I got the heads up from a friend on FaceBook about a forceful and timely article by Stephen R. Friberg on the issue of religion and science to be found at the Huffington Post (see link for the full article). The theme is at the forefront of my attention at the moment and Friberg’s approach is a valuable one, so the desire to pass on the hint was irresistible.
Drawing on the Bahá’í view of reality he states:
Weakening, sidelining, ridiculing, or disparaging science or religion in favor of the other has very real consequences: “Should a man try to fly with the wing of religion alone he would quickly fall into the quagmire of superstition, whilst on the other hand, with the wing of science alone he would also make no progress, but fall into the despairing slough of materialism” (`Abdu’l-Bahá, Paris Talks, pg. 143).
The article deals with four key issues:
Below, we describe four possible ways inspired by the Bahá’í teachings of [realising in practice] the unity of science and religion:
- Reduce or eliminate conflicts over evolution
- Develop moral and ethical principles for global progress
- Provide universal education in scientific literacy
- Renew and transform religion
It’s well worth a closer look.
