Of Saints & Scientists: The Soul's Dark Nights

Thank you, Renee, for your stimulating post.

My rejoinder is not intended to debate Einstein's alleged assertion "Science without religion is lame. Religion without science is blind" but rather to put it in a larger context for further amplification and clarification. I believe this is needed to at least offer an alternative view to those who would use this quote to support all organized religion, unhealthfully delusional or healthful.

Before I go on, however, a caveat: the source of my overview of Einstein's view of religion, Wikipedia, is sometimes questionable and controversial. Having said that, I found their overview of his religious views harmonious with other sources I've read and chose to quote it here because of its relatively brief but complete coverage.

"The question of scientific determinism gave rise to questions about Einstein's position on theological determinism, and even whether or not he believed in God. In 1929, Einstein told Rabbi Herbert S. Goldstein "I believe in Spinoza's God, who reveals Himself in the lawful harmony of the world, not in a God Who concerns Himself with the fate and the doings of mankind." (Brian 1996, p. 127) In 1950, in a letter to M. Berkowitz, Einstein stated that "My position concerning God is that of an agnostic. I am convinced that a vivid consciousness of the primary importance of moral principles for the betterment and ennoblement of life does not need the idea of a law-giver, especially a law-giver who works on the basis of reward and punishment."³⁷

"Einstein defined his religious views in a letter he wrote in response to those who claimed that he worshipped a Judeo-Christian god: "It was, of course, a lie what you read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being systematically repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. If something is in me which can be called religious then it is the unbounded admiration for the structure of the world so far as our science can reveal it."³⁸[39]

"By his own definition, Einstein was a deeply religious person (Pais 1982, p. 319).⁴⁰ He published a paper in Nature in 1940 entitled Science and Religion which gave his views on the subject.⁴¹ In this he says that: "a person who is religiously enlightened appears to me to be one who has, to the best of his ability, liberated himself from the fetters of his selfish desires and is preoccupied with thoughts, feelings and aspirations to which he clings because of their super-personal value ... regardless of whether any attempt is made to unite this content with a Divine Being, for otherwise it would not be possible to count Buddha and Spinoza as religious personalities. Accordingly a religious person is devout in the sense that he has no doubt of the significance of those super-personal objects and goals which neither require nor are capable of rational foundation ... In this sense religion is the age-old endeavour of mankind to become clearly and completely conscious of these values and goals, and constantly to strengthen their effects." He argues that conflicts between science and religion "have all sprung from fatal errors." However "even though the realms of religion and science in themselves are clearly marked off from each other" there are "strong reciprocal relationships and dependencies" ... "science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind ... a legitimate conflict between science and religion cannot exist." However he makes it clear that he does not believe in a personal God, and suggests that "neither the rule of human nor Divine Will exists as an independent cause of natural events. To be sure, the doctrine of a personal God interfering with natural events could never be refuted ... by science, for [it] can always take refuge in those domains in which scientific knowledge has not yet been able to set foot." (Einstein 1940, pp. 605–607)

"Einstein championed the work of psychologist Paul Diel,⁴² which posited a biological and psychological, rather than theological or sociological, basis for morality.⁴³

"Einstein was an Honorary Associate of the Rationalist Press Association beginning in 1934, and was an admirer of Ethical Culture (Ericson 2006). He served on the advisory board of the First Humanist Society of New York (See Stringer-Hye 1999 and Wilson 1995)."

I don't think my point needs further discussion on my part. What are your feelings and thoughts?

Warm wishes,

Bob