24 November, 2006

Beyond Belief

There is a wonderful series of discussions available to watch about reason and religion up at Beyond Belief 2006. The conversations took place earlier this month at the Salk Institute in La Jolla, California in a forum entitled "Beyond Belief: Science, Religion, Reason, and Survival". The topics include:

After two centuries, could this be twilight for the Enlightenment project and the beginning of a new age of unreason? Will faith and dogma trump rational inquiry, or will it be possible to reconcile religious and scientific worldviews? Can evolutionary biology, anthropology and neuroscience help us to better understand how we construct beliefs, and experience empathy, fear and awe? Can science help us create a new rational narrative as poetic and powerful as those that have traditionally sustained societies? Can we treat religion as a natural phenomenon? Can we be good without God? And if not God, then what?

No comments: