RELIGION/SCIENCE/POST-TRUTH

A major mistake for atheism and science advocates

is the massive fallacy of freezing all religion

at the pre-rational/mythic level

and believing modern science and culture

are purely rational

which war and science-used-for-war disproves

to some scientists evolution is a meaningless process

controlled by blind chance

whereas to some Christians evolution can give new depth

and richness to our view of God –

God works thru chaos and does not impose design

but gives nature the chance

to participate in its own creation

the universe intended life from the beginning –

if the Big Bang had happened a trillionth of a second

slower or faster the universe would have imploded

or flung apart into nothingness

whereas North American and European theologians

address the non-believer –

how can you speak of God in a scientific age? –

Latin and African liberation theologians

address the non-person –

how can you speak of God to the poor/marginalized?

over the course of centuries the Church

has worked out a body of principles based on the Gospel

regarding communal justice and equality –

and Vatican Council II in the 1960s

wanted to reinforce/enlarge these principles

particularly regarding communal economic development

as our culture turns in the “post-truth” era

towards the authority of experience

rather than the authority of religion or reason

it is good to remember that religion and reason

are part of human experience

and to be spiritual and religious

is to stitch human experience and wisdom together

so experience renews reason

with awe.

 

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Bruce Tallman

Since 2002 I have been a full-time spiritual director in private practice in London Ontario. I have published two books on spiritual direction for spiritual directors. One of them, "Finding Seekers," is a best seller in the field. I have also published two books on spirituality for the general public. The latest one is called "God's Ecstatic Love: Transform Your Life with a Spiritual Masterpiece." It is a 21st century update of Francis de Sales' classic "Treatise on the Love of God." See Amazon.com The London Free Press has published hundreds of my articles on spirituality, theology and ethics and I have facilitated marriage preparation with over 3500 couples since 1988. For more information see www.brucetallman.com

One thought on “RELIGION/SCIENCE/POST-TRUTH”

  1. Genesis 1 and 2 showing God fashioning, creating, ordering, etc, seems to be in a stark contrast with your concept of “[giving] nature the chance to participate in its own creation.” It would take me a long time to discuss all of what is in those chapters, but here’s one example.

    And God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night. And let them be for signs and for seasons, and for days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the heavens to give light upon the earth.” And it was so. 16 And God made the two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and the stars. 17 And God set them in the expanse of the heavens to give light on the earth, 18 to rule over the day and over the night, and to separate the light from the darkness. And God saw that it was good. 19 And there was evening and there was morning, the fourth day.
    Genesis 1:14-19, ESV

    Here we see God is very intentional with how He creates, and He “imposes design” to do so. God didn’t just light off a spark and let “the universe” intend life was to happen, as though the cosmos has a mind of its own. Rather, God takes everything, be it the waters above and on the earth, or the ground, or what animals are to eat, and He imposes His design how He sees fit, and then He says it is all very good.

    God dictates how all creation is to operate, and how fish and birds will live, and how animals of the earth will feed, and He has this all planned out before giving them the breath of life. He made everything according to their kind. This was intentional, not hoping for the best after allowing creation to make itself through chaos.

    As for your last claim, if those are concrete and reliable definitions of religion and spirituality, with both being merely stitching together experience and wisdom (whose wisdom?), then neither will save you. God is the source of all spiritual truth, and His truth is written in the Bible. Human experience has no sway on what God has said.

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