Christmas Musings – Religion and the Natural Sciences (Physics and Biology)

In the United States, about 20% identify as “nones.” In religious statistics in Europe and in East Asia the number is even much higher. Yet the most secularized societies on earth such as parts of Eastern Europe, the Peoples Republic of China, parts of Russia (big cities like Moscow) stick to extremely conservative family values.

Firstly, let me examine what the top atheist physicist had to say. Stephen Hawking’s quote:

“So long as the universe had a beginning, we could suppose it had a creator. But if the universe is really completely self-contained, having no boundary or edge, it would have neither beginning nor end: it would simply be.”

I have to comment on this: Beginning of the universe implies that we know what time actually is. However, all we have is Albert Einstein`s definition of time: “time is what a clock measures” and Einstein gave us a definition of “clock”, too. A clock is a device that counts regular events. However, due to the theories of Hawking and Einstein, at infinite high or low gravitation this concepts and definitions break down.

Think about it: Physicists can calculate with frightening precision, but they cannot really define what energy or mass really are. These are semantic questions, questions of the logic of language. In medicine it is similar: MDs cannot really define what health or sickness, what “normal” or “handicapped” mean, but they can help so many of us. Physics nobelist Stephen Weinberg told the NY Times in 1999:

“With or without religion, you would have good people doing good things and evil people doing evil things. But for good people to do evil things, that takes religion.”

I disagree: There are/were non-religious ideologies (fascism, communism) that made atheists do extremely bad things, too.

Even if the physicists knew all laws of nature, they still would not know why they are the way they are. (Except it could be proven that only this single possibility exists.)

The big bang theory was created by a Belgian catholic priest and friend of Albert Einstein, Georges Edouard Lemaître (* July 17th 1894 in Charleroi, Belgium; † 20. Juni 1966 in Leuven, Belgium), and pope Pope Pius XII saw the Big Bang theory as a type of scientific proof for the existence of God, and did not see it as contradicting the Catholic faith.

“At the November 22, 1951, opening meeting of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, Pope Pius XII declared that the Big Bang theory does not conflict with the Catholic concept of creation.” (source: Wikipedia). The Papal Academy of Sciences accepts members of all faiths and convictions, Stephen Hawking and Rudolf Mößbauer, a physics nobelist from Munich, both outspoken atheists were members of the Papal Academy.

BIOLOGY

Primates and birds have four communalities: a good sense of sight, communication by sounds, most of them have complex brains and many of them have a tendency towards monogamy

Most birds and primates live high above – in the air or in trees – and those that don´t walk on two feet. They all need good eyes and vocal communication, travelling long distances and communication requires complex brains. Complex brains could favor evolution towards monogamy: Mating behavior (finding a partner and keeping him/her is a challenge – for all creatures). It could also be the other way round: Two parents can foster their offspring better, so there is evolutionary pressure towards higher intelligence.

That is convergent evolution of four traits in parallel between primates and birds.

“In evolutionary biology, convergent evolution is the process whereby organisms not closely related (not monophyletic), independently evolve similar traits as a result of having to adapt to similar environments or ecological niches.” (source: Science Daily website)

Alas, many monkey species, especially those of the Caribbean islands have become extinct because of human activity. We will never know their behavior. Let us take care of nature, animals can teach us something about human nature, if we are open-minded.

My message (what nature tells me) is that the family values of all traditional religions are the natural way for Homo sapiens to live, the path to maximum happiness.

By the way: Homo is Latin for “human being” the Ancient Greek word “homo” means “sameness”, this Greek word is the origin of the term homosexual. The Greek word for “human being” is Anthropos, and the Latin word for same is “simile”.

Merry Christmas!

©Edmund Morel. All rights reserved.

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