Faith does provide a purpose, for me it is simply to submit to the will of the creator. It clearly identifies what that will is and what our duties and responsibilities are towards all of mankind. Further it limits us in no way from learning rather it encourages it. Lookup where the concept of Quarantine and Hospitals came from. So if you are going to argue faith limits purpose or limits our ability to learn then you are ignoring documented history. The lunar callendar, the concept of a moon circling the earth, and reflecting light from the sun. All these and more have come from a text 1400 years old that has remain unchanged in that time. Not one letter has changed. You are welcome to question its authorship but the knowledge and frame work it provides have encourage many of the modern scientific principles. Perhaps you have heard of the city of Babylon and what knowledge came from there, in art, scinece, music, phillosophy etc etc.
Some more links and insights
http://www.hinduism.co.za/vedic.htm
http://www.cyberistan.org/islamic/sciencehistory.htm
http://www.khwarzimic.org/frontline/history.html
Taoism (theres nice book called The Tao of Poh (winnie the poh)), Budhisim, Confusism all of these great Eastern Philosphies/Faiths have contributed much to current modern Science by giving there followers a framework to do so.
I have much much more shall we keep going..
I would like to state for the record that this is totaly in the nature of a discussion and i am not trying to push some hiden agenda to convert you all. One point i am trying to make is that Faith often is only seen in the west as western faiths and there treatment of science in the past and present. There are other faiths out there and other philosphies, Chinese, Midle Eastern, Indian (Vedic and other), etc etc. And these faiths/philosphies have contributed to what we call modern science by encouraging there followers.
g__day,
Yes its is a bit cute, but certainly there are concepts there that were not known at the time.
Rember it is after all man trying to extract meaning from the divine
. And man is not infalable.
Look my point boils down to faith is seprate form Science, but it does provide man with a purpose that is condusive to learning. It also provides information if you are keen enoug to look.
Regards