Science is the New Occult
I want to expand briefly on an idea from my last essay—the idea that science is the new occult. At one time, those we might now call occultists were those who were trying to explore the mysteries of nature. They wanted to discover that which was “hidden” (i.e. occult). For many of them, things like non-corporeal intelligences and super-terrestrial planes were not “supernatural”, but accepted explanations for natural processes. Those folks really wanted to know how things worked, and they did the best they could with the knowledge and technology they had on hand.
What used to be “occultists” are now called “scientists”. The essential shift happened with the humanistic discovery that gods and spirits are not necessary to explain the workings of the world. Similarly, the examination of humans moved away from souls and towards biology, sociology, and psychology. And as the scientific method improved, it was discovered that the universe was a vastly more complex and amazing place than any occultist could have predicted. And as science started peering into the very large, the very distant, and the very small, humans were truly exploring hidden domains utterly beyond the reach of normal modes of perception.
There is another element to this. Starting especially with the advent of books, all the various domains of technology and science became highly specialized, requiring a unique language for explaining things in shorthand for other experts. This has progressed to the point where not only are the concepts and skills in science incredibly complex, but even the scientific jargon itself lies far outside of everyday language. A casual glance at the language of neurology, genetics, biochemistry, or astrophysics leaves one baffled. It’s amazing that as much information as is openly available to the general public, so little of it is really understandable to the average person.
As I have mentioned, the desire to know—or more specifically, to experience a feeling of knowing—is an inherent human trait. As such, curiosity and an attraction for the novel is ever-present in us. But since science has become so, well, occult, many people look to simpler systems to help them try to grasp the workings of the world. And those systems, more often than not, are religious.
The mainstream religions are the most common, obviously. For those who are inspired to reject the mainstream—for whatever reason—there are plenty of alternatives, such as the numerous Neo-Pagan, New Age, and magick-based systems. But virtually all of them have at least one thing in common—they provide a relatively simplistic and static model of the world that is based on things other than physical, observable, or testable evidence (Buddhism and Taoism offer some interesting exceptions). This is a perfectly understandable thing to do; if all the various domains of science are too numerous and complex for anyone to grasp (which is undeniably true), then religion can act as an acceptable, even if non-veridical substitute. Easing existential anxiety does not strictly require knowing much, it only asks for the feeling of knowing, and nearly all religions are custom made for this.
For some folks, religion isn’t used to understand the natural world, but is rather intended as a method for understanding the self. I often wonder what people really mean by this. What kind of knowledge is it that people are seeking? Their traits, talents, values, beliefs, boundaries, strengths, weaknesses, or what? What’s interesting to me is that three hours of psychological testing can say more about individual differences than any religious tool. There are literally hundreds of such instruments, many of which have been shown to have an excellent degree of reliability and validity, that can test nearly every aspect of human activity and interest, and provide a vast array of accurate, detailed, and personalized data about a given individual. For anyone interested, affordable testing can likely be had at a local graduate psychology program.
But I would argue that such knowledge isn’t what spiritual seekers are really looking for. What people really want is to feel special. Understand, this is perfectly normal and natural; everyone wants to feel special, to believe that they have a purpose in life, that they matter. Science tells us that, in the grand scheme of things, we don’t actually matter; the universe does not care about us; we, as individuals, are not needed; there is no Plan for us. What religion can do is provide a way around this, either by inventing transcendent personalities that do care about us or by creating systems that allow one to rise in power and authority. Also, for those who believe that there exist hidden dimensions to reality that can be perceived via spiritual practices, resulting phenomena can produce both a feeling of knowing and a sense of specialness by dint of their profound “discoveries.”
This, then, is the challenge—to find effective ways to reduce existential anxiety, to gain a feeling of knowing about the world, and to have a sense of meaning and fulfillment without sacrificing curiosity, regard, and wonder about the veridical workings of the self and the universe. I strongly maintain that this is indeed possible. And more than possible—outright beneficial. This is what religious naturalism and Sacred River is all about, the development of such a system of spiritual thought and practice. Science might be the new occult, but together it is possible to pool enough knowledge resources to make our shared journey a meaningful, fulfilling, and joyous one.
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