TO BELIEVE OR NOT TO BELIEVE

                       By Sy Schechtman

                       

       Many years ago itwas fashionableto think of science and religion as two antitheticalentities;two opposingconcepts that were seemingly irreconcilable.  Science was much more current and trendy.  Religion was rather embarrassingly old fashioned, out of date.  It was only a matter of   time before it wouldfold its theological tent and become an interesting  anthropological artifact.That was about mid century of the last century.  Just post World War II.  There was, indeed, then an impressive, if not large,theologyon the scene called the “Death of God movement”.   Some eminent Protestant and Jewish theologians despairingly declared that the God of History was dead; and as Richard Rubenstein in his book, “After Auschwitz,” stated that his congregants would now have to get used to “going from the oblivion of birth to the oblivion of death”.All this was understandable amidst the great despair after this most devastating conflict.  Now,however,Godisstill aloft inthe heavenlyworld above in some meaningful wayagain to many people,  even though modified as to His/Her ultimate power, but stillas a powerful aspiration for humanity to chose the right path of morality and virtue ---andpossible salvation--- in this mortal life.

       The idea of total randomness in birth and death defies the human instincts of many people for some form of order and purpose in this life---and even beyond.  The seeming inchoate void that surrounds us in an uncaring universe shrivels up most of our cognitivemechanisms, all the vibrant and striving spirit that makes one the dynamic center of a caring universe.And makes one, literally, a power center for human achievement.And fights against that rigid wall of mortal death as the ultimate end of all sentient being.   It is true, however, that this return to prominence of the supernatural is not exactlya universal phenomenon in the western world, but is manifest most evidently in the United States.  But it is also true that the United States is by far the most successful and powerful nation in our civilization and in world history.Andhas citizens who are evidently very industrious, many of whom have no qualms about working two jobs and whose spouses happily also share the financial burdens of the enhanced consumerism our society encourages (indeedcelebrates!)by being both caring housewives, mothersandjobholders.   Some amount of this abundance of energy, no doubt,has to do with the lure of enhanced material acquisitionand the freedom to pursue it,but also for the possibilityofexistence in some form of supernatural salvation beyond earthly existence, validating our human travailon planet earth.Indeed many polls of differing age groups in this country—even including college students---show a believe in some form of Deity,notperhaps the exact scripturalimage of Jesus or Moses, but still a vague, tenuous, pious believe ofan afterlife of some sort, and not necessarily that anthropomorphic God concept that we may have created so far. And many, many people “vote with their feet” legally and illegally to partake of our “exceptional” culture, by both legal and illegal immigration.  Balancingboth materialand spiritual aspirations and their concomitant burdensonboth shoulders and being, not overwhelmed, but inspirited.

       The negative overhanging of all this, however, is the“holier than thou” fanaticism that surrounds some of the extreme religious movements and motives.  As we knowvery well now after our encounter   on 9/11/01with the Moslem jihad against us in New York and Washington. And the Israelis know, too after these die hard fanatics evidently willingly sacrifice their lives continually  for the “seventy virgins in paradise” bounty. And their earthly remnant families happily rerceiving a $25,000 bounty per martyr in the family! And certain areas in Britain and Spain and Indonesia know first hand, before and after 9/ll, the terrorismthese committed fanatics have perpetratedin many areas of the civilized world.People who evidently are willingly sacrificing themselves and guaranteed a safe passage to paradise.   Indeed, to some of us more dubiouswesterners fear another world wide confrontation is possible, a fourth world war,(figuring the Soviet United States cold war asWorld War number 3).Unless we finally see and hear from the rest of the Islamicworld, who so far have stoodmutely aside, as if, by their silence, seemingly acquiescentin Jihads’ demonically intolerantdogma of an overwhelming Allah who demands death to all infidels.

 

      Science tells us of mesons, pions, quarks and other almost incomprehensible facts on the infinitesimal side of physical life,and of great masses of invisible matter--black holes---andall galaxiesspeeding away from each other at seemingly accelerating speeds in the vast universe around us. So, while our intensely human concept of a Godlike image ---a father figure, if you will--is understandable as we search and wonder, almost as if at the edge of the vast ocean of space, still sort of getting our feet wet in understanding this universe we have to inhabit, and the truerole we have to play as our understanding of the cosmos continues to unfold..  Which, hopefully,will help lead both to physical and spiritual salvation,andthe ultimate true God and the divine connection with humanity  on planet earth.  Andmost urgently some better understanding of fractious humanity, the upright part holy and part beastly creature who rules this planet.

       In this vein , in 1997 Steven Jay Gould, famed American evolutionary biologist andpaleontologist,wrote an articlein Natural History magazine about the importance of the two separate but significant   domains of science and religion and how each was relevant in our search for understanding of the universe and ourselves.  As one of his confreresput it, respectfully, “scienceteaches us about the heavens and religion how to get there.”And scientists, respectfully, now have no qualms about studying religion cognitively to derive more insight from this persistent and perhaps pesky human foible.  And ultimately, hopefully, to find God and our true relation ship to him.Mere mortals that we arewho still yearn and seek the eternal.  And hopefully, as Isaiah stated, to at last have the “lion lay down with the lamb”and not the wrath of God in a Noah size atomic flood.