Changes

'''Methodological naturalism''' is a strategy <ref>Roger Pennock declared that "science is not based upon a dogmatic [[ontological]] or [[metaphysical]] [[naturalism]], but rather makes use of naturalism only in a heuristic, [[methodological]] manner." [http://www.msu.edu/~pennock5/research/papers/Pennock_SupNatExpl.html] </ref>

'''Methodological naturalism''' is a strategy <ref>Roger Pennock declared that "science is not based upon a dogmatic [[ontological]] or [[metaphysical]] [[naturalism]], but rather makes use of naturalism only in a heuristic, [[methodological]] manner." [http://www.msu.edu/~pennock5/research/papers/Pennock_SupNatExpl.html] </ref>

for studying the world, by which scientists choose not to consider [[supernatural]] causes - even as a remote possibility.   

for studying the world, by which scientists choose not to consider [[supernatural]] causes - even as a remote possibility.  There are two main reasons for pursuing this strategy. First, some scientists believe that there is no supernatural: they begin with the assumption that God does not exist (see [[atheism]]) and that there is no [[life after death]] (see also [[spiritual world]]). Second, some scientists believe it is possible that supernatural causes (such as [[God]] and [[angel]]s) may exist, but they assume that any supernatural action would be arbitrary or haphazard and therefore impossible to study systematically.

The first methodological naturalist is sometimes considered to have been [[Thales]]<ref>http://www.naturalism.org/history.htm</ref>, who explained earthquakes (which were traditionally attributed to the anger of the god [[Poseidon]]) with an early theory of [[Plate tectonics|plate tectonics]]

The first methodological naturalist is sometimes considered to have been [[Thales]]<ref>http://www.naturalism.org/history.htm</ref>, who explained earthquakes (which were traditionally attributed to the anger of the god [[Poseidon]]) with an early theory of [[Plate tectonics|plate tectonics]]