In my previous post I argued that science and religion still can and do clash, especially concerning the implications of evolutionary theory and neuroscience. Specifically, an account of human origins that views Homo sapiens, like every other species, as the highly improbable end-product of a very long series of contingencies and accidents, cannot rest easily … Science and Religion: The Clash of Ideals

“Extinguished theologians lie about the cradle of every new science, like the serpents strangled by the infant Hercules.” That is how T.H. Huxley classically expressed the “warfare” theory of the relationship between science and religion. On that theory, science and religion are playing a zero-sum game. One advances at the expense of the other. Eternal … How Science and Religion Still Clash

I recently had an interesting discussion here at SO on Sam Harris’s views on “moderate” believers. One commentator took me to task for saying that Harris holds that “moderates” are “just as bad” as extremists. I think he may have had a point that this was unfair, but Harris clearly does make some fairly serious … A Christian Responds to Harris on the Evils of “Moderates”

Lately here at SO I have issued a number of calls for civility in discussions, eliciting some very uncivil responses from some quarters. Generally, though, the comments have been encouragingly positive and make me think that the rude and the crude, as always, make us overlook the good people. Yep, civility, restraint, and respect. All … Nasty as you want to be: Bash Erdogan

Don’t. Unless the attack also involves a larger issue that needs to be discussed, don’t bother. The reason that I do not generally respond to personal attacks is that anybody who would believe it would be someone for whom I have no respect and for whose opinion (about me or anything else) I could not possibly care … How to Respond to Personal Attacks

Do you need a Ph.D. in philosophy to be a legitimate and respectable participant in the theism/atheism debate or the science/religion debate? Of course not. But you do need to know what you are talking about. Those, however accomplished in other fields, who leap into the debate philosophically uninformed inevitably commit freshman mistakes that expose … Doing it Right the “Old” Way

John Loftus says that I have gotten old and so I favor an old, outmoded atheism and I should get with the new, hip, aggressive, in-your-face, take-no-prisoners atheism: http://debunkingchristianity.blogspot.com/2016/04/keith-parsons-is-just-old-that-explains.html Loftus’ Debunking Christianity site has an ad for foods that fight dementia. I guess that was meant for me! Actually, I am 63. Is Loftus that … In Defense of “Old” Atheism

Okay, here is what I have decided to do: I will convert my home in Houston-area suburbia into a temple to Zeus. In the Houston area, developers are unburdened by zoning rules, so there should be no problem along those lines. Still, I can anticipate that some of my stodgier neighbors and the nosy types … The “Religious Freedom” Scam

A splinter group of the Pakistani Taliban targeted a crowd of Christian children celebrating Easter: http://www.cnn.com/2016/03/27/asia/pakistan-lahore-deadly-blast/ In the comments section of my last post on religious violence we had a lively discussion about the causes of religious violence and to what extent they were genuinely religiously motivated. Such attacks as this one (which, alas, are not … Really Religious Violence