Why, exactly, are scientists supposed to accord "respect" to a bunch of ancient fables that are not only ludicrous on their face, but motivate so much opposition to science? Jerry A. Coyne More Quotes by Jerry A. Coyne More Quotes From Jerry A. Coyne In the end theologians are jealous of science, for they are aware that it has greater authority than do their own ways of finding "truth": dogma, authority, and revelation. Science does find truth, faith does not. Jerry A. Coyne jealous doe way Some believers are fundamentalists about everything, but every believer is a fundamentalist about something. Jerry A. Coyne fundamentalist believer You can find religions without creationism, but you never find creationism without religion. Jerry A. Coyne creationism It takes a profound hypocrisy to try to reconcile for others things that you can't reconcile for yourself. Jerry A. Coyne hypocrisy trying profound Come on, readers, give me one example of a question that religion has answered to everyone's satisfaction - one example of a "truth" found in religion's quest for truth. Jerry A. Coyne quests example giving Harmonizing religion and science makes you seem like an open-minded and reasonable person, while asserting their incompatibility makes enemies and brands you as “militant.” The reason is clear: religion occupies a privileged place in our society. Attacking it is off-limits, although going after other supernatural or paranormal beliefs like ESP, homeopathy, or political worldviews is not. Accommodationism is not meant to defend science, which can stand on its own, but to show that in some way religion can still make credible claims about the world. Jerry A. Coyne esp political enemy Because of the hegemony of fundamentalist religion in the United States, this country has been among the most resistant to the fact of human evolution. Jerry A. Coyne fundamentalist-religion united-states country The biogeographic evidence for evolution is now so powerful that I have never seen a creationist book, article, or lecture that has tried to refute it. Creationists simply pretend that the evidence doesn't exist. Jerry A. Coyne powerful book religion If you can't think of an observation that could disprove a theory, that theory simply isn't scientific. Jerry A. Coyne observation theory thinking A well-understood and testable hypothesis like sexual selection surely trumps an untestable appeal to the inscrutable caprices of a creator. Jerry A. Coyne caprice hypothesis trump It is clear, then, that whatever genetic heritage we have, it is not a straitjacket that traps us forever in the "beastly" ways of our forebears. Evolution tells us where we came from, not where we can go. Jerry A. Coyne heritage forever way
