Science and religion why the political conflict?

Science and religion why the political conflict?

Science and religion can co-exist

There seems to be such conflict, especially at the extremes of various belief systems, that science and religion are in opposition, so you can not consider both valid. Reading a fictional book by Raymond Khoury called The Sign, a fictional thriller with a complex plot that involves manipulation of religious fervor by use of a futuristic, and rather unlikely, scientific invention; the suggestion that religious fundamentalists do not accept science in any way is brought to the fore. So let us consider both and how politics gets involved.

Science definition is-- the systematic study of the nature and behavior of the materials and physical universe based on observation, experiment and measurement.

Religion definition is-- belief in, worship of, or obedience to, a supernatural power or powers considered to be divine or to have control over human destiny.

Politics is defined as-- relating to the state, government, public administration, relating to governmental policy making as distinguished from administration or law.

If we ignore, for the moment, politics; then from these definitions it is hard to see why conflict arises. One is the belief that a divine being ( God) exists and the other is a methodical and careful study of creation. If God exists then creation is a result of their creativity and so studying this is not in any way anti the existence of God. The conflicts seem to arise because humans have used the existence of God to create religions which have rules, laws and human hierarchies. To bring these earthly control structures into being, they wrote down what they thought was the way God caused creation to develop. Conflict between religions and between any structured religion and science, is caused by science showing evidence of how creation evolved and developed, and this evidence is contradictory to the original, and now ancient, writings which form the base of religious control.

If way back in ancient times, anyone had written a history of creation, with modern knowledge and then used this as a basis for a belief in God, then these conflicts would not have occurred. Science starts the universe from an event called the big bang and goes on to detail the evolution of all of creation from that moment. Religion, especially a belief in God, is about what existed before the big bang and seeks to answer the question, why did it occur? why does the universe exist? Science can say “HOW.” Religion is concerned with “WHY.”

If religions in general, and for the moment ignoring the differing doctrines, accept science as an explanation of how God made the universe, then they would not be in conflict with methodical study of the universe and probably they could find they have much in common with each other and can stop the inter religious conflicts.

It is when Politics, the designing of policy that governs all the citizens of any nation, gets united with any particular religious doctrine, that conflict starts. If we had our hypothetical new beginning with science as how and leaving religion to answer why; then politics and religion could also co-exist. Since politics is about asking what practical steps for governance do we take in future and science is an explanation of how the universe develops, while religion is about why everything exists; then the three can get along OK.

Trying to force a union of any particular religious ideology and politics, then trying to enforce this on all the people, is simply a plan for conflict.

It should be remembered that some of the “leading” religions in the world, are more philosophies for life, rather then claiming they have edicts from God, edicts which say the human religious leaders have to be obeyed. These belief systems have far less trouble absorbing and accepting science, than do the more structured and hierarchical fundamentalist religions.

Political movements that accept and embrace religious ideology, shut themselves away from methodical and logical assessment of every event or situation. This can be dangerous to the nation and to the peace of the world. They stop reacting to actual events, they stop investigating each new bit of learning and become dictatorial. When what is regarded, by religious leaders, as a moral sin also becomes a secular crime, then the law gets distorted and society becomes ever more divided and oppressed by their own government. This throughout human history, has always ended in pain and suffering.