Science and ReligionProfessor Lawrence M. Principe Ph.D.
Johns Hopkins University
12 Lectures
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Two crucial forces, science and religion, helped shape Western civilization and continue to interact in our daily lives. What is the nature of their relationship? When do they conflict, and how do they influence each other in pursuit of knowledge and truth? Contrary to prevailing notions that they must perpetually clash, science and theology have actually been partners in an age-old adventure. This course covers both the historical sweep and philosophical flashpoints of this epic interaction.
Professor Lawrence M. Principe unfolds a surprisingly cooperative dynamic in which theologians and natural scientists share methods, ideas, aspirations, and a tradition of disputational dialogue.
St. Augustine warned that it is dangerous for religious people to ignore science: \"Many non-Christians are well versed in natural knowledge, so they can detect vast ignorance in such a Christian and laugh it to scorn.\" He added that interpretation of biblical passages must be informed by the current state of demonstrable knowledge.
On the other hand, Sir Isaac Newton freely discusses the attributes and activities of God inPrincipia Mathematica,which sets forth his theory of gravity and laws of motion.
These examples represent the traditional relationship of science and religion that is too often obscured by the divisive, hot-headed rhetoric and the gross oversimplifications we often see in today\'s headlines. Long before the shouting and the sloganeering, scientists and theologians pursued a unity of truth, and most theologians have agreed with the advice of Galileo\'s colleague, Cardinal Baronio, that the Bible \"tells us how to go to heaven, not how the heavens go.\"
Once we understand this, we have a new perspective on many present-day controversies. The current antievolution furor, for example, centers on the fixation that Genesis 1 should be taken literally, an issue that had been resolved by theologians long ago. Professor Principe deems it \"astonishingly trivial\" and guides you through far more interesting arguments of advanced theology about powers and limits of human knowledge—the difficulty of identifying causation, and the means by which God acts in the world. He shows how science gives theologians powerful tools for enriching, not contradicting, their understanding of ultimate truths.
The Search for Answers
You will explore questions that are important to all religions, but the focus is on interactions in the \"Latin West\" where modern science largely took root. This includes formerly Latin-speaking Western European and Mediterranean regions, and the offspring of European culture, North America. The course spotlights the predominant religion of these lands: Christianity.
Our search is punctuated by Professor Principe\'s wit and passion. In a review of one of his previous courses,AudioFilemagazine acclaimed him as \"clearly a master of his subject. Equally clear is his passion for teaching it.\" With fluency in three ancient languages, Professor Principe is a student\'s living link to the primary sources he has read and studied in their original languages. Through his reading of such texts as the original minutes of the Inquisition, for example, he is able to grant you the rare opportunity to read between the lines of what was written. In addition, the professor holds faculty appointments in three diverse fields—history of science, philosophy, and chemistry—which allow him to synthesize materials across disciplines and convey the big picture with stunning clarity. His lectures are colored with the passion of someone who has devoted a lifetime to exploring the interaction of science and religion.
Moving from the early centuries of the Christian era and the Middle Ages to our own day, he exposes the truth about the Galileo Affair and provides a revealing picture of the circuslike Scopes Trial.
You will share St. Augustine\'s profound ideas about reason and faith. Follow St. Thomas Aquinas\'s exploration of miracles—the need to identify them is one example of how scientific and theological inquiry overlap. Meet a 19th-century writer whose anti-Catholic diatribe spread myths that persist today.
Learn about the courage (and stubbornness) of Galileo, the unexpected rationality of his accusers, the inspiration of Darwin\'s natural selection, and the religious implications of Lemaître\'s Big Bang.
As Professor Principe claims, the solution to this modern conflict is easy—it is the study of history. Such study will equip you to join that partnership with a vocabulary of ideas and a clear, historical perspective on the science/religion relationship. These tools will help you participate more effectively in a dialogue that is as immediate and thought-provoking today as it was hundreds of years ago.
12 Lectures :1. Science and Religion
In this introductory lecture, we define the basic terms of the course, its content, methodology, and focus. This course deals with the interactions of Christianity with science in the Western world over a long time span. We look closely at the words science and religion to prepare for consistent discussions in subsequent lectures. We look at models for the interactions of science and religion, critique them, and provide pointers for engaging with the balance of the course.
2. The Warfare Thesis
We examine one form of historical relationship between science and religion—the warfare or conflict thesis. Advanced in the late 19th century by John William Draper and Andrew Dickson White, it has continued strong in popular thought to the present day. We create a catalogue of methodological errors and fallacies for all readers of history to guard against.
3. Faith and Reason—Scripture and Nature
In this lecture, we confront some basic concepts in the science-religion question: What are legitimate means of acquiring sure knowledge, and where can we can obtain such knowledge? We examine approaches to means and sources in the Christian tradition, in St. Augustine\'s 5th-century writings, and more recently in the important 1998 papal encyclical Fides et ratio.4. God and Nature—Miracles and Demons
This lecture approaches the nature of causation and our ability to identify it accurately. A crucial point of contact between science and religion is the question of the extent of God\'s involvement: naturalistic explanations versus divine intervention. Views of the state of the spiritual world influence and form one\'s views toward the natural world and science.
5. Church, Copernicus, and Galileo
We look at the \"Galileo affair.\" Far from being a simple case of science versus religion, however, it is extremely complex and brings up a host of important philosophical, scientific, and other issues that must be understood in context.
6. Galileo’s Trial
This lecture examines the latter phase of the Galileo affair, presents explanations of the events, and looks at how these events have been used, abused, and re-examined to the present day. Of particular importance are the arguments made on both sides about the relative intellectual roles of science and faith and the levels of certainty we can have about each.7. God the Watchmaker
The 17th-century idea of a mechanical universe functioning like a great clockwork implied creative actions of a divine mechanist but simultaneously distanced him from creation. Natural philosophers had to deal with deep-seated fears over the new growth of irreligion, and atheism provided a new context. This lecture surveys some of the means used to address this idea by Robert Boyle, Isaac Newton, and others.
8. Natural Theology and Arguments from Design
Some authors have used the natural world to argue for the existence of the deity. This lecture examines the emergence and content of natural theology. Recently, intelligent design has appeared as a further step in the track of natural theology. This lecture looks at historical features of both approaches and their limitations.
9. Geology, Cosmology, and Biblical Chronology
How old is the Earth and the universe? This lecture looks at attempts to date the Earth, the hints that it is vastly older than the Bible implies, and the responses from religious figures to this dating. Historical \"battle lines\" between rival interpretations of both the Earth\'s and the universe\'s ages and origins do not map out on simple religion/science lines but, instead, reveal a more complex picture rooted largely in social and professional differences.10. Darwin and Responses to Evolution
Like Galileo, Charles Darwin occupies a central position in discussions of science and religion. This lecture looks at Darwin\'s theory of evolution and its complex reception in context. Darwin\'s natural selection and common ancestry ideas provoked a range of responses from religious and scientific figures.
11. Fundamentalism and Creationism
Despite acceptance of evolutionary ideas by naturalists and prominent theologians in 1900, those ideas have also marked the 20th century with strongest-ever science-religion conflict. This lecture looks at the 1925 Scopes Trial, a high point in the fundamentalist crusade against evolution, and the invention of creation science and flood geology. There\'s an analysis of the background and social foundations of American fundamentalism, a force that still plays an adversarial role with modern science.
12. Past, Present, and Future
In this concluding lecture, we survey the course and place our own times in historical context. No single description can aptly describe the complexity of science/religion interactions in Christianity over time. Most current clashes occur between extremists—religious and scientific fundamentalists. A historical perspective is the best way to transcend and defuse such clashes.
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