by Darrin A Yarbrough

Created on: January 23, 2011

Both science and religion are ideologies that attempt to develop a comprehensive explanation of everything. They both have criteria for accomplishing this objective, religion looks to biblical stories and science relies upon the scientific method. Curiously, religion is a reductionist theory reducing the amount of questions by providing answers, whereas, science (a product of reductionism) does not reduce the amount of questions. Seemingly, every time science answers a question, inevitably more questions arise.

Another fascinating conundrum is the creation myth (Genesis) is compatible with evolution, yet evolution denies the creation theory. Going even further back in time, the Enuma Elish and the epic of Atrahasis, both Sumerian cuneiform texts, elaborate upon the creation of human kind and the great flood. Archaeologists Charles Leonard Woolley and his wife Katherine working in the southernmost region of Sumeria actually dug down to the flood (There are pictures of this accomplishment in “Return to Babylon,” by Brian Fagan pg 305) in Ur of the Chaldees (the birthplace of Abraham according to Genesis 11:28, 31).

In the Sumerian account, Enki creates Adapa from his own genetic material and a primitive Earth creature. In this story, the Annunaki conduct genetic manipulation failing several times before finally creating the Adapa (Earthling). Enlil (Enki’s brother) is furious when he finds out about Enki’s activities. It is Enlil, who tells Adam and Eve not to partake of the tree of knowledge. Enki tells Eve Enlil is lying and that the two will not die but benefit from the trees fruit. Enlil eventually vows to wipe humankind off the face of the Earth. Only upon discovering Hasisadra (the biblical Noah) survives the great flood with the help of Enki, does Enlil relent and vow to allow humankind to go forth on the Earth and prosper.

While it is certain some aspects of biblical tales are associated with true events, it remains unlikely we will ever be able to confirm the story of Enki and Ninkharsag genetically developing Adam and Eve. Nevertheless, these religious stories are at the very zenith of the written word. Religion is a carefully developed ideology that provides explanations for the unexplainable. Similarly, science attempts to accomplish the very same objective using a systematic methodology that is predicated upon an ideology.

In this sense, religion is the first science, which is a systematic development of ideas that attempt to explain everything. In Pascal Boyer’s “Religion Explained the Evolutionary Origins of Religious Thought,” This system is examined at length with compelling explanations for how religious ideas are developed within human minds. Once again, Science is also a systematic development of ideas designed to formalize approaches that will provide explanations for everything. Both these systems rely upon an ideology, both require acts of faith in order to obtain necessary and sufficient definitions for the results they obtain, and both curiously tend to focus on similar grand problems that trouble human minds.

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