Why do people continue to be devoted to their religions in this age of science?

Because deep down we know that we didnt come from apes not only that we really dont want to feel that we did either.Science should leave creation and spirituality to the hearts of the people and work on making cures and stuff like that.Apart from that talk about bible bashing lets talk (anti christ)darwin bashing

Why...

"Why" has never been what modern science is dealing with. Modern science looks for the "HOW", while philosophy/religion try to answer your "WHY". For almost 2500 years now all philosophers have tried to answered the big questions: what is reality, what is our purpose here etc. Each one of them had his own opinion, but they all showed the same thing: that the ultimate truth may be that we have a higher purpose in life, maybe that there is a God, maybe that there isn't! Noone really reached to a safe conclusion, so trying to just cast a shadow over "religion" with such a simple question for such a complicated matter won't work - at least not for me. There are valid logical arguments in favour of the existence of a God - just to mention the theory about the "First Cause" and the Godels logical proof and remind everyone that he was the greatest mathematitian and logician of all times after Aristotle! So again, this is not such an easy issue to answer lightly!

If one says that "Science has proved that God doesn't exist" or that "Science has found that we have no purpose in life" - I would ask him WHY we read and we like poetry or WHY we strive for creation, or why we may give our lifes for dignity or why we do so many other things we do!

Science has explained many things, but mainly the "HOW" of these things. We are beginning to find out how the brain works, but modern science does not even bother to answer the big question "WHY" is works that way. We still haven't found the way to battle flu, so saying that we have discovered the meaning or - worst - the non-existence of purpose of our lifes is rather arrogant in that perspective...

Why Do People Devote Themselves To Their Religious Faith In The Age Of Science?:

• Compare science to religion in terms of their relative contributions to the improvement of human life over the ages. On the positive side, science has increased the human lifespan, decreased disease and suffering, deepened our understanding of the universe and our place within it and has given us a profound sense of increasing control of our own destiny. Religion has lead to the building of cathedrals, beautiful and inspirational prose found in all religious writings, art work and a sense of something greater than ourselves as well as a comforting belief that there is life after death. On the negative side science has led to the creation of weapons from the hand gun to the H-bomb, one cannot get more negative than that. Religion brought us the dark ages, the burning of witches, cults, jihads and a profound sense of powerlessness. We are at the mercy of an invisible being whose motives and nature is largely unknown and conveyed to us by members of our own species. It is not hard to imagine their motives. Life as a clergyman is life on the gravy train. They take advantage of the fact that some of us are more comfortable out of the driver's seat. Let someone or something else be in charge. Spare us the responsibility for our own condition and our futures. Some of us want to remain as children. Some of us will fight to the death for the right to cling blindly to myths and wishful thinking. We say with faith all things are possible but what is not possible is a willingness to look boldly at the truth and accept the fact there is no God.
  
• It was a sad day for humanity when religion was invented. We would have been so much better off if when that clown came in and said "Hey guys, there is a God! Let me tell you all about him!" and was laughed out of the room.
  
  
• Science and Religion are not contradictory, but complementary ways of thinking. One should follow both in order to reach the truth.
  

• Because if you shine a light through a piece of card with two slits (the Wheeler experiments) onto a piece of photographic paper then a pattern of multiple bars of black (rather than just two where the slits are) builds up because the photons are interfering with each other. If you fire photons of light individually the pattern still builds up, which should be impossible because there are no other photons to interfere. If you try to investigate why and observe this second experiment you don't get the pattern of bars, just two where the slits are. (observing light under these circumstances changes its behavior! as far as I'm aware quantum physicists haven't been able to work out why, although Hawking suggested it's in relation to his theory that 'The nature of the beginning of the universe depends on the precise question asked of it')
  This is a classic example of nature outmaneuvering science. Deities are considered to be natural forces, and if they can outmaneuver scientific investigation why not believe in them?
  
  

• Why do people continue to be devoted to their sciences and knowledge in this age of spirituality and consciousness?
  

• Science and spirituality are not quite at odds anymore in the way that they have been for the past two centuries or so. Newtonian theories really drove the final wedge between the two, but modern research into quantum physics is beginning to put the pieces back together. Please note that I do not use the word 'religion'. It seems most people in this forum are devoted to Christ or nothing at all and that is fine, but I would just like to mention that there is a difference between religion and spirituality. Religion is the part that rubs most people the wrong way... the part that says go to church and let them tell you that you were born inherently evil and that you need to get all the steps in the dance just right and 'walk the narrow path' with Jesus to get to this place called heaven. Spirituality is the belief that life is an awesome, as-yet-undefined thing that holds mysteries and possibilities beyond counting, and "God and Jesus" just might be among those possibilities depending on who you're asking. Research what Einstein referred to as "spooky action at a distance" and check out the systemic universal memory theory while you're at it. Heck, check out a book on super string theory or just find a quantum physics for dummies book on eBay. It's good stuff, no explanation is complete, and the evidence is piling up that neither the priests nor the scientists really know as much as they think they do about the way it all works. Hubris is not a desirable character trait and we will always, always be learning.
  
  

• In the book, "Physics and Psychics" by Victor J. Stengel, the author suggests that in the past people lived in isolated groups and there were advantages to commonly held beliefs such as religion. Those who believed were welcomed into the group and received a share of group resources. Also the leaders of these groups needed a means to enforce order and acceptable behavior so laws and religions were created. In time these beliefs became so ingrained the tendency to believe in religion became genetic and was passed on from generation to generation. The reason we have so many different religions is that since groups were isolated, many different religions were created and when these groups expanded and came into contact with each other they shared many cultural and informational facts. Sooner or later the subject of religion would come up and since neither side had the means to prove whose religion was right, conflicts arose and the religions leaders fearing loss of power would sometimes urge their followers to kill (in the name of God) those who did not agree. Hence, holy wars and extremists. I say that until God makes an appearance on Letterman, it does not exist. But then most people ask, what about life after death? Where do we go when we die? Don't we need a heaven to look forward to? I say, there is no life after death. There is no heaven. Ask yourself this: As a baby grows in the womb it is first a mere collection of cells. Where was the baby's consciousness before it's brain was developed?

• It was nowhere. It did not exist and will not come into existence until there is sufficient brain structure to enable the beginning of its function. When the person dies the function ceases. It simply stops. Look at it this way. Imagine consciousness as an asphalt road on a bridge. the bridge supports the road for some period of time. Now, let the bridge collapse. What happens to the road? Does it continue to exist? No, it too collapses into non-existence. So there is no life after death. There is no heaven. All we have is each other. Life is a gift from the universe. We should cherish it, we should nourish it. We should love each other and add beauty to the world because this is the only world we have.
  
  
• The simple truth is he is there. You say you believe in science, but I think you do not. If you really did you would try to find out if there really is a God. You would read the scriptures. You would exercise just a little faith and see if worked. Isn't that what men of science do. And if you exercised that little bit of faith, read, and prayed you would receive the true answer. If you received that answer would you deny it. Many would say they are only feelings they are not real. Yet how many would say here is my child, I love this child its my own flesh and blood. Is not this love real and verifiable. You do feel it. So isn't that feeling of truth and understanding real. Or are you past feeling and is your heart cold. If so it is dark also and you cannot see the light of truth, but can not you exercise your mind and heart too one great experiment and then see the truth. There is a True and living God, He also has a mind, and the evidences of his presence are everywhere. The orderly movement of the universe, the mechanics of your own body and mind. All the things that he created required an all intelligent mind. All things required the knowledge of that Great Creator to come into being. Science is verified in him and verifies it.

• "Why do people continue to be devoted to their religions in this age of science?" In my opinion, religion is for the ignorant masses. Science is for those who control the ignorant masses.

• Because science and religion are not at odds with each other!

• So, as one poster put it "religion is for the ignorant masses and science is for those who control the ignorant masses" should do their homework! Science has not turned its back of the possibility of Jesus and some scientists are trying to find proof that Jesus did exist. The only difference between Christians and Scientists is that Christians have blind faith and Scientists need proof. I am a Christian and I didn't just decide to become one. I was not forced into believing in God, but there is something in most of us that know there is something special inside of us (a light so to speak) and it just didn't happen by accident!) Religion is not at all an ignorant mass and science has NEVER tried to control or even uttered the words "ignorant" to those of a Christian belief. It would be fundamentally suicide because many of the providers of research are Christians themselves! I believe that our life doesn't end after death and there is scientific proof to that one! So much for scientists being against Christians. More and more studies are being done on this and, in fact, in our Canadian hospitals as a person is dying there are notes and tapes taken (sometimes videos) of those in the dying process. Some patients have been pronounced clinically dead, but survived miraculously and can tell doctors and scientists alike what they have experienced. Read a few books on the subject! Also, read the Bible and see how much of it has come true so far. "At end times there will be floods, pestilence ....." and what do we see around us now. The time as we know it is not the time of the Almighty and it could be several hundred years before the end times come or it could be tomorrow. We will never know and neither do scientists. We see flooding, huge weather changes, fires, wars, starvation (all mentioned in the Bible). Need I say more about that subject?

• Because it gives them hope. So, why do people believe weird things? "More than any other, the reason people believe weird things," says Shermer, "is because they want to. . . .It feels good. It is comforting. It is consoling." Secondly, weird beliefs offer "immediate gratification." People like weird beliefs because they are simple. Weird beliefs also satisfy the quest for significance: they satisfy our moral needs and our desire that life be meaningful. Finally, he says, people believe weird things because weird things give them hope.

• Scientist and their adherents are just as devoted to their belief systems as are the religious. An example of this is the current HIV=AIDS theory. This by any standard of scientific method is not even a theory; even today, it remains a postulate. Even so, look at all the "churches" that have sprouted up based on it's ideology. Listen to them quote their prophets and priests who pose as scientists. "Stay negative, get tested.", is as prevalent today as is "Jesus loves you." Ever hear of Darwinism? Like any other "ism" the Darwinists preach dogma and remain devoted to it. Global warming? This is the new age religion of our world's so called "scientists".

• Contrary to some commonly held beliefs, there is no contradiction or competition between true science and religion, at least in terms of biblical Christianity. Many of the founders of modern scientific disciplines, and modern scientific thought were either Bible believing Christians or believed in an omnipotent creator. Even post-Darwin, many of them rejected evolutionary presuppositions as not supported scientifically. Science itself has found nothing that contradicts the Bible, if you leave out all the anti-Biblical presuppositions and agendas. Atheist Michael Ruse, after having studied the subject for twenty years has concluded that even evolution is itself a religion. This could explain the dogmatic statements about it from some of its adherents, even though evolution contradicts known scientific laws, which have no known exceptions. Science itself cannot and does not deal with religion anyway, since it claims to deal with empirical data. Where it comes into conflict with religious ideas about the origin of the world, it is itself developing theories about realities it cannot test. The data can be interpreted to fit into different paradigms than what scientists theorize, although they unscientifically exclude these other paradigms as possibilities, which indicates they do not come to the data with open and inquiring scientific minds. They begin with presuppositions that some things are certain regardless of any evidence to the contrary.

First answer by DaveLyttle. Last edit by Johnnybegood. Contributor trust: 1 [recommend contributor]. Question popularity: 84 [recommend question]