Reply 1:
In this article, the author is trying to show science as a gateway to the sacred. It means that science connects to the sacred. The author argues that science has been challenging to him as he undertakes a course related to science, mathematical physics. He says that he took a lot of time in this course, and he felt tired after several days of effort to complete the lectures. The issue of science being sacred comes in when science helps to study the human being (Frank, pg. 2) We understand a person’s spiritual being through science, which determines sacredness. People argue that one can be spiritual but not religious in that the issue of religion is what better explains the origin of sacred because it shows a closer relationship of an individual to God. Some people argue that they are spiritual, but they are not religious, which deviates them from being perceived as sacred.
I think being sacred means being goldy or closer to God without being religious.
No religion should be taken as if it is the most sacred. A person can be sacred without having to be religious. Religion only defines the beliefs and the different ways of worship that different groups of people follow, distinguishing them from other religious groups. However, being sacred is very different from religion because an individual can be religious but is not godly or closer to God in terms of their actions which should be sacred. However, an individual can be sacred, remaining close to God through doing what is right. While they are not religious, he is not associated with any religious group. It is, therefore, possible that sacred may exist outside religion.
Source:
Frank, A. “Can Science Be Sacred?” Meditation, Buddhism, Retreats and Buddhist Teachings in Santa Fe, New Mexico, 2012, www.upaya.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/Can-Science-Be-Sacred.pdf.
Reply 2:
According to Adam Frank, author of “Can Science be Sacred,” Mircea Eliade’s definition of the sacred was an experience that may happen at any point during one’s day. In his paper, he stated that one’s attention would change and they would begin to think about the science that is around us this was known as hierophony. He used the example of learning about vibrating membranes in class and then experiencing a “shift through the lens of science” after getting a cup of coffee because of what he had previously studied. He believed that science was responsible for making that experience sacred, and that it would not have been possible without it.
After reading this article I believe that hierophony and sacred work hand in hand. When this happens, one may see the sacred and the world’s relationship. According to the author, it would not be feasible without science, although many religious people think it happens spiritually. In my perspective, it works both ways, and the sacred can exist independently of religion. This is because people interpret things in different ways, while I am religious and feel that many things may be sacred due to ones beliefs and relationship to God, I am also a man of science that understands how some see the reasoning behind things that occur in our daily lives and don’t necessarily relate it to religion. I think that the world is changing and a lot of people are becoming more open to spirituality and what comes with it, and although I personally don’t have those beliefs, I do think that its possible for someone else to have them and truly believe that sacred can occur outside of religion.
