Everyone is a Believer

This book is aimed at people who subscribe to science as a path to truth, whether or not they subscribe to a faith tradition. It is also aimed at people who are religious - and refuse to accept the false dichotomy that science and religion are mutually exclusive. We show that it is not only possible to be a scientist and a believer in God - but that you can't honestly separate the two. We show how science and religion both start with unprovable fundamental assumptions; and that science and religion depend heavily on inspiration and both require faith. We believe that true religion holds in common with good science the ability - the requirement - that it can be tested. We note that in both religious and scientific spheres most knowledge is acquired by indirect means. We separate science from technology, with which it is often conflated, and from bad statistics, from pseudoscience, and from how science is often reported in the popular press - and we give you the tools to do this yourself. We also point out the crucial contributions from philosophy and history that enforce honesty in modern scientific research. We examine the very human flaws of scientism, and discuss how blindered science and blindered religion (closed-mindedness and "cherry-picking") are equally self-crippling approaches to the truth. We do NOT try to "prove" scientifically that God exists or that a particular religion is true - science doesn't have the tools for this. Nevertheless, we review some startling hints, including things unknown in 1830 when the Book of Mormon was published, such as the Frankincense Trail, Uto-Aztecan linguistic links to central Arabia, and volcano-tectonic events in Central America, among others. We even identify a likely "smoking gun" for 3 Nephi 8. Recent discoveries in cosmology - information already available in a hymn written in 1835 - show how rare (but not unique) are the chances for life as we know it elsewhere in the universe, along with the implications. We are encouraged by growing evidence that science and religion are rapidly converging on a larger truth, a Truth which will stand the test of time and all the fashionable trends and evolving prejudices. This convergence is actually accelerating towards that one great whole that we are all seeking, something much greater than our current understanding in either realm. A young man with a 3rd grade education first opened the door for us in 1828.