Syncretism–the combining of incompatibles

October 18, 2006 by Dr. Mc.

I just learned a new word: syncretism. Like eclecticism, syncretism refers to the combining of two or more different philosophies or ideas, such as an eclectic room of furniture. (By the way, the room is only eclectic if the mix actually works together. Otherwise, it’s just an unappealing mess.) But unlike eclecticism, ideas combined syncretically are innately at odds, and the combining is forced–even self-falsifying. According to Wikipedia, syncretism particularly applies to the combining of exclusive religious views, which is the case when a person claims to believe the Bible literally and also to accept Darwinian evolution. The Bible says that God is proactive in our lives (actively pursuing a relationship with us and involved in our world). Darwinism says that all events are either directed by physical laws or are the result of random chance. The latter can only be true if no god ever has, ever would, or ever could intervene in the affairs of the universe. To attempt to combine these two philosophies requires that one philosophy or the other be compromised–syncretically.

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