The NotÂtingÂham physiÂcists are in some good comÂpaÂny. AccordÂing to a well-known 1997 study pubÂlished in Nature, biolÂoÂgists withÂin the NationÂal AcadÂeÂmy of SciÂences rejectÂed God and immorÂtalÂiÂty at rates of 65.2% and 69.0%. MeanÂwhile, when physÂiÂcal sciÂenÂtists were polled, the numÂbers rose to 79.0% and 76.3%. The sumÂmaÂry origÂiÂnalÂly pubÂlished by Nature now appears here.
Last week, the Dalai Lama spent sevÂerÂal days at StanÂford UniÂverÂsiÂty, where he made comÂpasÂsion his focus. He laid the founÂdaÂtion with a large pubÂlic address before an audiÂence of 7,000. (Watch an excerpt above or the full talk below.) Then things got more focused when the spirÂiÂtuÂal leader of Tibet parÂticÂiÂpatÂed in a dayÂlong conÂferÂence about the neuÂroÂbiÂoÂlogÂiÂcal underÂpinÂnings of comÂpasÂsion. HostÂed by StanÂford’s CenÂter for ComÂpasÂsion and AltruÂism Research and EduÂcaÂtion, the conÂferÂence brought togethÂer imporÂtant sciÂenÂtists from many disÂciÂplines – psyÂcholÂoÂgy, neuÂroÂscience, medÂiÂcine, and ecoÂnomÂics. You can watch a recordÂing of the conÂferÂence here. It’s all in video and ready to go.
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AmerÂiÂca, as a nation, has some big fish to fry these days. But the enerÂgy is being focused right now on a symÂbolÂic quesÂtion. Can the nation tolÂerÂate the buildÂing of an IslamÂic culÂturÂal cenÂter and mosque near Ground Zero almost a decade after the 9/11 attacks? Or, more to the point, can AmerÂiÂca uphold one of its core valÂues – reliÂgious tolÂerÂance? The debate has smolÂdered on throughÂout the sumÂmer, and we’ve seen the hard right and left conÂdemn the CorÂdoÂba IniÂtiaÂtive and Islam more genÂerÂalÂly. On the right, Newt GinÂgrich has talked about how we’re facÂing an “Islamist culÂturÂal-politÂiÂcal offenÂsive designed to underÂmine and destroy our civÂiÂlizaÂtion.” And built into his thinkÂing is the assumpÂtion that when ChrisÂtians comÂmit abhorÂrent crimes, it’s a perÂverÂsion of the reliÂgion, not an indictÂment of its essence. But the same charÂiÂty doesÂn’t get extendÂed to the IslamÂic minorÂiÂty faith in the counÂtry. MeanÂwhile, Sam HarÂris on the secular/atheist left gets in bed with GinÂgrich when he says “there is much that is objectionable—and, frankly, terrifying—about the reliÂgion of Islam and about the state of disÂcourse among MusÂlims livÂing in the West.” If it matÂters, the main difÂferÂence between HarÂris and GinÂgrich is HarÂris’ conÂsisÂtenÂcy, which boils down to a conÂsisÂtent conÂtempt for reliÂgion. (ParÂtialÂly ExamÂined Life takes a much closÂer look at HarÂris’ arguÂments here).
All of this makes me wonÂder: What would someÂone who actuÂalÂly knows someÂthing about Islam say about the whole affair? So here you have it. Karen ArmÂstrong, one of the most well known thinkers in the field of comÂparÂaÂtive reliÂgion, a forÂmer Catholic nun, and the author most recentÂly of The Case for God, offerÂing her thoughts on the matÂter above.
No one debates quite as well as an Oxford proÂfesÂsor. And so today we feaÂture two Oxford profs – atheÂist biolÂoÂgist Richard Dawkins and ChrisÂtÂian mathÂeÂmatiÂcian John Lennox – debatÂing God and sciÂence in … of all places … BirmÂingÂham, AlabaÂma. The debate turns largeÂly on a quesÂtion raised in Dawkins’ 2006 bestÂseller, The God DeluÂsion: To what extent can reliÂgious belief and seriÂous sciÂenÂtifÂic disÂcovÂery go hand-in-hand? The debate is liveÂly, and the thought seriÂous. A good way to spend 90+ minÂutes. And BrazilÂian readÂers, you’re in luck. You get subÂtiÂtles. If you would like to purÂchase a copy of the debate, you can buy it through the Fixed Point FounÂdaÂtion, the ChrisÂtÂian orgaÂniÂzaÂtion that orgaÂnized the event. You can also watch a verÂsion of the debate on the Fixed Point web site here.
ChristoÂpher Hitchens hasÂn’t turned inward since his canÂcer diagÂnoÂsis in June. Nor, as some might have anticÂiÂpatÂed, has he budged from his atheÂist views outÂlined in his 2007 bestÂseller God Is Not Great. And if you hear rumors of an evenÂtuÂal deathbed conÂverÂsion, don’t believe them. That’s the mesÂsage he passÂes along to AnderÂson CoopÂer in a new CNN interÂview (above). Also, Hitchens has just pubÂlished a new piece in VanÂiÂty Fair where he talks about his introÂducÂtion to (esophÂaÂgus) canÂcer in a way that only Hitchens can. RegardÂless of what you think about Hitchens, it’s defÂiÂniteÂly worth a read…
As he grows oldÂer, Woody Allen increasÂingÂly finds himÂself posiÂtioned as the philosoÂpher filmÂmakÂer. Fresh Air host TerÂry Gross asked him some heavy exisÂtenÂtial quesÂtions in an interÂview last year. (LisÂten here). And, more recentÂly, we have Allen grapÂpling with some big life quesÂtions in an interÂview conÂductÂed by Father Robert E. Lauder in the Catholic magÂaÂzine, ComÂmonÂweal. The conÂverÂsaÂtion begins:
RL: When IngÂmar Bergman died, you said even if you made a film as great as one of his, what would it matÂter? It doesn’t gain you salÂvaÂtion. So you had to ask yourÂself why do you conÂtinÂue to make films. Could you just say someÂthing about what you meant by “salÂvaÂtion”?
WA: Well, you know, you want some kind of relief from the agony and terÂror of human exisÂtence. Human exisÂtence is a bruÂtal expeÂriÂence to me…it’s a bruÂtal, meanÂingÂless experience—an agoÂnizÂing, meanÂingÂless expeÂriÂence with some oases, delight, some charm and peace, but these are just small oases. OverÂall, it is a bruÂtal, bruÂtal, terÂriÂble expeÂriÂence, and so it’s what can you do to alleÂviÂate the agony of the human conÂdiÂtion, the human predicaÂment? That is what interÂests me the most. I conÂtinÂue to make the films because the probÂlem obsessÂes me all the time and it’s conÂsisÂtentÂly on my mind and I’m conÂsisÂtentÂly tryÂing to alleÂviÂate the probÂlem, and I think by makÂing films as freÂquentÂly as I do I get a chance to vent the probÂlems. There is some relief. I have said this before in a faceÂtious way, but it is not so faceÂtious: I am a whinÂer. I do get a cerÂtain amount of solace from whinÂing.
What’s good, and what’s evil? TraÂdiÂtionÂalÂly, reliÂgion and phiÂlosÂoÂphy have answered these quesÂtions, pushÂing sciÂence to the side, askÂing it to stick to the world of natÂurÂal laws and knowÂable facts. But Sam HarÂris wants to change things. At TED, he’s arguÂing that sciÂence (parÂticÂuÂlarÂly neuÂroÂscience) can address moral quesÂtions preÂciseÂly because these quesÂtions fall into the world of knowÂable facts. And, even betÂter, sciÂence can proÂvide definÂiÂtive, highÂly objecÂtive answers to such quesÂtions. Just as there are sciÂenÂtifÂic answers to all quesÂtions in physics, so there are clear answers in the moral realm. This applies, for examÂple, to whether chilÂdren should be subÂjectÂed to corÂpoÂral punÂishÂment, or how sociÂety deals with very meanÂingÂful genÂder quesÂtions. (Things get a litÂtle emoÂtionÂal on this topÂic at about 11 minÂutes in.) The upshot is that HarÂris isn’t buyÂing a radÂiÂcalÂly relÂaÂtivist posiÂtion on moralÂiÂty, and this will disÂapÂpoint many post-modÂernists. The EnlightÂenÂment project is alive and well, ready to make its comeÂback.
ChristoÂpher Hitchens — he’s an irriÂtant to the left (a big defendÂer of the bunÂgled Iraq war) and to the right (an atheÂist who wrote the conÂtroÂverÂsial bestÂseller God is Not Great). He’s an equal opporÂtuÂniÂty polemiÂcist. Now, in the April ediÂtion of VanÂiÂty Fair, he’s back. This time, he’s deconÂstructÂing the Ten ComÂmandÂments and offerÂing his own updatÂed set of comÂmandÂments for our modÂern times. I’m norÂmalÂly not the biggest Hitchens fan. But, I’m on board with the gist of his guidÂing prinÂciÂples.
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