There are few facts in the world. Most everything is subject to relativity, perception and speculation. Something I have really noticed here at State is the line drawn between two distinct groups of people: there are those who believe in science, and there are those who believe in God, or some other higher being. Sure, there are exceptions to this observation. Not every Christian is the extreme, nor every atheist. But generalizations are necessary for the juxtaposition.
The idea of someone denying the longevity of the Earth’s existence is absolutely ludicrous to me. However, the idea of someone denying the concept of a higher power baffles me, as well.
There is middle ground, somewhere. I like to think I have found it; of course, I am fully versed in neither science nor religion. But that’s OK because neither is anyone else.
No one knows everything about either of these categories. If you did, you wouldn’t be reading this paper; you’d probably be ruling the world.
The people who commit themselves so much to the Bible that they disregard any other evidence of anything really confuse me. They focus so much on the words of the Bible that they forget God did not write it; man did.
After being passed down orally for generations, the Bible was finally written down by man. 
It confuses me that people who are so strong in their faith can deny the possibility of God speaking to people in ways other than the Bible. Do they think that just because the Bible has been written down, people can’t talk to God anymore?
Two of the central messages of the Bible are to love one another and not to judge or condemn; yet, many religious extremists do just that. That kid by the flagpole every day yells out threats of damnation to those who aren’t Christian. Is that any way to treat our brothers and sisters in Christ? I don’t think so. That doesn’t even present the Bible in a positive light.
It is not our job to place our religion above others because it is what we believe. I like to call that a superiority complex. What makes you think your divine belief in one truth is better than someone else’s? What if God created different religions for a reason, to test us on our compassion and understanding? A lot of us would be failing terribly, guilty of condemning others and thinking our own religion or other beliefs above others’.
This doesn’t regard moral or ethical dilemmas; those are horses of different colors. But rather, what makes Christianity better or more right than Judaism and Hinduism? Their beliefs are just as true as our own.
If you put so much faith into the written word, you are creating a false idol, and you are forgetting what really is the important aspect of faith. I’m not saying the Bible is useless and stupid; I’m saying oftentimes people use it as a crutch and think it is the only aspect of Christianity that really matters.
I hate to break it to you, but, odds are, no one lived for hundreds of years. The Bible leaves room for interpretation; the stories have morals. The concept of years was not the same then. There’s no reason why we can’t embrace one of God’s (or whatever higher being you believe in) gifts: science.
There are people on the other end of this spectrum; people who deny the existence of any god because they see science as the only truth. This is simply narrow-minded, but this extreme is far rarer than the religious extreme. Most atheists aren’t adamant that they are right; most accept the uncertainty. 
Yes, I believe science is accurate. I believe evolution occurred, just like dinosaurs existed and the earth is older than 10,000 years old (erm, much older). But why does this all rule out the possibility of a higher power?
I’m not saying you should believe in pearly gates and roads of gold, but why does the existence of science rule out the existence of God? Why, if you believe in theories and laws that have been changed over and over again, can you not accept the possibility of a higher power?
There are so many things we, as humans, have left to discover; there is so much of the universe that is still a mystery, yet you can accept that and still deny the possibility of a supernatural being? Why accept so many bizarre and fascinating concepts and deny just one?
You are not superior to those who have faith; you aren’t wise enough to understand the treasures that lie in the fields of both science and religion.
There’s a middle ground between these stances,filled with butterflies and rainbows, where one can understand that we are all ignorant.
We will always know less than what we don’t know.
Why not embrace the mysteries of life, rather than denying them? Some are so set in their ways, whatever they may be, they refuse to see positive aspects of other people’s observations, thoughts or perceptions.
I challenge you to explore the other end of the spectrum and see what you can find.
Wendy Morell is  the opinion editor of The Reflector. She can be contacted at [email protected].