Religion and science are seen by some as two complimenting forces; others such as myself don't necessarily agree. Not all religions are dogmatic and seek evangelisation. Sadly, most religions do seek expansion, either through coersion or force. Further, many of these outright reject, if not try to conform to their beliefs to, scientific findings that go against what their holy books proclaim.
Atheists are often dismissed as immature or rebellious, but the truth of the matter is that the more educated a person becomes, the more likely it is that he or she will become atheist. This is because quality education teaches us to question and seek answers for ourselves, to be independent and find comfort in the fact that we do not have all of the answers. This is the reason why students in Ivy League colleges are often atheist. It's not some secular brainwashing as so many religious nuts exclaim. It's simply a demonstration of the evolution of human thought.
I used to be of the opinion that religion could coexist with science, but I find that as more scientific findings keep coming out, these religions are becoming more aggressive. For instance, with the widespread acclamation of the Big Bang theory, religious leaders of the more primitive faiths basically said "The Big Bang was mentioned in our Holy Book long before scientists knew about it. Therefore, our religion is correct!" Now I have to tell you that I have gone over many of these verses and nowhere did I see anything even remotely related to the Big Bang. The conformity of scientific findings to religious books is a dangerous prospect for the thinking man. If x was really present in your scriptures, why is it that it conveniently came to light only after scientists discovered it? You would think it was the other way around.
It gets worse, there are dogmatic people who outright reject scientific discoveries such as evolution, spouting nonsensical ideas such as Satan having implanted million year old fossils to deceive people into abandoning the truth. There are the other nutjobs that refuse to acknowledge actual fossils of primitive hominins as concrete evidence for evolution. They want more evidence, and by more evidence, they mean a bird crossed with a monkey or some other cross between two modern, rather than primitive, species. It doesn't take an evolutionary biologist to tell you that's not how evolution works, but to these people, you're just a hopeless heathen that will be burned in Hell for all of eternity, so your opinion doesn't matter anyway.
Islam, I have to say, is outright destructive. Muslims are seeking to establish Shariah law in Europe, and are actively calling for the death of anyone who is so bold as to insult their prophet, who by their own scripture, is a murderous pedophile. Such actions on the part of religious extremists have led many to ask the question, "Should we tolerate intolerance?" When religions are threatening the lives of our fellow man over something as frivolous as a cartoon or a film, we need to seriously consider their validity and active participation in governments. What these religious bigots legislate will affect us all in the long run.
There are those of us that have broken free of the illusion of divine retribution, but too many are still clinging desperately to religion as a means of becoming immortalized, sacrificing all else, reason, compassion, and even lives in this pursuit.
Atheists are often dismissed as immature or rebellious, but the truth of the matter is that the more educated a person becomes, the more likely it is that he or she will become atheist. This is because quality education teaches us to question and seek answers for ourselves, to be independent and find comfort in the fact that we do not have all of the answers. This is the reason why students in Ivy League colleges are often atheist. It's not some secular brainwashing as so many religious nuts exclaim. It's simply a demonstration of the evolution of human thought.
I used to be of the opinion that religion could coexist with science, but I find that as more scientific findings keep coming out, these religions are becoming more aggressive. For instance, with the widespread acclamation of the Big Bang theory, religious leaders of the more primitive faiths basically said "The Big Bang was mentioned in our Holy Book long before scientists knew about it. Therefore, our religion is correct!" Now I have to tell you that I have gone over many of these verses and nowhere did I see anything even remotely related to the Big Bang. The conformity of scientific findings to religious books is a dangerous prospect for the thinking man. If x was really present in your scriptures, why is it that it conveniently came to light only after scientists discovered it? You would think it was the other way around.
It gets worse, there are dogmatic people who outright reject scientific discoveries such as evolution, spouting nonsensical ideas such as Satan having implanted million year old fossils to deceive people into abandoning the truth. There are the other nutjobs that refuse to acknowledge actual fossils of primitive hominins as concrete evidence for evolution. They want more evidence, and by more evidence, they mean a bird crossed with a monkey or some other cross between two modern, rather than primitive, species. It doesn't take an evolutionary biologist to tell you that's not how evolution works, but to these people, you're just a hopeless heathen that will be burned in Hell for all of eternity, so your opinion doesn't matter anyway.
Islam, I have to say, is outright destructive. Muslims are seeking to establish Shariah law in Europe, and are actively calling for the death of anyone who is so bold as to insult their prophet, who by their own scripture, is a murderous pedophile. Such actions on the part of religious extremists have led many to ask the question, "Should we tolerate intolerance?" When religions are threatening the lives of our fellow man over something as frivolous as a cartoon or a film, we need to seriously consider their validity and active participation in governments. What these religious bigots legislate will affect us all in the long run.
There are those of us that have broken free of the illusion of divine retribution, but too many are still clinging desperately to religion as a means of becoming immortalized, sacrificing all else, reason, compassion, and even lives in this pursuit.
