I've met a lot of people who don't seem to understand this important concept from epistemology, which is the philosophy of knowledge.

To demonstrate the concept of "non-falsifiability" I will now produce a short fictitious dialog between a made up Scientist, S, and a Religionist, R.

Topic: how old is the earth? Is it 6,000 years old or more than 4 billion years old?

S: The earth must be more than 4 billion years old, because I found these rocks. These rocks have isotopes in them and they definitely look like they've been around for more than 4 billion years. If the rocks are really old, then the earth must be really old too.

R: No. The is only 6,000 years old, because the holy Bible has a list of human descendants from Adam, the first man, to Jesus, who we know was born in 4 BC. If you count it all up, you can find the exact year that the earth was created, as described in Genesis 1, and it's about 6,000 years.

S: But these rocks.... They're really old...

R: God must have created those rocks with the isotopes already set up in the correct ratios to look like they are 4 billion years old, when He separated the firmament from the heavens 6,000 years ago.

S: But how could God create rocks with different isotopes? When minerals solidify from molten lava, lead isotopes naturally form in this ratio. (I don't actually know how initial lead composition was established for this)

R: God is omnipotent! Any miracle is within his grasp.

S: But why would God want to make the earth appear to be much older than it really is? What purpose does it serve?

R: I do not pretend to understand the ways of God.

True it just keeps invalidating the garbage piled up around someones faith. They could accept it was false and move on with no hindrance to their belief in god but because they can't burn someone as a witch because we know why milk goes bad they reject it all.

I would hear his explanation first. The story is full of holes.

The bible should be considered a book of gossip, like an old hollywood rag and accorded such due respect

God's existence, by definition, cannot be proven or disproven. That's the nature of faith and free will (in the theological sense). And that's why there are scientists who believe in God. This American idea that religion and science are opposites makes no sense.

it depends which god we ended up proving the existence of, if it's prometheus i'd join the movement to free him from his eternal punishment for gifting humanity the fire of innovation.

Not true. Scientists say I can't lick needles I find in the park or stab myself with rusty nails or eat monkey brains scientists keep taking my rights away 😭😭😭

Idk. My dad has always liked going to church. My family is catholic, I don't really engage in any of it anymore. But my dad has always been a proponent of science. His opinion is that religion and science can inform each other.

He believes in evolution. He knows vaccines work. And he certainly is not a trumper. He also likes to tell the story of how the big bang was initially hypothesized by a catholic priest.

People take this to mean evangelizing, but still don't see anything wrong with passing laws about their religion's morality.

and don't insist that every part of the holy texts are literally 100% undiluted word of god, which generally makes religion way easier to integrate with a scientific worldview.

no, god did not create eve from adam's rib, that's just evocative storytelling initially written by people in the middle east 2000 years ago and repeatedly altered and translated since then.

I had a similar experience when I started my first job as a software developer and the owner / lead engineer, probably the most intelligent person I’ve ever met, told me about how is religious.

I just couldn’t compute, particularly as I’d be radicalised against religion online.

We have had many discussions and it become clear that he had thought more about his faith than I ever could and who was I to judge his position if he isn’t hurting people then he can believe what he likes.

As you said, its a philosophical belief and not that he believes in a being per se, but that there is something deeper to the universe.

There are phylosophy of science, sociology and psycology. They aren't completely disconnected.

I remember someone asking what are good documentaries on evolution that doesn't say "this is why religion is BS". I cannot recall a time having watched a documentary on evolution that blatantly says that. Religion on the other hand...

Anyone with two thinking brain cells would already put two and two together and see the contradiction. When I first learned about evolution in school, I thought to myself that it contradicts what the Bible said, and my teacher and the book never even said anything explicitly. However, I somehow rationalised that god must have created beings first and evolution took course after. It is in my later formative years, through education and more reading, which made up my mind that religion overall is nonsense and the denial of reality.

Yep, bible has a lot of sections about having the faith of a child. Believing without needing proof.

It doesn't really disprove things either, but can be used to eliminate specific claims as not supported by evidence.

Fuckin' magnets. How do they work?