Thursday, July 14, 2005
You Can't Argue With Faith
"You can't argue with faith because that's the point of faith," writes Jon Carroll in his San Francisco Chronicle column, "it's something you believe despite any arguments against it. In fact, your steadfastness against the arguments is proof of the strength of your faith. The idea of arriving at the truth by disputation and experiment -- no longer on the menu."
And that friends, is why we're making a terrible mistake if we allow faith -- no matter how sincere and firmly held -- to replace science education in our public school classrooms.
There's nothing wrong with faith, just as there's nothing wrong with science, as long as we use them in their proper domains. But, using faith to explain the features of the natural world is like using a screwdriver to drive a nail. Likewise, using science to explain existenial questions such as, what is the meaning of life, or why am I here, is like trying to drive a car from New York to London.
And that friends, is why we're making a terrible mistake if we allow faith -- no matter how sincere and firmly held -- to replace science education in our public school classrooms.
There's nothing wrong with faith, just as there's nothing wrong with science, as long as we use them in their proper domains. But, using faith to explain the features of the natural world is like using a screwdriver to drive a nail. Likewise, using science to explain existenial questions such as, what is the meaning of life, or why am I here, is like trying to drive a car from New York to London.
