Religion and evolution

[Humanist_Activist]

54. As a null hypothesis, atheism is the only legitimate position unless...

evidence is presented to prove the existence of deities. That's my biggest issue, he's arguing that science has common ground with religion, he's presenting us with an impossible situation. Religion is based on faith, which by its nature is not based on empirical or verifiable evidence, whereas science needs both of those to function at all. It should be enough to say that religion and science occupy two different aspects of human thought, and hence shouldn't interfere with each other, even in cases where religions make real world claims that can be verified or refuted, then science should interfere.

Am I saying its impossible to be religious and a scientist? Of course not, people partition their thoughts all the time, if he's a good scientist, then while he's performing experiments or conducting observations to test a theory, any gods or religions shouldn't enter his mind or interfere with that work, keep those thoughts in your private life and church.

ON EDIT: To clarify, he is a good scientist when it comes to evolutionary biology, but not in studying the evolutionary origins of behavior in animals, because he lets his religion interfere with his empiricism. I wouldn't trust him to talk about, for example, altruism displayed in the great apes versus humans, he's showing an unscientific bias that cannot be reconciled with his profession.