We met to discuss the philosophy of religion. This was a wide ranging discussion, starting from the possibility of the argument from design for the Cosmos. If the universe did not somehow condense out of the big bang - the laws of nature and physical constants as well as matter and energy, Then design and the multiverse provide alternative theories - though note these are not falsifiable. We moved on through René van Woudenberg, Professor of Philosophy at the Free University Amsterdam, on the limits of science - see
Scientism and the limits of science | Faraday. Noting that science provides only a provisional theory - not yet disproven, we can still validate scientific “knowledge” trough the practical applications we know. It is not good to argue that religion provides answers where science does not - as yet! Smartphones do now acquire knowledge through acquaintance - as in facial recognition. And science can inform ethical decisions with explanations of behaviour through economics, psychology and the social sciences. But religion “Binds together”communities. It should at best provide a gold standard for virtue in the community, but religious institutions seem to be as corruptible by power as any others. And what is “God" at the core of religion?