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David J. Demko, PhD, Editor-in-Chief ZOOMER magazine, Boca Raton, Florida |
I was browsing through a back issue of Scientific American recently. It was a special issue devoted to the irony that the impoverished half of the
world is literally starving to death while the wealthy half of the world is on a diet.
The same magazine included an article about another irony, the co-existence of science and religion. The article's title, "Rational Atheism" by
Michael Shermer, was quite insightful and thought-provoking.
Shermer's article aptly cites authors such as self-proclaimed atheist, Richard Dawkins (photo right). Ironically, Dawkins invests so much energy and ink ("The God Delusion" 2006) denying God does not exist, that I think he may actually be a Closet Cleric. Why else would this "man of science" be so pre-occupied with the non-existence of God? Methinks he doth protest too much. In psychological terms, individuals sometimes publicly advocate positions which are, in reality, directly opposed to their true beliefs. There are a number of things in which I do not believe, the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus for example. However, my disbelief in Santa Claus does not give me an irresistible urge to travel the planet frantically seeking an audience to which I can profess the non-existence of Santa Claus. Dawkins, on the other hand, appears to revel in producing evidence against what he firmly believes is not at all evident. Is not the first rule of enlightenment to "keep an open mind?" Go figure. Richard Dawkins' intellectual curiosity appears "closed for business" ... the business of enlightenment. The philosopher, Spinoza once said, "No matter how thin you slice something, there are still two sides." Maybe Dawkins should devote some time to disproving the existence of two-sides to a coin. After all, you can't actually "see" the other side of a coin. Whose to say, then, that it exists at all? Tragically, there are those who see no value in the dialectic of dissenting views of the world. Sadly, the narrow-minded insist that the pursuit of enlightenment must confine its travel to one-way streets. I guess that Dawkins may very well go to his grave, a devout atheist. God willing, of course. ZOOMER magazine welcomes your point of view at: demko@demko.com Submissions may be edited for content and length. |
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