Naturalism (philosophy)

Naturalism is any of several philosophical stances, typically those descended from materialism and pragmatism, that does not distinguish between the supernatural and the natural. It does not claim that phenomena or hypotheses commonly labeled supernatural necessarily do not exist or are wrong, but insists that they are not inherently different from any other hypotheses or phenomena and can be studied by the same methods.

Methodological naturalism vs. ontological naturalism

There is a distinct difference between a methodological assumption of naturalism and an ontological approach. Methodology relates to the accepted procedures. Ontology is a matter of whether something exists. Many philosophers of science define scientific investigation in a manner which limits it to studying and explaining the natural world. Naturalism of this sort says nothing about the existence or nonexistence of the supernatural.

Related Topics:
Methodological - Ontological - Supernatural

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Ontological naturalism is sometimes called "metaphysical naturalism". Ontological naturalism is the view that the supernatural does not exist, whereas methodological naturalism is the more limited view that the supernatural can't be used in scientific methods. Atheism is an example of ontological naturalism. It is possible to be a methodological naturalist and an ontological supernaturalist at the same time. While a natural scientist would follow methodological naturalism, they may believe in God (ontological supernaturalism) or they may be an atheist (ontological naturalism).

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:"Science does not produce evidence against God, Science and religion ask different questions" --Richard Dawkins, biologist and professor of public understanding of science at Oxford University. http://www.time.com/time/archive/preview/0,10987,1090909,00.html

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Because methodological naturalism limits science without appeal to the supernatural, creationists, such as the Institute for Creation Research and the Creation Science website, claim that "methodological naturalism cannot be justified as a normative principle for all types of science--without doing violence to science as a truth-seeking enterprise"

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http://www.discovery.org/scripts/viewDB/index.php?command=view&id=94. Others argue that excluding the supernatural from scientific methods is a form of atheism.

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:"methodological naturalism. It could just as well be called atheism, and is really a religion to be accepted on faith." --Institute for Creation Researchhttp://www.icr.org/index.php?module=articles&action=view&ID=565

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But supporters defend methodological naturalism, saying it is "effective, powerful"http://www.freeinquiry.com/naturalism.html "promoting successful investigation"http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/nontheism/naturalism/index.html and "an essential aspect of ... the study of the natural universe"http://chem.tufts.edu/AnswersInScience/MethodologicalNaturalism.htm They also view the history of science as showing "a progression from supernaturalism to naturalism"http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/mark_vuletic/ntse.html Supporters consider the creationist alternative as "positively ineffective and counter-productive, ... in attempts to understand the natural world"http://www.freeinquiry.com/naturalism.html.

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