Creationists and other religious fundamentalists claim a monopoly on 'spirituality', for example this article on a Jehovah's Witness (aka, liars for Jesus) website which claims you can't be spiritual without believing in their god.
Unbelievably, they cite the Bible in support of that claim, not any real-world observations, experiments or surveys.
However, many scientists, not the least of which are Richard Dawkins, Albert Einstein and Carl Sagan, cite an understanding of science as a source of deep spirituality, a sense of awe and wonder, of oneness with the world and a genuine perspective and appreciation of being alive.
Indeed, my book, What Makes You So Special: From the Big Bang to You is intended to give the reader this sense of awe and wonder from a basic understanding of the scientific processes that led from the Big Bang to the reader's existence here and now, and concludes with the following:
Your journey through space and time has been an adventure of disasters, adaptation, survival and recovery, many, many times you will have been on the brink of extinction - the fate of 99% of all known ancient species - yet your ancestors survived and because they were good at surviving you are here and now. You will live for a mere flash in the time-scale of the Universe but in the vast darkness of the cosmos there can surely be few flashes as bright as your bright spark of consciousness.And perhaps Carl Sagan said it better and more succinctly with:
Be proud. Be very proud. But at the same time be humbled by the enormity of the events which produced you and the fragility of it all.
Stars died and because they died, you live. You are made by stars out of stardust and in a very real sense; because you are made of the same stuff the Universe is made of and are a part of it, there is something even more wonderful about you. Through you, though not just through you, and maybe not just here on this small planet, the Universe has gained self–awareness and can begin to understand itself.
Through you it can stand on the surface of this beautiful little jewel in the cosmos, can look up in awe at itself and think "Wow!"
You are special. You are unique and you were nearly 14 billion years in the making.
That is your story. Enjoy it while it lasts.
When we recognize our place in an immensity of light years and in the passage of ages, when we grasp the intricacy, beauty and subtlety of life, then that soaring feeling, that sense of elation and humility combined, is surely spiritual.And of course, as Albert Einstein famously said in a letter to J. Dispentier, when refuting false claims that he was a theist or even a Christian:
Carl Sagan, (2011). The demon-haunted world: Science as a candle in the dark. Ballantine Books. (Original work published 1996)
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.And now we have experimental evidence from psychologists that science can be a source of spiritual experience, with all the psychological benefits, as some people claim religion to be. The paper, reporting on three linked studies, by researchers at the Department of Psychology at the University of Warwick, UK, is published open access in Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, and is explained in a Warwick University press release:Albert Einstein. Letter to J. Dispentiere, March 24, 1954 Source: Wikipedia - Albert Einstein's Religious Views.
Awe-inspiring science can have a positive effect on mental wellbeing, new research findsThe abstract and conclusions in the teams published paper give more details:
Research led by psychologists at the University of Warwick has revealed a profound connection between the spirituality of science and positive wellbeing, much like the benefits traditionally associated with religion.
The research explored how people use science as a source of spirituality and its connection with their sense of wellbeing.
Dr Jesse Preston, Associate Professor in the Department of Psychology at the University of Warwick and lead author of the study said: “Spirituality is most often associated with religion, but science can be a powerful source of awe and wonder for many. It can provide a meaningful source of understanding oneself and the universe, and it can foster a sense of connection to others and our place in the world.”
Science parallels positive wellbeing observed in religious people
In three studies, Dr. Preston and her research team surveyed 1197 people (602 men, 589 women, and 6 others) on their attitudes towards religious beliefs, spirituality and their interest and belief in science.
The first study established the concept of “Spirituality of Science”, and asked people about feelings of transcendence, connection and meaning when engaging with science. Participants’ responses were compared with other attitudes towards science, including an interest in science and belief in science, feelings of awe, meaning in their lives and religious beliefs.
Spirituality of Science was related to belief in science, but unlike other attitudes including interest in science and belief in science, Spirituality of Science was also associated with feelings of awe and general spirituality. This showed that scientific sources of spirituality may be psychologically similar to religious spirituality.
In the second study, the researchers focused specifically on a group of 526 atheists and agnostics, and found that Spirituality of Science was correlated with measures of psychological wellbeing, such as happiness, and meaning in life.
Meaningful experiences could improve educational outcomes in sciencePrevious research has found that religious belief generally predicts positive mental wellbeing, but it has also implied that non-religious people may be subject to poorer psychological wellbeing. This research has found that in fact, sources of spirituality outside of religion, like science, can have similar positive effects.
Dr Jesse L. Preston, lead author
Associate professor
Department of Psychology
University of Warwick, Coventry, UK.
Although science and religion differ in many ways, they share a capacity for spirituality through feelings of awe, coherence, and meaning in life. This capacity for spirituality has some important benefits and implications, as this research has found. People with greater feelings of Spirituality of Science were more positively engaged with science material, which predicted better science performance. And in a group of atheists and agnostics, Spirituality of Science predicted measures of well-being and meaning in life, paralleling the positive effects of religion that is frequently observed in religious people.
This work contributes not only to our current understanding of science attitudes but also to our general understanding of spirituality.
Dr Jesse L. PrestonThe third study investigated links between Spirituality of Science and engagement and learning in science, and found that spiritual experiences in science predicted stronger engagement and recall of scientific information.
Dr Preston says the findings of the research could improve the teaching and learning of science in schools and predict better educational outcomes.
AbstractSo, despite the smugly self-satisfied claims by theists that you need religion to be spiritually fulfilled and to have purpose of life (although they can never say what purpose their lives have), this research shows that one can be rational and allow the evidence to lead our opinions and still get a sense of awe and spiritual fulfillment from learning and understanding science.
Scientists often refer to spiritual experiences with science. This research addresses this unique component of science attitudes—spirituality of science: feelings of meaning, awe, and connection derived through scientific ideas. Three studies (N = 1,197) examined individual differences in Spirituality of Science (SoS) and its benefits for well-being, meaning, and learning. Spirituality of Science was related to belief in science, but unlike other science attitudes, spirituality of science was also associated with trait awe and general spirituality (Study 1). spirituality of science also predicted meaning in life and emotional well-being in a group of atheists and agnostics, showing that scientific sources of spirituality can provide similar psychological benefits as religious spirituality (Study 2). Finally, Spirituality of Science predicted stronger engagement and recall of scientific information (Study 3). Results provide support for an experience of spirituality related to science, with benefits for meaning, well-being, and learning.
Conclusions
Although science and religion differ in many ways, they share a capacity for spirituality through feelings of awe, coherence, and meaning in life. This capacity for spirituality has some important benefits and implications, as we find here. People with greater feelings of Spirituality of Science were more positively engaged with science material, which predicted better science performance. And in a group of atheists and agnostics, Spirituality of Science predicted measures of well-being and meaning in life, paralleling the positive effects of religion that is frequently observed in religious people. This work contributes not only to our current understanding of science attitudes but also to our general understanding of spirituality.
The difference being that the rationalist approach is based on observable reality and not on evidence-free superstitions and received dogmas, so, when the evidence changes, you can change your mind without any sense of loss or bereavement, unlike religions where the emphasis is on explaining away contradictory evidence and needing to continually reinforce beliefs with regular group therapy sessions and collective assertions of the truth of their beliefs.
To paraphrase Dan Barker, if scientists had to gather together every Sunday to assert their belief in gravity or atomic theory, one might reasonably think they had some doubts about the truth of their beliefs.
It's astounding that so many religious people, especially the fundamentalists, refuse to learn what science can teach them and instead work hard to find excuses for dismissing it. Yet they believe it was all created by their god! If they genuinely believed that, wouldn't they want to understand more about this supposed creation? Instead, they seem afraid of what they'll discover, as though they suspect they may believe a lie which can be shown to be wrong. A life of nagging doubts surely can't be truthfully described as spiritually fulfilling!
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