Marcelo Gessler defends the value of scientific knowledge for non-scientists:
[S]cience is more than a collection of explanations about the natural world: science is a means to freedom, offering people a way to control their destiny, to choose wisely in what to believe. As Galileo insisted at the dawn of modern science, "Think for yourself! Don't take what people tell you at face value. To not bow blindly to dogma!" And mind you, Galileo was a religious man. Being pro-science does not necessarily makes you anti-religion. Paraphrasing Galileo, "if God gave us a mind to understand the world, He surely would be most pleased if we did so."
The Dish 