I finally caved and allowed Claude Cowork access to my personal notes I’ve been keeping since 2018 to see the patterns and evolution of my thoughts over time.
Claude has consistently called me out on the inconsistencies between my religious beliefs and my identity as a behavioral scientist.
I find it a bit annoying. The fact that you can remember that I went 30 layers deep with questions about materialism or Skinner’s radical behaviorism does not mean that I have to follow those philosophical commitments to their logical conclusion in every area of my life.
Stephen Jay Gould’s Nonoverlapping Magisteria (NOMA) best articulates how I feel about the apparent cognitive dissonance Claude keeps calling me out on: Science is the domain of the ages of rocks and how the heavens go, while Faith is the domain of the Rock of Ages and how to go to Heaven.
At the end of the day, these theories are just tools assisting me in doing my job of making sense of the world as a social science researcher. My faith doesn’t get in the way of me being a good researcher — if anything, it actually encourages me to be the best scientist I could possibly be.
Deuteronomy 29:29a says “The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever…”
In my mind, there is no conflict at all, Claude. Stop trying to create one!
Originally posted on Substack Notes, June 2026.