I think that the big problem is that people get so hung up on the dressing rather than the substance.
Reality exists and is eternal though the form of reality does change. Even if every "thing" ceased to exist, then
that would be reality, so reality is eternal.
(An argument could be made that reality is a concept and so if there are no conceptualising minds existing, then the concept of reality would not exist, but since we have no choice but to talk in concepts, I think we can still say that without conceptualising minds, reality still is reality.)
To me the word "God" is nothing more than the way some people conceptualise reality. Kids tend to draw a smily face on the sun, and almost all cartoons are animals given human attributes. The reason is that we can relate to that. So we humanise things to make it easier for us to grasp. Humanising reality into a God is actualy a typical human thing to do.
Just as different cultures have different art, music, and modes of dress, they serve the same purpose. You cannot really say western music is better than say, indian music in a factual way. it is just different music. We cannot say primitive tribal music is better or worse than modern electronic music..it is just different.
Most of the worlds religions originate from a time when humans we not terribly scientific at least by modern standards. So reality is dressed up in the costume the people of that time and place can understand and relate to.
Today, we live increasingly in a scientific time, and so for many people, ancient myths don't really speak to us in a deep way. We prefer scientific descriptions of reality. We feel "smarter" following them.
Both methods hold a weakness. In Science, in order to truly draw a final conclusion, we need to know all that there is to know. At that point science would stop. However since we don't know everything, science goes on. This means we really cannot come to a final conclusion about the nature of reality. To be an Atheist in a sense, is a decision made in faith, in the absense of all data.
Much of the concern is about conciosness (and truth be told, ego) What we really want to know is when this body dies, does our conciosness and ego die?
The answer is.....we don't know. Atheists suspect it does, the faithful think it does not but its condition is dependant on how we live our lives.
My take is a bit different, but before I get into that, I will bring forth my understanding of a scientific idea.
I have heard that science says that energy does not die or dissapear, but only changes form. This is actualy the case with death physicaly. If I eat a chicken, the energy that was it's body does not dissapear. It changes form. In a very real way, some of the chicken "reincarnates" into me! some of the chicken I will later poop out. If I happen to be out on the woods, then some of the chicken will reincarnate as plant fertilizer and food for flies. Later it might reincarnate as a flower, or energy for a spider who eats a fly.....and so on.
Is conciosness energy? It exists so I would think it is energy. Therefore it doesn't die, but changes form. I dunno....kinda cool stuff to think about.
Now as a Buddhist, my feelings on this stuff is a bit different than the usual Christian versus Science debate.
I"ve posted the ocean metaphor before..but here goes again.
Imagine reality as an infinitely vast ocean. When the causes and conditions are right, waves appear on the surface of the ocean. When the causes and conditions are not there, the waves will no longer manifest. A wave is of course not really a "thing" but rather just a form water manifests as under certain conditions. When a wave is no longer manifest, nothing has actualy been lost. only the form has changed.
We are waves on the ocean of reality. We are made of the water of reality, which is eternal. (see my first paragraph on reality being eternal)
The purpose of Buddhism is to experiencialy understand the nature of reality so that we do not suffer by being "out of sync" so to speak, with reality.
The purpose of science is to understand the true nature of reality...because we are compelled to find out. We cannot help ourselves but to do science.
The purpose of most religions is to understand the will of God (reality in personality form) so we can live and die well.
I really think it is just humans compelled to understand reality in the terms that seem to help us do that. Sadly we then kill each other if we dissagree on the terms.
Anyway, those are my feelings, and maybe why I feel something in common with atheists and the faithfull alike.
I know.....I"m ****ing wierd.
Oh and Norman....a cat...RULES!!!!!!!!!!
