Science versus Religion

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Which brings us to my favorite subject, the interplay of internal versus external, that is to say the interplay of Science and Religion.

I was watching tv last Saturday evening when I stumbled on a C-SPAN program featuring book authors. I was immediately transfixed by Sam Harris answering questions concerning his book, The End of Faith. I recorded (on tivo) the last half of the interview and played it later in order to confirm my first impressions. The results prompted me to buy the book, which has now become my current 'potty book' replacing The Story of Philosophy by Will Durant. I have not read it yet. Nowadays I rarely just sit and read, except on the potty. But I did read the first ten pages on the internet and I was impressed enough to buy the book.

My first impression is that Harris agrees with me concerning the deadly danger posed by the more or less sudden juxtaposition, at the turn of the second millenium, of old and odius religion with new and shiny science. There is the possibility that the volatile relationship will become explosive in the sense of dropping a cubic centimeter of sodium into a bowl of water.

You can choose your candidates in this metaphor, for science and religion, but you cannot deny the explosive result.