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"How Did The Conflict Begin?

The rise of science and atheism can be attributed to a period of rapid cultural and intellectual development called the Renaissance. Beginning around 500 years ago in Europe, it led to Western, secular values dominating the world, infusing liberal and atheistic attitudes into unprepared cultures. Though many religious leaders rejected these values, some attempted to reinterpret scripture for greater agreement with science. This led to disharmony in many world religions, where those reluctant to change distanced themselves from reformers. As a result, old religions splintered into new sects, each with its own interpretation of traditional beliefs.

Over the centuries, science has consistently provided further cause for panic, provoking hostile reactions from religious believers. However, unlike traditional atheism, science never intended to threaten religion. When Edwin Hubble proved the existence of an expanding universe, the evidence was so convincing and the conclusion so irrefutable that it became the domain of common sense. When Charles Darwin recognized evolution through natural selection, the unambiguous utility of its application to all facets of the natural world gave us a tantalizing avenue to pursue our origins. With the Big Bang, evolution, and a wealth of other knowledge-based advances, science has inadvertently forced the reinterpretation of religion in places where its dogma is in conflict with overt truth.

Such a battle should concern neither side. The illimitable iteration of cause and effect will always establish an empyreal abode. For example, if the Universe started with an explosion then one could claim God caused the explosion to occur. If dinosaur fossils are found then God put them there to test our faith. If the Earth is billions of years old, then a day in the Genesis story is equal to hundreds of millions of years. These are actual interpretations of the Bible that have been forced into existence by science.

1. Evolution vs Intelligent Design

Rather than reconcile scripture with evolutionary theory, Christians invented a new theory called Intelligent Design (ID). It claimed that living things are too complex to be explained by the randomness of natural selection. The unsupported suggestion that a creator God must therefore be the cause revealed the religious underpinning of the theory. This lack of impartiality saw Intelligent Design fail to become an established scientific theory. Impartiality is crucial to the scientific method. Scientists look for evidence to derive answers, but creationists look for evidence to support a particular answer. It's unscientific to selectively look for and document evidence based on how favorable it is to your beliefs.

This biased search for evidence is characteristic of the psychology of religion. Religions typically include a number of comforting beliefs (afterlife, loving god, purposeful existence, etc.) that believers are emotionally invested in, and dependent on. Believers are therefore motivated to find evidence that supports and reinforces their beliefs. Thus, all that opposes their beliefs is automatically dismissed, and all in favor is given utmost attention. For the same reason, believers will surround themselves with people who share their beliefs, providing further illusory reinforcement. The group becomes a source of identity and pride, and the pleasure derived from satiating this pride is reason enough to bias their approach to evaluating evidence."

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