> _________________________________
> DM> My name is Derek McLarnen. I live in Canberra, Australia. I am 41
> years old, married with 5 children and work as a telecommunications
> consultant. While a nominal Anglican (Episcopalian is the US
> equivalent, I think) and mostly living by Christian ethics, I classify
>
> myself as an agnostic philosophically (since I don't know whether any
> deities exist), and as an atheist for practical purposes (since I live
>
> as though no deities exist). Technically, I suppose I could classify
> myself as a modernist, but I don't see a compelling reason to do so. I
>
> have a strong interest in exploring the areas where religion and
> science intersect,...........
> ___________________________________
>
> Actually, this description is not at all that unusual, it is basically
>
> that of an postmodernist.
>
> A better quest, IMO, would be to look for where religion and science
> do not intercept.
There aren't many such areas. It is arguable that there may not be
*anywhere* outside the scope of both religion and science.
Many people would claim that religion has no place in observational and
experimental science. However, a person's religious beliefs will often
influence the scope and interpretation of their observations and
experiments.
Many people would claim that science doesn't cover claims of past,
present or future specific actions by a deity. However, I see no reason
why claims that a deity may have acted in a specific manner should be
exempt from the processes of scientific methodology in assessing their
validity.
I take quite a lot of interest in examining the claims and
counter-claims of the proponents of various deities. However, I find
these claims to have the appearance of being specifically crafted to
appeal to the gullible, and further developed so as to enhance that
appeal.
Those claims of religion that believers would exempt from scientific
investigation are not capable of validation and therefore of unknown
relevance to reality. Since many, if not all, of those claims are
mutually contradictory and/or at odds with verified observations, I find
it reasonable to provisionally presume, pending validation, that all
such claims are false.
--RegardsDerek
-----------------------------------------------------| Derek McLarnen | dmclarne@pcug.org.au || Melba ACT | dmclarne@nccdcfsg.telecom.com.au || Australia | | -----------------------------------------------------