religion and science relates to the perception of the universe and its laws: most of the religious groups believe that there exists one or several superpowers (deities) that created the earth and the universe and keep managing it in they way they think is best, while scientists deny these perceptions because they often bypass he laws of nature (for example miracles). Nevertheless, there is an evident progress toward the "peace treaty" between the science and religion with the increasing efforts to explain the events described in the holy books on the basis of science.

The discussion gets hot in the areas where science and religion overlap, including astronomy, geology, history, linguistics, medicine, human sexuality, and religious events and practices. Although nowadays many religious groups have adjusted their interpretations of the Old and New Testaments to fit with the scientific evidence, there are still some conservative religious groups outstanding that claim that the earth is no more than ten thousand years instead of 4.5 billion. Moreover, the flood story in Genesis directly contradicts the theory of evolution and anthropology that is based on the fossils' excavation and examination of paintings found in the caves in Africa (particularly Ethiopia, Zambia, and Olduvai Gorge), China, Central India, France, Germany, Spain, Greece, Hungary, and England. The difference level of development and age structure excludes the possibility if word-wide flood.

The questions of linguistics, particularly the origin of different languages depicted in the story of the Tower of Babel in the book of Genesis, are explicated by the event that happened in the Middle East. According to the story, it was a time when humans ceased to understand each other because they were divided into