"Yes, secularism does propose a physical and purposeless universe, and many (but not all) of us accept the notion that our sense of self is a neuronal illusion. But although the universe is purposeless, our lives aren’t. This conflation of a purposeless universe (i.e., one not created for a specific reason) with purposeless human lives is a trick that the faithful use to make atheism seem nihilistic and dark. But we make our own purposes, and they’re real. Right now my purpose is to write this piece, and then I’ll work on a book, and later I’ll have dinner with a friend. Soon I’ll go to Poland to visit more friends. Maybe later I’ll read a nice book and learn something. Those are real purposes, not illusory purposes to which Douthat wants us to devote our only life."
Quote Details
Added by wikiquote-import-bot
Unverified quote
0 likes
Academics from the United StatesEducators from the United StatesScience authors from the United StatesBiologists from the United StatesGeneticists
Original Language: English
Available Languages (1)
Sources
"Douthat on the rampage against secularism, gets it all wrong" December 23, 2013
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Jerry_Coyne
Revision History
No revisions have been submitted for this quote.
Categories
Jerry Coyne
182 quotes on TrueQuotesView all quotes by Jerry Coyne →
Related Quotes
"Religion has nothing to tell scientists that can improve their trade. Indeed, the progress of science has required sh…"
"In the end, why isn’t it better to find out how the world really works instead of making up stories about it, or acce…"
"Medicine can cure; faith cannot."
"The first argument, that religion is a social necessity and will always be with us, is dubious. It can be demolished …"
"What might be considered a real contribution of science to religious belief is the empirical demonstration that some …"
"I have argued that religion is to science as superstition is to reason; indeed, that is the very reason they are inco…"
"I’m not a Marxist, but Marx got at least one thing right: for many, religion weakens the incentive to fix both person…"
"Religion has no warrant and no method for decreeing what is and what is not beyond science."
"Above all, religion, faith healing, and alternative medicine all show the diagnostic feature of faith: an agenda not …"
"It is time to stop seeing faith as a virtue, and to stop using the term “person of faith” as a compliment."