Philosophy unit 5 discussion responses

1. Comparing science and religion is a difficult task. The two topics, although at first glance seem like opposites , really have a lot in common.  In fact, the two are so similar that there is a field specifically to study science and religion.  There have even been models developed aimed at characterizing the interaction between science and religion; they include the conflict, independence, dialogue, and integration models (De Cruz 2019). The conflict model says the two are incompatible and opposite because they discuss the same subject matter, therefore if one is right the other must be wrong. The independence model says that science and religion are two completely different domains that try to answer different types of questions (De Cruz 2019). That is, that belief in God or in a god is different than scientific knowledge because religion goes into spirituality and how one should live their live whereas science seeks to explain only the natural world. Another notable difference between science and religion is that science is more universal than religion. I know that religion can be found in every corner of the world but I mean to say that it is not universal in that each religion is different. And even within the same religion there are many different levels of belief. On the other hand, science is universal in that, for example, Newton’s Laws of Motion are the same no matter where you are in the world. 

2. Our belief in God or any God differs from our understanding of science because religion deals with the supernatural world and beliefs, whereas science deals with our natural world. These two topics are very different because they both get their answers on our reality differently. Science can be observed and measured and if it cannot be observed or measured empirically, then it is not scientific. Knowledge in many religions comes ultimately from a God, and belief in the existence of a God cannot be verified empirically.

3. Believing in God, a god, or religion itself differs from what we know and understand about science because it relies solely on faith—belief and acceptance that something, without evidential proof, exists. “One way to distinguish between science and religion is the claim that science concerns the natural world, whereas religion concerns both the natural and the supernatural… neuroscientists typically explain our thoughts in terms of brain states, not by reference to an immaterial soul or spirit.” (De Cruz, 2017) Simply, science and our understanding stems from a more tangible stand-point, in turn you cannot use scientific standards or methods to try to explain or justify faith/religion because it deals with a belief system/structure which science is not.  

4. Differences between science and religion are often characterized as one conflict and that is the debate between creationism and evolution. The definition of science  the intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment. The definition of religion on the other hand is harder to define but is the belief or worship in a supernatural being controlling power such as God. We know things in science by controlling experiments and other variables and we know things in religion through sacred texts (The Bible), church and individual revelations. Religion covers the space and explains what we can’t see while science covers what we can see. 

5. I think the difference between science and religion is that Science is backed up with evidence and methods. While on the other hand religion is based off of faith and your spiritual beliefs. I think science does cross paths somewhat in religion based on studies that show that certain scenarios in the bible did happen and/or proof that certain people did exist. Science has so many parts to it like religion but religion can be optional for man. Someone can choose to believe or not believe in religion. With science, even if something is questioned or not believed to be true, if there is scientific evidence that proves otherwise, it has to be accepted.Although science is such a broad topic and consists of many things, particles, subjects and matters; religion is based on one’s faith. There are different religions and they all are based on whether you believe in a higher power. Very little science supports a lot of these religions. Both science and religion have gray areas where things can be questioned but one is based solely on beliefs and morals.