08 March 2013

A Scientist and Religious Person talk. (A Socratic dialogue) Part 1

Scientist: I have a theory that this is how this (specific thing) works.
Religious person: Oh, so you don't really know how it works. It's just a "theory".
S: Yes. I have conducted verifiable and repeatable tests and as far as I can determine, this is how it works.
RP: But it's still just a "theory"
S: Yes. I'm not 100 percent sure, but until something better comes along I'll stick with what I have because it describes the "thing" in enough detail to be workable.
RP: I have something better! It's called GOD and faith.
S: How does this describe how this "thing" works?
RP: God says it works differently and I have faith that God is right.
S: Where is your proof? repeatable experiment? verifiable outcomes?
RP: I have faith that it works as God says.
S: Sorry, but that does not sound like a better description. I'll stick with mine.
RP: But your "theory" is not correct because the missing link is still missing.
S: I'm not concerned with the missing link, only that my description of this thing is as accurate as possible.


This dialogue resulted from a flame-war that erupted on a facebook post that I made where Neil deGrasse Tyson is depicted, stating: I don't have an issue with what you do in church, but I'm going to be up in your face if you're going to knock on my science classroom and tell me they've got to teach what you are teaching in your Sunday school. Because that's when we're going to fight.

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