June 29, 2004
Science and belief
What is the relationship between science and belief?
A friend of mine mentioned that try as he might, he just can’t believe in homeopathy, that
it just doesn’t make sense, and therefore he is disinclined to try it. This immediately
aroused anger in me, which I didn’t make known. And I’ve come to learn that whenever I
get angry about something, that there is some unresolved issue in me that I need to
address.
What difference does it make whether or not you understand it? If it works for others,
isn’t it worth a try? I guess there must be some part of me that also needs to understand
how things work before I’m willing to try them. Homeopathy is no problem for me. It’s
cheap, and there’s no harmful side effects. So what things am I not willing to try, even
though it works for many other people? I can’t think of anything right now. I will have to
ask my wife, who’s always better at spotting those things than I am.
Is there a relationship between science and belief? Is science merely a pattern of
cause and effect? If I believe in science, and people have established a pattern that
A causes B, then will I try A, even if I don’t believe in it?
This one could use some more thought, examples, and clarification.
-Robbie
