Call me cynical, but I'm really starting to believe that science deniers are not actually acting in good faith. I know this might seem intolerant of me, but I can't help thinking that alot of these folks are really just intellectually and spiritually lazy. In a crazy way, it is actually easier to grit your teeth and dig in your heels and deny, deny, deny than it is to deal with the fallout of accepting humility and saying, "I was wrong."
Its easy to see this flaw in every side of every human argument. If I am being self-aware and thoughtful, I detect the urge to take the righteously indignant ostrich-in-the-sand strategy myself, often.
But to follow this course is to deny truth.
I do not practice Buddhism, but one of my heroes on this front is the Dalai Lama who has unequivocally stated that anywhere science can truly contradict scripture, then scripture is wrong. He understands that we humans are fallible, so anything we have written down -- no matter how divinely inspired -- is also fallible. He understands that science offers the best way to understand this material world in which we live. Holy scripture offers a way to understand our place in the world, a way to organize our priorities and the maddening impulses in every breast and brain on the planet.
Too often, and maybe always, people define themselves by the maddening impulses and then wield scripture as a weapon to re-order the world for their own selfish and cynical comfort.
Years ago I asked my 4 year old niece what happens to the sun at night. Her immediate answer with complete faith: the sun is in bed, asleep. It was cute and we all smiled.
Here we are in 2010 letting people who believe that the sun spends every night in bed set policy.
Image by David Russo from Malibu Magazine: http://bit.ly/92dhnK
3 comments:
Right on- I really like this. We have been raised in such black or white, dualistic culture. As a passionate Earth steward, I see it often among righteous activists who claim to be acting on behalf of the planet, but are so closed minded and angry all the time. Embracing the spaces in between is soooo important!
Thanks for sharing.
The spaces in between -- exactly. That's where sustainability will ultimately be found or not.
Agreed. It's easier to argue a black/white argument than stop and think -- and consider other points of view.
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