In today’s lecture for our Literature Selectives. The guest speaker ( I forgot his name!) brought up this issue from the very beginning. In the poem that we were studying today, the poet- Edgar Alan Poe- accuses science of taking away the magic from the surroundings. His question was….whether we agree or not with the poet , that because science always tries to come up with explanations for everything….whether it destroys the ‘magic’ things we used to deem mystical. For example, the full moon which used to fill us with wonder when we were children, is now merely another rotating object in the universe. The Tamarine tree which is considered sacred by many communities, is now just a tree producing a particular chemical compound.
Can everything in the world be explained by science?
Also, from the very first day….when we were discussing ‘The Doctor’s Word’, and how the patient actually miraculously recovered from his illness when the doctor thought that he wasn’t going to survive. When miracles like this occur….how can we explain it? Psychological intervention? Or a force, a power from above?
In my favourite TV series ‘Lost’, Science Vs Faith is a huge debate as well. Dr. Jack Shepard, the main character, is a Man of Science. He believes that everything that occurs has a scientific explanation to it. John Locke, a fellow Oceanic 815 Survivor, on the other hand, is a Man of Faith. He believes that fate brought him to the island, that he was meant to be on the island, and that the island had mystical properties.
One interesting scene was an exchange between the 2, in one of the earlier episodes of season 1. Jack confessed that he had seen his Father (who died recently) on the island. When Locke asked Jack what scientific explanation he could come up with for that…..he replied ‘ Hallucination, dehydration, confusion’
Then Locke added….’How about if I tell you that the island has mystical properties? Would you believe it?’
The debate goes on.
For me personally, I think that science cannot exist without faith and faith cannot exist without science. In both the Quran and Bible, there are verses that refer to science.
For example….the Surah al-Baqarah in the Quran (yes, I still can remember!) that tells accurately of how the fetus is formed in the womb. Amazing. There is science in faith.
On the other hand, how can you explain how a patient who is initially only given 3 months to live- goes on to live for 30 more years? We need faith as well!
is this an apparition? a ghost? Or is Jack hallucinating?
Locke and Jack- man of faith vs man of science
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