Religion ‘a form of child abuse’ - [Sunday Herald]

Religion ‘a form of child abuse’ - [Sunday Herald (Scotland)]:

"CONTROVERSIAL scientist Richard Dawkins will assert tomorrow evening that religion is a “virus” that amounts to child abuse.

The new two-part series, to be shown on Channel 4, will compare Moses to Hitler and claim that God is racist. It will also argue that religion is a “backward belief system” responsible for terrorism.

The controversial films, which were produced by IWC creative director Alan Clements and written by Dawkins, are a polemic against faith and a stout defence of science.

Entitled The Root Of All Evil, the series shows Dawkins visiting theological hot-spots in Lourdes, Colorado Springs, the al-Axa mosque and an English faith school. In each case the presenter, who is an atheist, attempts to show that religion is an “elephant in the room” trying to subvert reason...."

With all the recent news regarding "Intelligent Design" and whether it is proper to teach it in science curricula, it is ironic that such a respected scientist as Dawkins would step so far out of his area of expertise and attack those who have experienced God and have chosen to make it a part of their lives.

What is even more ironic is that Dawkins, a self-described atheist, would use his atheistic world-view in this fashion -- because in asserting that there is no God, he is asserting a negative -- and this is not subject to the rigorous methods of science. Dawkins is entitled to his opinions, but they are in no way to be considered "science".

Science and religion are two different ways of approaching reality, and their sources of authority do not overlap. It is just as wrong to teach intelligent design as if it were science as it is for a scientist to claim that those who have experienced God and teach their children about God are tantamount to child abusers.

The sad thing is that Dawkins does not need to attack religion in order to issue a defence of science and its methods. Science, as a self-correcting method of acquiring and organizing knowledge, and making predictions that can be tested, is easily defended.