Vlad,
I think this shifts things away from favouring philosophical materialism to merely operating.
No it doesn’t because “philosophical materialism” isn’t your straw man version of it.
Why 'operate' like you suggest? In other words you seem like you want your cake and eat it here. You don't want admit a belief although you betray one by 'operating' in a certain way...…...and you are keen to be seen as a methodological materialist......strange.
No, because the “why” question is incoherent unless you can demonstrate first a “something” to decide that there is a purposive why. That’s you dong actual circular reasoning – “there is a god because the universe turned out the way god intended it to”.
I am a methodological materialist but not a philosophical one.
Probably not true. You’re likely to be a philosophical materialist (actual meaning), but not a philosophical materialist (Vlad’s straw man meaning). So are most people.
Your big mistake/lie here by the way is trying to make “philosophical materialism” mean something like “physicalism”. That’s why you post misunderstandings/misrepresentations like “How does science support the contention that all there is is the material world?” (and then run away when you're found out).
But then again you knew that already didn’t you what with it having been explained so many times.