Let there be Science

Tom McLeish, David Hutchings

Description

Why is it that science has consistently thrived wherever the Christian faith can be found? Why is it that so many great scientists - past and present - attribute their motivation and their discoveries, at least partially, to their Christian beliefs? Why are the age-old writings of the Bible so full of questions about natural phenomena? And, perhaps most importantly of all, why is all this virtually unknown to the general public? Too often, it would seem, science has been presented to the outside world as a robotic, detached, unemotional enterprise. Too often, Christianity is dismissed as being an ancient superstition. In reality, neither is the case. Science is a deeply human activity, and Christianity is deeply reasonable. Perhaps this is why, from ancient times right up to today, many individuals have been profoundly committed to both - and have helped us to understand more and more about the extraordinary world that we live in. As authors Tom McLeish and David Hutchings examine the story of science, and look at the part that Christianity has played, they uncover a powerful underlying reason for doing science in the first place. In example after example, ranging from 4000 BC to the present day, they show that thinking with a Christian worldview has been intimately involved with, and sometimes even directly responsible for, some of the biggest leaps forward ever made. Ultimately, they portray a biblical God who loves Science - and a Science that truly needs God.

Sujets

• Philosophie et théologie
• Relationship between religion and science

Informations

• Publié par: Lion Hudson
• Date de parution: 20 janvier 2017
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9780745968643
• Langue: English

Extrait

Let There Be Science provides fascinating new insights into the worlds of science and faith. Full of engaging examples, this readable book entertains, informs, and challenges, breathing new life into a discussion with deep historical roots.
Denis Alexander, Emeritus Director of The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion, St. Edmund s College, Cambridge
A fascinating and highly original contribution to the God and science discussion. David and Tom show that rather than science and Christianity being at war with each other, there s a powerful fit between science and faith. Far from Christianity only being for Dawkins s dyed-in-the-wool faith heads , Let There Be Science lays out a myriad ways that Christianity offers rich resources for science - including the most powerful motive for doing science in the first place.
Dr Andy Bannister, Director of the Solas Centre for Public Christianity, Adjunct Speaker, Ravi Zacharias International Ministries
This book is a highly thought-provoking exploration of the relationship between science and faith. The authors arguments are clearly and elegantly presented, and supported with fascinating examples from the history of the exploration of science. Recommended for non-scientists and scientists alike, it is a surprising and unexpected page-turner.
Angie Edwards, Director of the Arthur C. Clarke Foundation
How do scientists interact with the cosmos as God s creation? Here is an unexpected interlacing of fascinating science stories with an even larger framework of Biblical understanding. A really thoughtful and wide-ranging encounter.
Owen Gingerich, Professor emeritus of Astronomy and History of Science, Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics
Whatever your personal stance on matters of religion and science, it s surely encouraging to see calm and considered conversation being fostered between them. Let There Be Science makes a compelling case that the ethos of science and the insights that it brings into the workings of the natural world can have much to offer to people of faith. With passion and humility David Hutchings and Tom McLeish seek out common ground and show that, despite our differences, we are all united in our curiosity and capacity for wonder.
Dr Marek Kukula, Public Astronomer, Royal Observatory Greenwich
An immensely enjoyable and readable account of some of the big questions raised by modern science. The authors provide a wealth of detail as they open up their exciting vision of the relationship of science and Christian faith. Highly recommended.
Alister McGrath, Andreas Idreos Professor of Science and Religion, Oxford University
This is a brilliant book which uses fascinating human stories to demonstrate how science and religion belong together in the exploration of fundamental questions about life and the nature of reality. In an easy, approachable style the authors take us into the Big Ideas of science and shine on them the enriching light of biblical wisdom. It s a thrilling journey and renews the reader s hope for a mature partnership between the great world views of science and religion, whereby each is a gift to the other and all of us are the beneficiaries. Read, mark, and enjoy.
The Rt Revd John Pritchard, former Bishop of Oxford
Let There Be Science is engagingly written so as to be thought-provoking to both the sceptic and evangelist alike. The book tackles prejudices and stereotypes head-on with such honesty that its effect is to engage and gently challenge rather than to patronise or preach. Whatever your persuasion you are likely to learn and be engaged with some beautiful science and find yourself grappling with the complexities of our human condition - including our fascination with religion. A stimulating and highly enjoyable read.
Professor Sarah Thompson MBE, FInstP, Head of Department of Physics, University of York, Vice President Institute of Physics (Science and Innovation)
At a time when one of the great fallacies of our age continues to suggest that science and theology are incompatible, Tom McLeish and David Hutchings bring a creative dialogue between the two disciplines in Let There Be Science . They present a compelling vision, describing science as a gift from God in which science and theology interrelate and thrive in each other s company. A timely book which shows Christian apologetics and the public understanding of science at its very best.
The Rt Revd Graham Usher, Bishop of Dudley
This is a book about the wonderfully human nature of science by two most wonderfully human of authors. A must read for those who fear or dismiss science and for those who make science into an idol. Here is the reality of science in all of its fun, its success, its complexity, its limitations, and its relationship to faith.
Revd Professor David Wilkinson, Principal of St John s College and Professor in the Department of Theology and Religion, Durham University
LET THERE BE SCIENCE
WHY GOD LOVES SCIENCE, AND SCIENCE NEEDS GOD
David Hutchings and Tom McLeish
For the glory of God: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
Text copyright 2017 David Hutchings and Tom McLeish
This edition copyright 2017 Lion Hudson
The right of David Hutchings and Tom McLeish to be identified as the authors of this work has been asserted by them in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.
Published by Lion Books an imprint of Lion Hudson plc Wilkinson House, Jordan Hill Road, Oxford OX2 8DR, England www.lionhudson.com/lion
ISBN 978 0 7459 6863 6 e-ISBN 978 0 7459 6864 3
First edition 2017
Acknowledgments
Scripture quotations taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version Anglicised. Copyright 1979, 1984, 2011 Biblica, formerly International Bible Society. Used by permission of Hodder & Stoughton Ltd, an Hachette UK company. All rights reserved. NIV is a registered trademark of Biblica. UK trademark number 1448790.
p. 38: Extract from Gregory of Nyssa, On the Soul and the Resurrection 1993 tr. C. P. Roth, reprinted by permission of St Vladimir s Seminary Press.
pp. 61, 62: Extracts from Monty Python and the Holy Grail 1975 Python (Monty) Pictures Limited, used by permission.
p. 110: Extracts from Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead 1967 Faber and Faber, used by permission.
p. 132: Extracts from Andre Geim in the original full length Nobel Lecture from nobelprize.org 2010 The Nobel Foundation, used by permission.
pp. 159, 160: Extracts from Genesis in Space and Time 1975 Francis Schaeffer, reprinted by permission of IVP.
Cover images: All istockphoto.com - silhouette dan-belitsky; high voltage strike tolokonov; lens flare skegbydave; digital lens flare Mr_POKPAK.
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
Printed and bound in the UK, December 2016, LH36
CONTENTS

FOREWORD

PREFACE

1. TURNING THE LIGHT ON

2. AN ANCIENT STORY

3. A GIFT AND AN INVITATION

4. REVOLUTIONS

5. PAIN, SUFFERING, AND HOPE

6. ORDER FROM CHAOS

7. QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

8. LOVE

9. RECONCILIATION

10. CROSSING THE ROOM

NOTES
FOREWORD

I wonder as I wander out under the sky

So begins one of the best-loved Christmas carols. Wonder . It is the beginning of both science and the Christian faith. Wonder that the world is as it is, in its beauty, majesty, and glory. Wonder also that God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. 1
Wonder like this can only find expression in praise. As the biblical Psalmist writes, I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; that I know very well. 2 We are indeed wonder-fully made - God has made us to be full of wonder for both him and his works.
Just as Augustine says that God has made us for himself, and our hearts are restless until they find their rest in him, 3 God has also made us for this world, and our minds are restless until they find their rest in its truth. For, as we explore and discover more about the world, we come to know more about God s wonder-full works, and so come to know God himself more and more. Thus, in doing science - in seeking the truth about the world around us - we worship God.
And this, then, is why faith provides such a natural environment for science to flourish - as the authors of this book maintain. They show, through stories about faith and science, that rather than faith being the enemy of science (as many of the cultured despisers would have us believe) faith nurtures science, watering its roots so that it may bear fruit; fruit that will last.
Now, this fruit isn t merely the satisfying of curiosity - the scratching of an intellectual itch - but rather, just as faith leads to action, so does science. God has given us the gift of science, and the gift of faith to nurture it, so that we may actively engage the world, making it a better place not only for ourselves but also for those who come after us. This is part of what it means to be human; and science, along with and supported by faith, is right at the heart of it.
I commend this book to all who would like to know better how faith is fertile ground for the growth of science. But in closing, I would like to say more generally that faith is an environment not only where science thrives, but also where human life thrives. We are all pilgrims, wandering in this world. There will be a time, however, when our pilgrimages come to an end: in that place of joy which no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the human heart conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him. 4 And there, all our wanderings will cease - for, though we know now only in part, there we will