Is Truth important for Metaphysical Naturalism?
Truth as such is not a particularly important concept in naturalistic philosophy. The reason for this is that “truth” suggests an unchanging absolute, whereas scientific knowledge is a dynamic concept. Like life, knowledge evolves and grows into superior forms. What was knowledge in the past is not knowledge today, and the knowledge of the future will surely be far superior to what we have now. Only naturalism itself and the unique validity of science as the path to knowledge are absolutes. There can be no criterion for truth outside of scientific knowledge, no mind of God to which we have access. This way of understanding things persists even when scientific naturalists employ religious-sounding language. For example, the physicist Stephen Hawking ended his famous book A Brief History of Time with the prediction that man might one day “know the mind of God.” This phrasing cause some friends of mine to form the mistaken impression that he had some attraction to theistic religion. In co
