Perspective: Science, Philosophy, and Spirituality

1.08: Science and the World’s Faiths

1.08: Science and the World’s Faiths

Posted by | Jun 26, 2023 |

Resources for our module exploring the entangled relationship between science and the world’s major faith traditions. In it, we traverse through the landscapes of Christianity, Islam, Judaism, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, and Hinduism, examining how each has interacted with science throughout history. We delve into the richness of their contributions to human understanding, their distinct approaches to knowledge, and the common themes they share. Additionally, we address modern discussions and debates that blend scientific inquiry with religious thought. Far from presenting a binary view of conflict or cooperation, the article unravels the beautifully complex and entangled relationship between science and religion, ultimately highlighting their shared mission: to enrich human life, foster understanding, and illuminate the profound mysteries of our existence.

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1.07: Darwin and the Theory of Evolution

1.07: Darwin and the Theory of Evolution

Posted by | May 21, 2023 | |

Science has proved to be a highly successful way of finding out how things work, and scientific theory is central to the practice of science. When Charles Darwin first published the theory of ‘natural selection’ in 1859, there were many gaps in the evidence to support it. In more than 160 years since then evidence from genetics, medical science and ecology have all substantiated the theory, so that an eminent biologist could claim that “nothing in biology makes sense except in the light of evolution.”

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1.05: The Roots of Modern Science

1.05: The Roots of Modern Science

Posted by | Mar 12, 2023 | |

The roots of modern science reach backwards in time to before the great age of Greek and Hellenistic learning, and spread across Europe, Islamic empires, India and China. This article will review how the ideas of the Medieval and Renaissance periods nourished those roots.

This page contains links to resources used for Module 5 of the Shepway u3a course in Science, Philosophy and Spirituality

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1.04: The Rise and Fall of Christendom

1.04: The Rise and Fall of Christendom

Posted by | Feb 17, 2023 | |

Under the aegis of the Roman Empire, early Christianity morphed into Christendom and incorporated ideas from Greek philosophy. These composite ideas spawned the ‘natural philosophy’ that later became modern science. The Black Death, the Renaissance and the Enlightenment nurtured science and simultaneously planted the seeds of Christendom’s destruction.

In Europe, and consequently in America after its colonization by Europeans, Christendom helped shape the culture from which the world as we know it today emerged.

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