Comments on: Martin Rees Wins Templeton Prize

By: saulsky

saulsky — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 11:25:32 +0000

I’m putting my early vote in for next year’s Templeton Prize. AC Grayling, author of an unusual new book:

Two new Atheist Bibles have just been released. They deliver the messages of peace, equality in all things, justice, intellectualism, humanitarian behaviour in general; they are both an advanced humanist approach to the world. You will not find a strident word in either of them. One of them was written by AC Grayling and the other does not have an author. The Good Book and 21st Century Testament.

Next year’s Templeton winner, AC Grayling.
According to the Criteria of Merit on the Templeton website he certainly qualifies.

By: Chris Mooney

Chris Mooney — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 02:41:23 +0000

I have so much to say about this…and yet I wonder what is the point. Clearly, people’s views are beyond firm on this matter.

By: Curious Wavefunction

Curious Wavefunction — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 02:24:05 +0000

A few bad apples don’t spoil the barrel

By: Shecky R.

Shecky R. — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 01:42:48 +0000

I’m not sure why some hold such a paranoid view of the Templeton Prize (attributing all manner of sinister ulterior motives to it), except that they’ve bought into a simplistic characterization of it, rather than what it actually is.

re: non-overlapping magisteria: Religionists put their faith in non-empirical qualities; scientists put their faith, YES faith, in that which they perceive as evidence (though they can never prove the evidence, nor the truth of their perceptions). In the end, both operate out of belief, because there are NO ways of knowing, only ways of believing, of which science is one (and there are many kinds of science, as well). Some scientists inherently understand that nothing is certain, while others actually (and simplistically) think they ‘know’ things. But these arguments will go on and on and on…

By: Doug

Doug — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 19:42:28 +0000

You’re right curious, it can also go to people who say that religion and science are aprt of non-overlapping magisteria. And everyone knows the first two rules of that stance.

1.) Science cannot say anything about the claims of religion or the supernatural realm.

And of course, to be fair:

2.) Science cannot say anything about the claims of religion or the supernatural realm.

*rolls eyes*

Congrats to Rees who joins such distinguished templeton prize-winners as Mother Theresa (we all know how much she advocated for science and human dignity!) and the Reverend Billy Graham (best spokesman for science I think I’ve ever seen!)

By: Mr Sitta

Mr Sitta — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 18:26:41 +0000

‘The earths furture in our hands’ homo egotistical nonsense. The earth doesn’t care a jot whether we take ourselves and 90% of the rest of the macrofauna with us. Its happened before – in a few million years time it will be back to business as usual.

By: Curious Wavefunction

Curious Wavefunction — Wed, 06 Apr 2011 16:18:05 +0000

That should lay to rest Dawkins’s old assertion that the Templeton is given to scientists who constantly “say something nice about religion”.