The edge of knowledge

Science does not pretend to answer questions that cannot be tested. It explains what can be observed, measured, and inferred, and it stops where evidence ends. There is no scientific explanation for why the universe exists, or whether the word why has any meaning when applied to existence itself. Time may not be an eternal backdrop but a property that began with the universe. If time began then questions about what came before lose coherence. Asking why something exists may assume a cause where none is required, for the universe may simply be, without intention, purpose, or origin in the way human experience defines those terms. This uncertainty is not a failure of science but a boundary that marks the edge of knowledge. Progress depends on respecting that edge rather than filling it with invention. Religion does the opposite. It inserts certainty precisely where knowledge is impossible and calls this wisdom. Where honesty would say we do not know, religion provides answers that cannot be tested and must never be doubted. This does not resolve the question of purpose. It conceals it behind comforting stories that demand faith instead of thought.