The Coronavirus and Faith in Scientism
by Cowboy Bob Sorensen
There are people who label biblical creationists with the absurd pejorative "science deniers" because we reject atheistic interpretations of historical science regarding fish-to-fool evolution. (Labeling is easier than thinking.) Having faith in operational science is justified to some extent, but some do it religiously.
Before we continue, it should be noted again that mockers accuse creationists of creating the distinction between operational and historical science, but that is demonstrably false.
The COVID-19 novel Coronavirus has people frightened. This is exacerbated by several factors: leftist politicians using the situation to gain power and instill fear, confusing and unreliable models, fake news sites citing spurious "studies", Darwin's disciples falsely claiming that it is evidence of evolution, and so on. In the midst of all this, the public wants scientists to make things better. Unfortunately, God has been evicted from modern life for the most part.
There are atheists who use the bifurcation fallacy (either/or) that if Christians pray, then we are hypocritical if we see doctors. It doesn't work that way. In addition, we can and should pray for God to give medical professionals skill, wisdom, and compassion in their development and distribution of effective treatments.
Many scientists believe in and promote naturalism, even to the point of giving presuppositions of naturalism precedence over observed evidence. Since there is no room for God (although people have an innate desire for him), they replace God with various religious views. One of these is a more extreme view of materialism and naturalism (to me, there is scant difference between the two) that is called scientism. It is basically an adoration of science and scientists — though some scientists are not fond of the devotion that they receive from the public.
When God is rejected and things like pandemics occur, religiously resorting to scientism is a poor substitute. It refutes itself under examination, because there is no scientific process that can lead one to the conclusion that science alone is the salvation of humanity. For that matter, many things that were considered scientific facts have been rejected; scientism is built on a foundation of shifting sand.
At this point, I will ask you to read or listen to The Briefing by Dr. Albert Mohler. He has some fascinating and useful insights on these subjects. Feel free to ignore the political aspects, but they also add to our understanding:
There are people who label biblical creationists with the absurd pejorative "science deniers" because we reject atheistic interpretations of historical science regarding fish-to-fool evolution. (Labeling is easier than thinking.) Having faith in operational science is justified to some extent, but some do it religiously.
Before we continue, it should be noted again that mockers accuse creationists of creating the distinction between operational and historical science, but that is demonstrably false.
The COVID-19 novel Coronavirus has people frightened. This is exacerbated by several factors: leftist politicians using the situation to gain power and instill fear, confusing and unreliable models, fake news sites citing spurious "studies", Darwin's disciples falsely claiming that it is evidence of evolution, and so on. In the midst of all this, the public wants scientists to make things better. Unfortunately, God has been evicted from modern life for the most part.
There are atheists who use the bifurcation fallacy (either/or) that if Christians pray, then we are hypocritical if we see doctors. It doesn't work that way. In addition, we can and should pray for God to give medical professionals skill, wisdom, and compassion in their development and distribution of effective treatments.
Many scientists believe in and promote naturalism, even to the point of giving presuppositions of naturalism precedence over observed evidence. Since there is no room for God (although people have an innate desire for him), they replace God with various religious views. One of these is a more extreme view of materialism and naturalism (to me, there is scant difference between the two) that is called scientism. It is basically an adoration of science and scientists — though some scientists are not fond of the devotion that they receive from the public.
When God is rejected and things like pandemics occur, religiously resorting to scientism is a poor substitute. It refutes itself under examination, because there is no scientific process that can lead one to the conclusion that science alone is the salvation of humanity. For that matter, many things that were considered scientific facts have been rejected; scientism is built on a foundation of shifting sand.
At this point, I will ask you to read or listen to The Briefing by Dr. Albert Mohler. He has some fascinating and useful insights on these subjects. Feel free to ignore the political aspects, but they also add to our understanding:
To do that listening or reading, click on "Tuesday, April 28, 2020". You may also be interested in reading "Ethics, Scientism, and an Evolutionary Worldview".PART I — Is Science the Answer to Death? A Secularizing Society Grapples With How To Think About Death During a PandemicPART II — The Most Certain Thing There Is—Science? Even Commercials Have WorldviewsPART III — C.S. Lewis on Turning a Fascination with Science into Scientism: The Incompatibility of Scientism and the Biblical WorldviewPART IV — Science Ends Bernie Sanders’s ‘Beauty Contest’: New York Cancels Democratic Primary