🚀 go-pugleaf

>>>As to religious questions about value, purpose, meaning etc. I find it
remarkable
anyone could believe that psychology , evolutionary biology and neural
science
can have nothing to say about these subjects.<<<<

I readily accede that those fields have a great deal to say. In fact, I
would say that the "psychology" of yesterday becomes the "religion" of
tomorrow. The Bible contains a great deal of practical wisdom that can
perhaps be described as the "pop psychology" of middle eastern shepherds.

>>> Economists already have plenty to
say about value, and what they have to say is listened to far more often in
social decision making than what religions have to say . The idea that value
theory is
the 0 exclusive province of religion doesn't stand up to observation.<<<

I don't exclude other forms of knowledge from my religious learning, but
rather use reason and the current knowledge from (all) other fields to
augment and clarify my interpretations of religious belief. This concept was
articulated by Thomas Aquinas, William Law, Francis Schaeffer, C. S. Lewis
and many other Christian writers through the centuries. Representative of
denominations that use this approach include Roman Catholic, Quakers,
Episcopal, Presbyterian, Methodist, etc.

In contrast is the "sola scriptura" view of the fundamentalists which do
reject learning from other fields of endeavor, and also reject the "value"
or reason when it comes to understanding life. This represents a minority
position in Christianity. Representative examples of this view include some
Southern Baptists, Independent Bible Churches, and some others.

As an interpretive matter, what value to economists place upon family
relationships, patriotism, and the enjoyment of sunsets? How much should a
man sell his wife or daughter for? Not all of life can be quantified and
evaluated economically (as useful as that may be for many purposes).

>>>Many persons are convinced that their life (and the world around them) is
meaningful.<<<
>>>So what? E.g. maybe that's more or less inevitable given the way our
brains work.  That wouldn't make it true.<<<

I submit that the way our brains work is VERY pertinent to what is "true".
The fact that many persons do find meaning and purpose through religious
faith indicates that it does speak to a certain kind of "spiritual truth"...
which may be different from empirical truth.. but it is certainly just as
valid as "Truth"... even if of a different type.

>>>The burden of proof is on those making the claim that such and such is
"the
meaning of the universe". Which purported meaning are you defending, and
what is your evidence?<<<

I purport that the meaning of the universe (contrary to the clever opinions
of Douglas Adams) is that of a Transcendent Intelligence who has a personal
and ultimately benevolent interest in all of us.

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