Religion, in its earliest definition, is defined as “a system of faith and worship” although I prefer the 18th century of “a feeling of utter dependence.” To many, this word may mean allegiance to a certain sect or denomination of a christocentric, orthodox faith institution. To others perhaps another of the worlds centuries or even millennia old ideologies. Still to others it comes as a sign of some new all-encompassing milieu of fuzzy good feelings and calming thoughts on the afterlife. However you define it, it seems that Religion and Faith must go hand in hand and whatever your predisposition of thought about the two words, they are concepts that must be understood and dealt with for any progress of thought for the human experience.
It seems as if Religion and Science have always had a love-hate relationship. Granted, history books always seem to be written and rewritten ostentatiously by those who either win the wars or at least the arguments. Nevertheless, history gives us great men who would appear to be men of both science and faith, even in the midst of war.
From ancient Greek we have the Pythagoreans who were not only scientists but a comprehensive religious sect who understood the laws of mathematics and physics to be the foundation of their entire system of faith. This system was based on a reality based on the existence of whole numbers, or integers, and left no room for any reality that saw anything outside of those boundaries. With the discovery of Phe (the “Golden Ratio” found in much of natural creation which is most definitely not an integer) their entire worldview was put to the test and lost. Science, it seems, won an early skirmish in the battle for supremacy.
Nicolaus Copernicus, the Polish monk, astronomer, mathematician and all-around marvel, wrote On The Revolutions Of The Celestial Spheres, which was published shortly before his death. In it, this Catholic cleric posited the unlikely argument that the planets revolved around the sun and not the earth. A few short years later, this heresy cost many others‘ their lives as the Holy Mother Church sought out and purged the world community of those who would come against their faith to suppose such preposterous ideas. Three hundred years later the Church finally dropped his book from their list of prohibited reading materials as well as Galileo’s Dialogue Concerning The Two Chief World Systems. In fact, it wasn’t until 17 short years ago in 1992 that the Catholic Church rescinded it’s 1633 verdict against Galileo Galilei as a heretic for proposing the same heliocentric viewpoint.
The list is endless and I would be wasting time and energy cataloging a mass of heretical truth-tellers that the church has persecuted in its war against Science and Reason. I do not want to detract from the focus of Religion and Faith and end up in a diatribe about the war between Faith and Reason. My side is neither and my worldview holds value in both faith and reason. The sadness comes in supposing that a war is necessary between the two.
Faith and Religion gives people a common language and understanding that unifies a community. This unity can be channelled into great endeavors as well as torturous evils. However, the unity that stands is a morally neutral force. The direction it chooses to go give it the morality or substance of its convictions or follies.
Repeatedly, as our understanding of our manifestation of reality and physical space here in the cosmos deepens, we run into new ideas, theories and sometimes even discoveries that shake our foundations and cause us tremendous consternation as we learn to assimilate this new information and metabolize it into our collective consciousness. This growth pang can and usually does bring about an opposition of worldviews within our own mental grasp of our life and faith.
Put yourself in the position of one who, in 1633, may have heard Galileo speak of our planet revolving around the sun when, in fact, you had been taught the very opposite by your church leaders your entire life. The teachings from church, from school, from social norms and from university all teaching that the sun, of course, revolved around the earth. “My child, this is not only scientific fact but this is scripture. This is the way God made it.” And then you hear a teacher within that same church speak of something opposite to this. It is not only backwards, but what would this mean about God? What would this mean about Church? My family? This man has now been called a heretic and sent to his own Hell to be dealt with harshly by God and the Devil both. What do you do?
Yet. We know this is fact now and hundreds of years now pass that religion has integrated and assimilated this into it’s canon of dogma. Why? Because it is simply so. At some point, on matters of indisputable fact and truth, religion has only two choices die or give in - buy in or fall to pieces. Sometimes that point is relatively soon as it was with the Pythagoreans. At other points in history, it comes hundreds of years later as it did for the Catholic church.
It would be complete conjecture to try to formulate any reasoning in understanding what makes the difference between one situation and the other. Sadly enough though, there is most definitely that period of incubation in which many are called heretic and burned at the stake either figuratively or literally.
I will wrap up this for now, however, I want to say that as this thought continues through the next few moments I have to write more, my goal is not debate. You may certainly use the forum here for your own debate, I could care less. I will not debate my thoughts or suppositions. I pretend to know nothing beyond my own ideas and convictions. You make your own. Love is the Law. Love under Will.
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