The B&R Friday Massachusetts Edition

Henk Tennekes Resigns from Dutch Academy

I would prefer to be assigned to the Theology and Philosophy Section because of my growing interest in epistemology. The President, eager to avoid any written record of the nuisance I had created, called me one night by phone, saying: “Henk, philosophy belongs to the Arts and Humanities Division of the Academy. The division between them and the Science Division is laid down in our Charter. You cannot cross that Wall however much you want to. That Wall cannot be breached.

There is a fine line between philosophy and science, which is often blurred, or even crossed, in today’s scientific practice. Tennekes is yet another scientist concerned with establishment of an NRO (New Religious Order) based on selective science.

The term ‘sacred’ should not be construed as referring to theology, but to the central problem of all epistemology: how can we know anything, how can we evaluate, who are we to make judgments? In Kant’s own words: “Reason suffers the fate of being troubled by questions which it cannot reject because they were brought up by reason itself, but which it cannot answer either because they are utterly beyond its capacities.” Yes, only fools rush in where angels fear to tread.

Tennekes is one of the true agnostics, open to the possibilities, while recognizing his own limitations to know the truth. Science, observation and cognition, cannot explain anything fundamental. It is a utility to explore our realm and, hopefully, to improve our quality of life.

Stephen Hawking writes: when we discover a theory that unifies gravity and quantum mechanics, we will (I shudder as I write this) “know the Mind of God.”

My guess is that establishment of the NRO is driven by the unmitigated gall of unconstrained egos, people who would be mortal gods. And why not? Is there any greater achievement in our shared reality, than control or influence of other sentient beings?

His resignation letter is an interesting read, providing some insight into the workings of ivory tower culture, both academic and in the world at large.

The Machine:

Which do you prefer?

Ilion:

Only if one is completely without knowledge. However, in the context cited above, it is a distinction between science and faith. He does not confuse matters of science with matters of philosophy or faith. There is no value in investigating fundamental truths, which are inherently unknowable and unprovable. That is where faith becomes relevant. Even then, you have the word of God, but you do not know the mind of God. From either perspective, we are strictly limited in our comprehension of anything fundamental.

I have never been concerned about religious indoctrination, since the people of faith I have spent time with, never imposed their will upon others. They were far more tolerant of differences than the atheists I have come across. My concern is about people spreading propaganda, denying their own faith in something, thereby diminishing the value of science. Not the least of which is their “educational” material distributed in schools, and society at large.

Ilion:

I have already stated that everyone has a faith in something, if only in their very existence and perceptions of reality. Some people take it a step further, and acknowledge a God, which is described as an entity, cohesive power, or the like. My purpose for posting Tennekes’s resignation letter, was not to criticize one faith or another. It was to distinguish between science and faith. Science being a product of human senses and cognition, which is not in competition with faith or any fundamental truth.