On Matters of Faith: 'Is She or Isn't She?'

The Intersection
By Sheril Kirshenbaum
Jul 26, 2007 6:44 PMNov 5, 2019 10:17 AM
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Since posting on religion last week, readers and bloggers alike have hypothesized, proclaimed, and spun words to guess where I fall on matters of faith. Some even took the time to thoughtfully write and I enjoyed reading a few extremely creative suggestions regarding where I may have hinted. As stated previously, the principle reason I do not disclose my personal view is because faith has no place in science. I do, however, concur with one of my favorite characters in fiction, Dr. Ellie Arroway in Carl Sagan's Contact.

The question Do you believe in God? has a peculiar structure. If I say no, do I mean I'm convinced God doesn't exist, or do I mean I'm not convinced he does exist? Those are two very different questions.

Exactly. So I'll leave readers with that to ponder as I'm ready to move on to more important matters at this junction like figuring out what to do about the mess we've made poking around this planet of ours, emitting CO2, splitting atoms, disproportionately distributing resources, and following the misadventures of Lindsey Lohan.

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