RE: [asa] The God hypothesis- a test

Yes, and in defense of the news on politicians, I think it is in search
of the "human factor." Don't just vote for a brain, but for a human,
and what kind of human? Maybe the issues aren't discussed much because
they have already been discussed- nothing much new to say. The human
aspect may be a swing item. In other words, if all candidates pretty
much think the same (Obama and Hillary), who has the better personality
to represent us all?

________________________________

From: asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu [mailto:asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu] On
Behalf Of David Opderbeck
Sent: Friday, May 16, 2008 8:04 AM
To: mrb22667@kansas.net
Cc: asa@calvin.edu
Subject: Re: [asa] The God hypothesis- a test

Merv said: We apparently want to know instead "how many others think
so?". In some cases or stations of life, if somebody wants to actually
learn something, their own peers should be the last resort. Instead
they/we flock to the polls.

I respond: As with the "scientific consensus" on various topics? I
don't know, Merv. We're social beings, not disembodied Platonic /
Cartesian minds. The postmodern critique of the neutral individual
observer who can objectively assess any truth claim, IMHO, holds lots of
validity. Whether its science, scripture, law or politics, no one
really stands above our outside the text.

On Fri, May 16, 2008 at 10:49 AM, <mrb22667@kansas.net> wrote:

Quoting philtill@aol.com:
> He showed overwhelmingly
> that these studies prove religious people to be happier than
irreligious
> people.

..
> Now the Bible says Christians will suffer in this world, "in this
world you
> will have tribulation, but I will give you peace." That sounds like a
> testable and proven claim.
>

> Phil
>

McGrath sites studies showing religious people (including Christians)
are
happier in general.

Bible says Christians will suffer.

I'm not disagreeing with either of those statements, but atheists (who
like many
fundamentalists who specialize in non-nuanced views of things) would
have fun
with that.

For Christians it raises interesting questions: so are the presumably
"happy"
Christians not genuine? Or perhaps --more likely, "happy" and
"suffering" are
vague enough terms as to not be mutually exclusive. And even more
likely yet,
there is probably no way a survey or study could meaningfully capture
statistically accurate data on how "happy" various groups are. If I had
to
answer a survey on whether I am happy or not, either answer would be a
lie
because my true state simply can't be represented in that binary
fashion,
unless we carefully define what "happy" is. And definitions run afoul
of simply
predetermining the results.

Another question: if it's "all religious people" that are in general
happier,
then that would put Christianity in the company of all religions whether
true or
false. So what would that show anyway?

Joy may be a slightly deeper (or as yet unpolluted) term than "happy".
But
whatever word is used I don't foresee statisticians ever being able to
compile
meaningful data on it that could be taken seriously as evidence.

Thank God for his Word. I personally grow exasperated with the
post-modernist
flavors our news programs increasingly have. These days it seems to
count as
"news" what most people are thinking or favoring in the polls. Never
mind, for
example, what a presidential candidate actually thinks on a real issue.
We are
instead informed how popular or unpopular he/she is. Or never mind
whether
something is true or accurate and what real evidence comes to bear on
it. We
apparently want to know instead "how many others think so?". In some
cases or
stations of life, if somebody wants to actually learn something, their
own peers
should be the last resort. Instead they/we flock to the polls.

--Merv

--Merv

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-- 
David W. Opderbeck
Associate Professor of Law
Seton Hall University Law School
Gibbons Institute of Law, Science & Technology 
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