Today on NPR’s Speaking of Faith the guests were two Jesuit Astronomers who work at the Vatican. I was impressed and pleased to hear that these men have no problem with worshiping the God of Abraham while pursuing pure science, they had some interesting views on God, science and the interaction thereof. Some snippets from the interview (full transcript available at http://speakingoffaith.publicradio.org/programs/2010/asteroids/transcript.shtml) "Ms. Tippett: And so this sort of evokes a question that I've heard raised in discussions about science and religion. People will say the difference between a scientific perspective and a religious perspective is that scientists are asking questions and open to having every idea disproved. OK? And they'll say religion does not have that flexibility. Br. Consolmagno: Obviously they've never talked to a theologian. Ms. Tippett: Right. Well, that's true. Fr. Coyne: Or a true religious believer." And earlier: "Fr. Coyne: Correct. My take on the relationship, my personal life, OK, is built upon the following: I'm a scientist. I try and understand the universe. My understanding of the universe does not need God." So what do you think? Do you think it is possible to maintain faith alongside science? Do you think that it has to be one or the other?
Religion & Spirituality - 2 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
The opposite of faith isn't doubt, it's certainty. that was a great program.
2 :
The relationship between religion and science has been a focus of the demarcation problem. Statements about the world made by science and religion rely on different methodologies. Religions rely on revelation and faith, while science relies on observable, repeatable experiences, ontological naturalism, philosophical realism, rational skepticism, fallibilism, the thesis that nothing comes from nothing, and the law of economy. Some scholars say the two are separate, as in John William Draper's conflict thesis and Stephen Jay Gould's non-overlapping magisteria, while others (Thomas Berry, Brian Swimme, Ken Wilber, et al.) propose an interconnection. The Pew Forum has published data on attitudes about religion and science.
