Virtue of Skepticism

"The difference between physics and metaphysics...is that the metaphysicist has no laboratory."
- Carl Sagan in The Demon-Haunted World. (p 37)

I really like this book so far - its an almost sacred testament to the philosophy of agnosticism.  It's a much kinder approach to expelling superstitious thought without being overly aggressive like a lot of snide atheist literature out there.  Instead of the usual spiel of logical fallacies, there's a focus on the positive aspects of having a practical perspective of the way things are versus how we hope or wish reality to be. 

All claimed truths should be subject to testing and evidence ; there should be no authority too sacred to be held to that standard.

I mean, there's not necessarily evidence against the idea of gods, demons, and whatnot existing - but because the ideas are untestable, its simply not worth worrying about.

Science is humble.  It's constantly correcting itself.  Scientists themselves are literally encouraged to prove the findings of previous scientists wrong, receiving national rewards for doing so.  There is no such constant pursuit of knowledge in pseudoscience and priests of modern organized religions.

In the past, religious thought was probably the best way people had to explain a scary world of high infant mortality and unpredictable natural disasters.  But now we have knowledge of sanitation and meteorology, both of which came from the research of scientists.   

Personally, I still like following the old pagan holidays of the wheel of the year - its helped me feel more connected to the world and the cultures of ancestors.  And I do like reading about the ancient myths of cultures as they help shine a light on how ancient people saw the world.    Being religious and praying...I even think that's still okay.  I just believe we should be mindful that our religious practices never veer into pseudoscience ( e.g. faith healing ) and that we should always be open to hearing out and understanding new ideas without immediately dismissing them due to faith. E.g. Evolution, the shape of our planet, the effectiveness of vaccines - these are all important theories/facts of science that are constantly under threat by those who are either unable or unwilling to understand new ideas and challenge them with their old beliefs. 

It's a dangerous thing to make one's beliefs of how reality is as a core of our identity as it can prevent us from learning ; its the equivalent of putting our head in the sand. Humanity in general should always be curious and seek to challenge old preconceptions.