My apologies if it seemed I was suggesting you were trying to do anything to the contrary.

My satement about it being un-African to departmentalize was as much a self-criticism of the direction I took in the thread as it was a general statement. I have to check my own thought processes.

You did bring balance because the science is often not discussed in favour of dealing with the essoteric meanings.

I was somewhat projecting my surroundings into the conversation. Often the people I am around actually do the opposite. They deal with the science and not the symbolism... Literalism dominates the Southern U.S. even in African-centered circles. It's the Bible Belt 'fundy' training... One of the reasons I keep coming back to this site for reasonings. I don't want to get out of balance. So I unfairly was trying to minimize the scientific aspects in the reasoning. Again, my apologies.