That is well-expressed George. However we need to see that science is not only experimental but also historical and observational. To exclude those is to dismiss science and ends up in all sorts of nonsense and absurdity.
Michael
----- Original Message -----
From: George Murphy
To: Alexanian, Moorad ; ASA list
Sent: Wednesday, November 28, 2007 3:40 PM
Subject: Re: [asa] E.O. Wilson "Baptist No More"
Moorad -
Perhaps I should have expressed myself more fully & stated the basic question in 2 parts: (1) Whether scientific knowledge of the world should inform our theology? (2) If so, how should science inform theology? & the 2d question can be broken down into (2a) What is the general relationship between contributions of the sciences to the whole of Christian theology? & (2b) How do specific scientific results contribute to particular theological loci?
My own answers, in ultra-brief, are:
(1) Yes, because theology deals with the same world that science studies - though it isn't limited to that.
(2a) While science requires no theological input in order to study the world (methodological naturalism), the knowledge it gains has theological value only when placed in the context of God's revelation in history &, in particular, the cross-resurrection event.
(2b) My essay in the Fall 2007 issue of Dialog, "Science as Goad and Guide for Theology," goes into some detail on specifics. This whole issue of the journal is devoted to the theme "The role of science within theology," with a wide variety of responses by theologians & scientists.
As I think I've explained previously here, I don't think the distinction between "experimental" and "historical" sciences is fundamental or of great importance for theology.
Shalom
George
http://web.raex.com/~gmurphy/
----- Original Message -----
From: Alexanian, Moorad
To: George Murphy ; ASA list
Sent: Wednesday, November 28, 2007 9:09 AM
Subject: RE: [asa] E.O. Wilson "Baptist No More"
George,
We must qualify what we mean by "scientific knowledge." If I understand by that term results obtained by the experimental sciences, then that kind of knowledge has very little to do with our theology. Therefore, there is no conflict whatsoever between, say, the Christian faith and the results of experimental science. Of course, one may infer a Creator from the fact that things do exist and His rationality by the heavy mathematics that is needed to develop the laws of Nature. The historical aspect of the historical sciences gives rise to potential conflicts. Everyone must scrutinize the assumptions that are being made, especially in the analysis of unique, past events.
Moorad
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu [mailto:asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu] On Behalf Of George Murphy
Sent: Tuesday, November 27, 2007 7:12 PM
To: ASA list
Subject: Re: [asa] E.O. Wilson "Baptist No More"
God's action in the world is indeed one of the major issues in science-theology dialogue but it isn't the only one. The question of how scientific knowledge of the world should inform our theology is, if anything, even more fundamental.
Shalom
George
http://web.raex.com/~gmurphy/
----- Original Message -----
From: Alexanian, Moorad
To: George Murphy ; David Opderbeck ; John Walley
Cc: _American Sci Affil
Sent: Tuesday, November 27, 2007 3:45 PM
Subject: RE: [asa] E.O. Wilson "Baptist No More"
George, does it not boil down always to the question of how God interacts with His creation, which is the apex of all theological/philosophical questions?
Moorad
--------------------------------------------------------------------------
From: asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu [mailto:asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu] On Behalf Of George Murphy
Sent: Tuesday, November 27, 2007 3:23 PM
To: David Opderbeck; John Walley
Cc: _American Sci Affil
Subject: Re: [asa] E.O. Wilson "Baptist No More"
Of course it's not just "Church: bad; Wilson: innocent." But our concern should not just be to absolve the church from blame. Churches in general haven't done a very good job over the past few centuries of dealing with issues raised by science and technology - especially biological evolution. Even "liberal" churches in which most clergy have no problem with evolution usually haven't said anything about these issues unless people ask explicit questions about them. & people often don't ask pastors &c the questions they have because they're afraid of the response they'll get. & the reason clergy don't have any problems with evolution is often because they don't really understand it & don't take the trouble to learn.
Churches - & clergy in particular - need to be pro-active about these matters, bringing them up in appropriate & sensitive ways in educational settings & sermons. They need to create an atmosphere which conveys an openness to issues raised by science & technology & which encourages people to voice the questions & concerns that they have. Clergy & others involved in Christian education can't be & needn't be expert in all scientific areas (who can?), but should be interested in them & have some tentative ways of dealing with the major theological issues which are involved. There's nothing wrong with responding to a question with "I don't know but I'll try to find out" or "I'll try to see where you can get an answer."
Shalom
George
http://web.raex.com/~gmurphy/
----- Original Message -----
From: David Opderbeck
To: John Walley
Cc: _American Sci Affil
Sent: Tuesday, November 27, 2007 1:25 PM
Subject: Re: [asa] E.O. Wilson "Baptist No More"
I suppose the point here is that the Church was at fault for not giving Wilson other options. Perhaps there is a fair point there given the particulars of Wilson's upbringing. But what if Wilson's response had been to continually ask God to help him better understand the truth. Would Wilson then have found organizations like the ASA that existed at the time? Would he have found friends and mentors to help him work through the questions everyone faces when they grow out of a childish fundamentalism into a more mature faith? Would he have felt freer to question some aspects of "evolution" as a metanarrative while at the same time broadening his understanding of theology and scripture? In short, do we really have to buy hook, line and sinker the story: "Church: bad; Wilson: innocent?"
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Received on Wed Nov 28 17:14:35 2007
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