What's in a Worldview?

~6-7 min read

The worldview of the Western world is strongly influenced by two great religions: capitalism and science. This makes the West heavily focused on materialism.

Materialism and Capitalism

In the case of capitalism, it is difficult to imagine removing this materialism focus since it is an integral part of that belief system. The overall goal is to generate a profit by selling goods and services. The criterion of success is to make the largest profit achievable.

There is no social responsibility inherent in the system. It is accepted because it makes some people’s lives very comfortable. To the rest of the people, it is a source of aspiration to eventually acquire enough wealth to have the things they want. A capitalist society is made up of those who have “made it” and those who have not “made it” yet. It sounds like those who have not “made it” yet are living a life of faith in the capitalist system. 

Materialism and Science

The materialist focus in science is a conscious decision on the part of scientists. At the heart of science is the scientific method, defined in the Oxford dictionary as "a method or procedure that has characterized natural science since the 17th century, consisting in systematic observation, measurement, and experiment, and the formulation, testing, and modification of hypotheses." To me, the key word here is “measurement.” Science deals with things that can be measured. Without this measurement, hypotheses cannot be tested, and their accuracy verified. Theories that cannot be verified or, more accurately, falsified, are not considered scientific. This is a fundamental dogma of science.

The West has a profound faith in science and technology. It has made people’s lives easier by replacing muscle power with mechanical power, thereby increasing productively significantly and yielding a better profit. Science has also accomplished some amazing feats. Science and technology have put a man on the moon and brought him home safely. And did so on television sets in everyone’s living room.

While there are many things science cannot explain yet, the sense is that eventually science will explain these things using the scientific method and hard work. This thought that science will eventually explain everything is also a statement of faith.

So, anyone who says there is no faith in the Western world must not understand either capitalism or science and people’s perception of both.

Wealth and Happiness

With the rise of wealth in the West and the personal ease provided by technology, people should be happier than they have ever been. The fact is that there is a lot of unhappiness. A 2010 study by the US Centre for Disease Control looking at sixteen states found that the leading cause of violent deaths was suicide.

According to the Harvard Medical School, the use of antidepressants by American teens and adults has increased by 400% between1988–1994 and 2005–2008 The West seems to be in the grip of an overall malaise (or dis-ease).

Is the Cosmos Winding Down? 

The harsh reality is that we are influenced by our worldview. The worldview provided by science can be rather bleak. In thermodynamics we talk about the heat death of the universe, a time in the distant future when the universe is at a uniform and very cold temperature. If the universe is going to die, what cause do we have to rejoice? If the universe is made up of atoms and molecules and forces and energy, what purpose do we hominids serve?

When we study science, there is no such thing as asking about purpose. Science has nothing to say about the reason for the universe, only how it works. Someone who studies science will not automatically have an opinion on the purpose of creation. Despite this, it seems very common for scientists to have a sense that there is no point to it at all, it just is. 

In fact, the starting point for the universe we see around us was a hot dense plasma that expanded and cooled into its present form. From a hot dense plasma, we got nuclei, atoms, gas clouds, stars, galaxies, supernovae, heavy elements, planetary systems and eventually living beings, including us. The Cosmos is not winding down. It is becoming increasingly complex and wonderful. While science speaks of the heat death of the universe, our own observation of the Cosmos shows a universe doing anything but winding down. It seems to be going somewhere, but heat death does not seem to be an obvious destination. My question is which of these worldviews (heat death or increasing complexity) is the better worldview and is there any evidence to support that choice?