Since the beginning nature has manipulated the life of the human being, but the human being from the beginning has dreamed of escaping nature’s control and turning the tables. Success has been slow but sure and still lies in the distant future.
I think that the first step towards controlling nature was taken only 5785 years ago, the date fixed by the rabbis for the creation of the world. The conflict between the opinion of religion and scientific fact regarding the number of years of the existence of the universe arises in the conflict between nature and the human being regarding who controls events.
Apportioning a time for creation was Man's first step in wresting control from nature. In this sense Christianity betrayed human beings by fixing the number of years to be according to Christ’s birth. If we are to succeed in the struggle we must start counting the years from creation and not from the birth of Jesus.
Fixing dates is a small step towards control. Inventing clothes, the wheel, the steam engine, eradicating diseases etc. are real steps toward control, but it all began from fixing dates and times.
The tasks ahead of us are easy to imagine, prevention of earthquakes, floods, fires, volcanoes and any other catastrophes that nature brings on us.
The prophets have set the ideal, the raising of the dead, everlasting life. This looks preposterous but it shows that the prophets foresaw our efforts and approved of them.
In the minds of religious human beings only God can bring about the prophet’s ideal. Religious human beings object to human efforts to solve this ultimate problem, declaring that it’s usurping God’s power.
The paradox, in my opinion is that religious practices were the first efforts to control nature; say a prayer and God will save one from catastrophe, make a sacrifice and God will cause the harvest to be abundant and so on.
Now religion is fighting to prevent human beings from inventing new ways to control nature because it will lose its followers. Religion has become a thing to protect and science threatens its demise
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