Science vs Religion: Historys Terrifying Influenc

What a great response Sidney! I remain impressed!

Regards, Ron

Religion opposes science when its own teachings and conclusions (dogma) are challenged by science. For instance, Galileo, and later Copernicus proposing that the earth revolves around the sun. But religion and science are both approaches investigating one reality. Religion leads with a new way of understanding, and later as the society develops under its influence, science expands. But the society and the leaders of the religion become dogmatic and inflexible in time, opposing science that challenges their world view. This spiritual "winter" is then challenged and eventually broken by a new revelation. Look at the Muslim religion and the huge effect it had on the world (for instance Algebra, and the Arabic numeral system that we use. Imagine using Roman numerals for arithmetic). But more recently we see the radical opposition from some religious leaders towards "the science of the west" even to the point of violently opposing health vaccination programs to prevent diseases like polio. Just as Christianity had its "dark ages", so has Islam. Often what is needed is to read the Writings of religions with an understanding that they are written in metaphors and symbolic stories to aid comprehension of the people in the time in which they were written about metaphysical realities.