If Science Had a Catechism
If Science Had a Catechism
How laughable would it be if secularists taught their children scientific facts in the same way religious people teach their kids? Suppose there was a "Science Catechism," wouldn't it display a level on uncertainty and fragility that would be asking for derision rather than resting on experimentation, observation and research?
Credit to reformed.org for the Christian catechism from which I derived the following for amusement:
Who made you?
Cosmic star stuff.
What else did the cosmos create?
Everything.
Why did the cosmos make you and all things?
The cosmos has no purpose or intention–it's not focused on humans.
How can you bring attention to the cosmos?
Continuing to explore and learn more about it and tell others.
Why ought you to study the universe?
To learn and know more, to better able to adapt to change.
Is there more than one universe?
We don't know. There is a hypothesis, though, called the multiverse.
What is the cosmos?
The cosmos is everything we can see and experience through our natural senses, that which is material.
Where is the cosmos?
The cosmos is everywhere, all things material.
Can you see the cosmos?
Yes. I can see and study it.
Where do you learn how to study and discover the universe?
Through observation, experimentation and repetition, using the scientific method to understand, theorize and explore the vast entity of our universe.
Who authored the scientific method?
We don't know. Many ancient cultures adopted procedures similar to the scientific method. Aristotle was famous for his use of empirical science. Muslim scholar, al-Haytham, outlined a method that involved observation and experimentation. Roger Bacon proposed inductive reasoning as part of the scientific method in the early Renaissance. Francis Bacon and René Descartes popularized the scientific method during the Enlightenment. Isaac Newton further developed and honed the process we know and use today.
Who were our first parents?
Probably some earlier hominids living in Africa.
Do you have a soul?
The existence of a soul is entirely unfounded. It is best to accept that we don't.
How do you know that you don't have a soul?
We don't know. It is neither provable nor demonstrably false.
What is science?
Science is the best way man has come up with to learn and derive truth.
What becomes of a person at death?
They cease to exist. There is no evidence of an immaterial existence beyond death.
Strictly speaking, I think it strange to teach kids a catechism of question and answer: it's as if this method leaves no room for thinking, just brainwashed regurgitation. I'd much rather teach my kids to think, even if that means they might disagree with me.