Religion as a belief system

Knowledge claims

Concepts beliefs hold as true.

Religion is a closed belief system - Horton

The truth claims of religions cannot be refuted as it doesn't operate by presenting evidence to be challenged

Azande witchcraft & self-sustaining techniques - Polyani

Used this to show how belief systems have 3 self-sustaining techniques:

• Circularity

• Subsidiary explanations

• Suppression of rival conceptions

Self-sustaining techniques: 1. Circularity - Polyani

If someone suffers a snake bite and thinks they're a victim of witchcraft, the prince's diviner feeds a magic potion to a chicken, it dies to prove it's witchcraft (because it's happened before).

Self-sustaining techniques: Subsidiary explanations - Polyani

e.g if the chicken didn't die, it means the potion wasn't good.

Self-sustaining techniques: Suppression of rival conceptions

e.g there's no evidence of natural causes of the snake bite because all previous evidence shows the use of witchcraft.

Science and Religion aren't incompatible - Gould

Religion's purpose is to explain subjective matters i.e morality because what is morally right/wrong is the result of belief, not scientific evidence. Only science can explain the natural world because of it's theories of evolution. Gould is a scientist.