Description
Book SynopsisThe relationship between science and religion is generally depicted in one of two ways. In one view, they are locked in an inevitable, eternal conflict in which one must choose a side. In the other, they are separate spheres, in which the truth claims of one have little bearing on the other. This collection of provocative essays by leading thinkers offers a new way of looking at this problematic relationship. The authors begin from the premise that both science and religion operate in, yet seek to reach beyond, specific historical, political, ideological, and psychological contexts. How may we understand science and religion as arising from, yet somehow transcending, human experience? The volume is divided into four sections. The first takes a fresh look at the relationship between science and religion in broad terms: as spheres of knowledge or belief, realms of experience, and sources of authority. The other three sections take on topics that have been focal points of conflict between science and religion: the nature of the cosmos, the origin of life, and the workings of the mind. Ultimately, the authors argue, by seeing science and religion as irrevocably tied to human experience we can move beyond simple either/or definitions of reality and arrive at a more rich and complex view of both science and religion.
Table of ContentsChapter 1: Introduction: Rethinking Science and Religion-James D. Proctor Part I: Theory Chapter 2: "Thou Shall Not Freeze-Frame"- Or How Not to Misunderstand the Science and Religion Debate-Bruno Latour Chapter 3: Modernity and the Mystical: Techno-Science, Religion, and Human Self-Creation-Thomas A. Carlson Chapter 4: The Depths and Shallows of Experience-Hilary Putnam Chapter 5: In ____ We Trust: Science, Religion, and Authority-James D. Proctor Part II: Cosmos Chapter 6: Science, Religion, Metaphor, And History-Jeffrey Burton Russell Chapter 7: Kabbalah and Contemporary Cosmology: Discovering the Resonances-Daniel C. Matt Chapter 8: The Complementarity of Science and Religion-Harold Oliver Part III: Life Chapter 9: Darwin, Design, and the Unification of Nature-John Hedley Brooke Chapter 10: Darwinism and Christianity: Must They Remain at War or is Peace Possible?-Michael Ruse Chapter 11: Experiencing Evolution: Varieties of Psychological Responses to the Claims of Science and Religion-Ronald L. Numbers Part IV: Mind Chapter 12: Gods and the Mental Instincts that Create Them-Pascal Boyer Chapter 13: Empathy and Human Experience-Evan Thompson Chapter 14: Uneasy Alliances: The "Faith Factor" in Medicine; the "Health Factor" in Religion-Anne Harrington Chapter 15: The Intersubjective Worlds of Science and Religion-B. Alan Wallace
