Falsification symposium (Edexcel A-Level Religious Studies): Flashcards
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Practise the cards
14 cards from this deck
Falsification principle (Popper)
Falsification principle (Popper)
Theory must be testable & proven false to be scientific
Example of falsifiable statement
Example of falsifiable statement
'All swans are white' - falsified by black swan
Religion & falsification principle
Religion & falsification principle
Cannot be falsified, so not a scientific statement
Anthony Flew's argument on religious language
Anthony Flew's argument on religious language
Believers don't allow statements to be falsified, so not scientific
Parable of the gardener (Flew)
Parable of the gardener (Flew)
Shows religion doesn't allow statements to be proven wrong
Genuine assertions (Flew)
Genuine assertions (Flew)
Religious statements can't be these as not falsifiable
Bliks (Hare)
Bliks (Hare)
Strong beliefs that can't be falsified or verified
Analogy of the Dons (Hare)
Analogy of the Dons (Hare)
Student believes dons want to kill him; no evidence changes mind
Hick's criticism of Hare
Hick's criticism of Hare
No way to distinguish 'right' from 'wrong' bliks
Mitchell's view on religious statements
Mitchell's view on religious statements
Genuinely factual even if not falsifiable
Parable of the partisan (Mitchell)
Parable of the partisan (Mitchell)
Fighter trusts stranger despite evidence; like faith in God
Eschatological verification
Eschatological verification
Will prove believers right in the end
Weakness of Flew's analogy
Weakness of Flew's analogy
Subjects religion to scientific standards wrongly
Risk of fideism (Mitchell's weakness)
Risk of fideism (Mitchell's weakness)
Faith held independently of reason or evidence