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Historical Examples of the Debate

As indicated in outlines of the debate, a simple assumption of conflict between science and religion cannot be substantiated either from history or the contemporary debate. However, there have been important instances of conflict. In the two most famous conflicts between science and religion we analyse the Galileo affair and the rise of Darwinism, seeking to indicate the complexity of these moments in history, and the shallowness of the traditional caricatures. See also some recent debates about evolution, including discussion of the rhetoric of Darwinism and evolution as a science of the unrepeatable past.

We also discuss the period between 1680-1800 (under the heading ‘the love affair gone wrong’) to indicate that a very harmonious relationship between (at least some) scientists and Christian theology actually carried within it the seeds of its own disintegration.

Finally, we illustrate one new understanding of God which has been proposed which takes account of important criticisms levelled at traditional theism. Our discussion of process metaphysics and theology begins from A.N.Whitehead’s famous phrase about God ‘the Fellow-Sufferer who understands’.

Email link | Feedback | Contributed by: Dr. Christopher Southgate
Source: God, Humanity and the Cosmos  (T&T Clark, 1999)

Historical Examples of the Debate

Index - God, Humanity and the Cosmos, 1999 T&T Clark

Historical Examples of the Debate

Related Book Topics:

Famous Conflicts Between Science and Religion
The Rise of Copernicanism
The Career of Galileo Galilei
The Galileo Affair
The Type of Case Galileo Made
The Love Affair Gone Wrong
The Rise of Darwinism
The Caricature - Darwin v. Christianity
Early Conflicts Over Darwinism
God ‘The Fellow-Sufferer who Understands’
Process Metaphysics
Process Theology and the Problem of Evil

Source:

Dr. Christopher Southgate and Dr. Michael Robert Negus in God, Humanity and the Cosmos.Published by T&T Clark.

See also:

Galileo
Copernicus
Sir Isaac Newton
Charles Darwin
History
Theology
Controversy
Evolution
Physics and Cosmology
The Relation of Science & Religion
What Science Can Learn From Religion
What Religion Can Learn From Science
Books on Science and Religion