894207
Science
& Belief
- Sources of
Human
Understanding
- Christian Revelation
- General
Revelation
- revelation through
the world/creation
- complexity suggests
designer (God)
- the
creation
works
- it's beauty
can be
appreciated
- "the
heavens
declare the
glory of
the Lord" -
Psalms
- complexity suggests
designer (God)
- revelation through
the world/creation
- Special Revelation
- visions/dreams/miracles/angels
- difficult to prove as
generally experienced
by individuals
- difficult to prove as
generally experienced
by individuals
- Supreme
Revelation
- Jesus
- is worshipped
(only a God
would be
worshipped)
- people pray
to Jesus -
sometimes
answered
- "if you have seen me you have
seen the father" - Gospel of John
- is worshipped
(only a God
would be
worshipped)
- Jesus
- Biblical
Revelation
- anyone
can read
the Bible
- God speaks
through the Bible
- anyone
can read
the Bible
- visions/dreams/miracles/angels
- subjective,
interpretations,
doesn't submit to
the usual rules
of verification,
faith required
- Limitations:
dependent on faith,
danger of literalism,
experimentation &
verification often
can't be applied to
religious questions
- General
Revelation
- Scientific Enquiry
- The Scientific
Method
- Observation
- information derived
from what can be 'seen'
through the 5 senses
- information derived
from what can be 'seen'
through the 5 senses
- Hypothesis
- a statement about
observations which
will be tested e.g. if I
do 'x', 'y' will occur
- a statement about
observations which
will be tested e.g. if I
do 'x', 'y' will occur
- Experimentation
- the hypothesis is tested
- the hypothesis is tested
- Verification
- the hypothesis is
rejected, modified or
accepted depending
on the result of
experimentation
- this results in scientific laws -
things are accepted as 'fact'
- the hypothesis is
rejected, modified or
accepted depending
on the result of
experimentation
- Observation
- never
100%
certain
- open to
change/adaption
if new evidence is
found or theories
falsified -
paradigm shifts
- open to
change/adaption
if new evidence is
found or theories
falsified -
paradigm shifts
- Deduction
- a method of deriving the
particular from the general
- a method of deriving the
particular from the general
- Objective
- Induction
- method of deriving the general from the particular
- IN
>Observation
Hypothesis
Pattern
Theory<DE
- method of deriving the general from the particular
- Limitations: proof based on present knowledge & experience,
ill-interpreted experiences leads to misinterpretation
- The Scientific
Method
- Knowledge =
facts, feelings
(subjective) &
perceptions
(subjective)
- Similarities
- both can be
turned to
absolute
systems with
negative
consequences
(fundamentalism
& scientism)
- both are provisional
- religion changes &
develops over time
so does science
- both use models,
symbols, analogies &
paradigms (a
framework of basic
assumptions)
- both can be
turned to
absolute
systems with
negative
consequences
(fundamentalism
& scientism)
- Differences
- science concerned with how, religion with why
- science answers empirical questions,
religion answers existential questions
- science bases
beliefs on physical
evidence, religion
on scripture & faith
- science concerned with how, religion with why
- Christian Revelation
- Origin of the Universe
- A Creator God
- The
Cosmological
Argument
- the argument that the
existence of the
universe or world is a
strong base of
evidence for the
existence of a God
who created it
- St
Thomas
Aquinas
- 'posteriori' argument
- process of
reasoning from effect
to cause based upon
observation
- 'posteriori' argument
- process of
reasoning from effect
to cause based upon
observation
- St
Thomas
Aquinas
- 1st Proof/Way - argument from motion
- whatever is moved
or changed must be
moved or changed
by another which
itself was moved or
changed. infinite
regression is
impossible so we
have to go back to
something which
wasn't moved by
anything else
- everything
moves
from
potentiality
to actuality
- everything
moves
from
potentiality
to actuality
- whatever is moved
or changed must be
moved or changed
by another which
itself was moved or
changed. infinite
regression is
impossible so we
have to go back to
something which
wasn't moved by
anything else
- 2nd Way/Proof - the uncaused causer
- every effect has a cause
- nothing can cause itself because it
doesn't exist before it is caused
- an uncaused causer is necessary - must be God
- an uncaused causer is necessary - must be God
- nothing can cause itself because it
doesn't exist before it is caused
- Problems
- infinite regression
can't be dissproved
- even if there is a starting
point - why God?
- if we reject infinity, how can God be infinite
- numbers can go
on forever, why
not regression?
- infinite regression
can't be dissproved
- every effect has a cause
- 3rd Way/Proof - from
possibility to contingency
- everything is
contingent (dependent
on something else for
its existence)
- if everything is contingent then
at some point there would have
been nothing as everything is
dependent on something else
for its existence
- however, things
do exist,
therefore there
must have been
something that
wasn't contingent
( a necessary
being) to be the
cause of things
that are
contingent
- contingent things
exist therefore a
non-contingent
being must have
existed before them
- contingent things
exist therefore a
non-contingent
being must have
existed before them
- however, things
do exist,
therefore there
must have been
something that
wasn't contingent
( a necessary
being) to be the
cause of things
that are
contingent
- if everything is contingent then
at some point there would have
been nothing as everything is
dependent on something else
for its existence
- Problems
- argument
depends
on faith
- why does there have
to be a point where
nothing exists?
- objects may come into existence and then perish
but the matter from which they are made is
eternal. the universe therefore couldn't not exist
- there
doesn't
have to be
a reason
fro
everything
- argument
depends
on faith
- everything is
contingent (dependent
on something else for
its existence)
- the argument that the
existence of the
universe or world is a
strong base of
evidence for the
existence of a God
who created it
- The Anthropic Principle
- conditions 'just right' for
humanity to evolve
- God brings evolution to a point where
human life was bound to occur/develop
- basic life forms evolve to form more
complex life forms, the brain is enlarge,
God puts in place the human soul
- basic life forms evolve to form more
complex life forms, the brain is enlarge,
God puts in place the human soul
- unique
properties
of Earth
- Earth's atmosphere
- Earth's albedo
- Earth's
magnetic
field
- position in
the solar
system
- colour of the sun
- Earth's atmosphere
- conditions 'just right' for
humanity to evolve
- Genesis
- 1
- creation
story
written to
explain
the
origins of
the
universe
- based on
much older
story (the
Enuma
Elish)
- written by best minds at the
time in order to explain origins
- very
ordered
- from chaos
comes
order (life,
fits in with
idea of
evolution)
- 6 days of creation -
Hebrew word Yom can be
a day or period of time
- man
created
last,
women &
man at
same time
- man
created
last,
women &
man at
same time
- 6 days of creation -
Hebrew word Yom can be
a day or period of time
- from chaos
comes
order (life,
fits in with
idea of
evolution)
- creation
story
written to
explain
the
origins of
the
universe
- 2
- man created first - before any other animal
- no 'days of creation' simply statements about what God did
- Eve created last as a helper fro Adam
- man created first - before any other animal
- Christian
Perspectives
- Literalist
- absolute truth
- absolute truth
- Liberal
- symbolic,
no basis in
science or
history
- symbolic,
no basis in
science or
history
- Literalist
- 1
- Occam's Razor
- where there are 2
theories we should
accept the most
logical based on
observational
proofs, this is
because the
simplest explanation
is often the right
one
- "Entities
shouldn't be
multiplied
unnecessarily" -
William of
Ockham
- "Entities
shouldn't be
multiplied
unnecessarily" -
William of
Ockham
- Keep It
Simple
Stupid
- where there are 2
theories we should
accept the most
logical based on
observational
proofs, this is
because the
simplest explanation
is often the right
one
- The
Cosmological
Argument
- The Big Bang Theory
- galaxies are moving
apart & the further away
they are from us, the
faster they move away
from us & vice versa
- scientists can therefore
tell how far away a
galaxy is depending on
the speed at which it is
moving away from us
- if a body is moving away
at a high speed, the
spectrum of light changes
- some distant galaxies
give off red light -
therefore the universe is
expanding in different
directions
- some distant galaxies
give off red light -
therefore the universe is
expanding in different
directions
- if a body is moving away
at a high speed, the
spectrum of light changes
- scientists can therefore
tell how far away a
galaxy is depending on
the speed at which it is
moving away from us
- Evidence
- redshift
- microwave
background
radiation
- spread &
distribution
of galaxies -
what
scientists
expect when
BBT is
applied
- composition
of stars
- composition
of stars
- spread &
distribution
of galaxies -
what
scientists
expect when
BBT is
applied
- microwave
background
radiation
- redshift
- galaxies are moving
apart & the further away
they are from us, the
faster they move away
from us & vice versa
- Unity
Law
- Grand Unified
Theory
represents 1 of
the key ways in
which God
brought into
being the reality
of which human
beings are a
part
- a possible
theory that
would
accommodate
any variations
in the universe
- Christians find
it relevant as
the universe
was not an
accidental
development
from the BB
- Christians find
it relevant as
the universe
was not an
accidental
development
from the BB
- Grand Unified
Theory
represents 1 of
the key ways in
which God
brought into
being the reality
of which human
beings are a
part
- A Creator God
- Origin of Human Life
- Teleological Argument
- proposed by William
Paley, special
application of the
cosmological
argument, based on
the idea that things
come from somewhere
but are also going
somewhere
- based on the observation of the variety, order
& beauty in the universe which presupposes
design & purpose in its creation
- Paley's Watch Analogy
- 1) if walking across a heath you came across a stone, you would
presume that it had always been there, requiring no purpose or design
- 2) if you came across a watch (& you had never seen one
before) you would ask where it came from
- 3) you would examine it & see that it was
very complex - glass, cogs, a chain etc.
- 4) you would conclude that it couldn't have just
appeared but that someone must have made it
- 5) if you watched the watch working you would assume that it had been made with a purpose
- 6) you would conclude
that there had been an
intelligent watchmaker
who designed it with a
purpose
- 6) you would conclude
that there had been an
intelligent watchmaker
who designed it with a
purpose
- 5) if you watched the watch working you would assume that it had been made with a purpose
- 4) you would conclude that it couldn't have just
appeared but that someone must have made it
- 3) you would examine it & see that it was
very complex - glass, cogs, a chain etc.
- 2) if you came across a watch (& you had never seen one
before) you would ask where it came from
- observes the world's complexity, such
complexity & harmony must have been designed
- complex systems
e.g. weather
- everything seems to be working
towards a similar end
- therefore there must be an intelligent designer
- this designer must be God as
God is the only being who can
exist outside the universe
- this designer must be God as
God is the only being who can
exist outside the universe
- therefore there must be an intelligent designer
- everything seems to be working
towards a similar end
- complex systems
e.g. weather
- 1) if walking across a heath you came across a stone, you would
presume that it had always been there, requiring no purpose or design
- Hume's Criticisms
- 1) analogical argument is weak - to say
something is like something else is not proof
- 2) not necessarily God
(watch could be designed
by a team, or by a genius
lunatic etc. so these
possibilities should also
apply to God)
- 3) incomparable:
watch mechanical,
universe organic
- 4) nature
isn't perfect&
harmonious -
lots of chaos
- therefore
designer is
either flawed
or perverse
- 5) nature
may
provide
design
'herself'
- 5) nature
may
provide
design
'herself'
- 4) nature
isn't perfect&
harmonious -
lots of chaos
- therefore
designer is
either flawed
or perverse
- 3) incomparable:
watch mechanical,
universe organic
- 2) not necessarily God
(watch could be designed
by a team, or by a genius
lunatic etc. so these
possibilities should also
apply to God)
- 1) analogical argument is weak - to say
something is like something else is not proof
- proposed by William
Paley, special
application of the
cosmological
argument, based on
the idea that things
come from somewhere
but are also going
somewhere
- Irreducible Complexity
- Michael Behe
- In Darwin's time biology was
a 'black box' - no-one really
knew how biology worked
- it is impossible to reduce the
complexity of a system by
removing any component
parts & it still being able to
maintain its ability to work
- Mousetrap: typical
mousetrap is made up of 5
parts. if any of these parts
are removed it will not work
(at least without significant
restructuring of the
remaining parts)
- Darwin stated that "if it could
be demonstrated that a complex
orgain existed, which could not
possibly have been formed by
numerous, successive, slight
modifications, my theory would
entirely break down"
- Behe draws cites
complex biological
systems that we know &
understand today as
examples of things that
are too complex to have
evolved directly
(irreducible complexity)
- Robert Dorit: "Behe's
argument for
intelligent design
ultimately fails
because it is a belief
and not a potential
explanation. The hand
of God mat well be all
around us, but it is
not, nor can it be, the
task if science to dust
for fingerprints"
- Robert Dorit: "Behe's
argument for
intelligent design
ultimately fails
because it is a belief
and not a potential
explanation. The hand
of God mat well be all
around us, but it is
not, nor can it be, the
task if science to dust
for fingerprints"
- Behe draws cites
complex biological
systems that we know &
understand today as
examples of things that
are too complex to have
evolved directly
(irreducible complexity)
- Darwin stated that "if it could
be demonstrated that a complex
orgain existed, which could not
possibly have been formed by
numerous, successive, slight
modifications, my theory would
entirely break down"
- Mousetrap: typical
mousetrap is made up of 5
parts. if any of these parts
are removed it will not work
(at least without significant
restructuring of the
remaining parts)
- it is impossible to reduce the
complexity of a system by
removing any component
parts & it still being able to
maintain its ability to work
- Michael Behe
- Evolution
- Charles Darwin, The
Origin of Species by
Means of Natural
Selection
- individuals with characteristics (due to genes) that are
more suited to their environment are more likely to survive
& reproduce - the characteristics are passed on until all
members of the species have them
- survival of
the fittest,
natural
selection
- fossil records
show how
species have
changed over
time but
contains gaps
- Peppered Moths:
pollution on Victorian
London caused tree
bark to turn black,
mutated black pepper
moths survived
because they were
camouflaged & they
became far more
common than the
white variety
- studied finches on
an island, all
fundamentally the
same but adapted
for different food
sources
- studied finches on
an island, all
fundamentally the
same but adapted
for different food
sources
- Peppered Moths:
pollution on Victorian
London caused tree
bark to turn black,
mutated black pepper
moths survived
because they were
camouflaged & they
became far more
common than the
white variety
- fossil records
show how
species have
changed over
time but
contains gaps
- survival of
the fittest,
natural
selection
- individuals with characteristics (due to genes) that are
more suited to their environment are more likely to survive
& reproduce - the characteristics are passed on until all
members of the species have them
- Charles Darwin, The
Origin of Species by
Means of Natural
Selection
- Teleological Argument
- Conflict & Compatibility
- Christians &
the BBT
- Liberal
- why does the universe exist
- the universe is contingent
- universe obeys the laws of science
- the BBT must point to a cause
because if the universe obeys
the laws of science then the
cause of the universe can't be
part of the universe itself but
must be outside the universe
- God uses the BB to
create the universe
- some scientists argue
against the need for a 1st
cause if the chain of
causality is infinitely long
but Christians respond
that if a chain is infinitely
long it doesn't have to
exist
- because science has
shown that the world
is not infinitely old,
why should the
universe be infinitely
old?
- God is not a
'god of the
gaps' but
necessary
- Unity Law would
prove that the
universe is not an
accidental
development but an
ordered unity
because it obeys
one law of unity
- science does not
end the need for a
creator God but
reveals the
complexity of the
universe - pointing to
the existence of God
- science does not
end the need for a
creator God but
reveals the
complexity of the
universe - pointing to
the existence of God
- Unity Law would
prove that the
universe is not an
accidental
development but an
ordered unity
because it obeys
one law of unity
- God is not a
'god of the
gaps' but
necessary
- because science has
shown that the world
is not infinitely old,
why should the
universe be infinitely
old?
- some scientists argue
against the need for a 1st
cause if the chain of
causality is infinitely long
but Christians respond
that if a chain is infinitely
long it doesn't have to
exist
- God uses the BB to
create the universe
- the BBT must point to a cause
because if the universe obeys
the laws of science then the
cause of the universe can't be
part of the universe itself but
must be outside the universe
- universe obeys the laws of science
- the universe is contingent
- why does the universe exist
- Literalist
- the world can't be the
result of a random
explosion like the BB
- the world is too
complex to be
anything other
than the work of
a creator God
- properties of
water provide
Earth with a
natural air con,
coastal cities are
less hot in the
summer & less
cold in the winter
than inland cities
- Genesis is
literally what
happened
- 6 periods
of time
rather
than days
- point out flaws in
theory such as not
enough antimatter
in the universe (the
BB would have
created equal
amount of matter &
antimatter yet
there is far less
antimatter)
- point out flaws in
theory such as not
enough antimatter
in the universe (the
BB would have
created equal
amount of matter &
antimatter yet
there is far less
antimatter)
- 6 periods
of time
rather
than days
- Genesis is
literally what
happened
- properties of
water provide
Earth with a
natural air con,
coastal cities are
less hot in the
summer & less
cold in the winter
than inland cities
- the world is too
complex to be
anything other
than the work of
a creator God
- the world can't be the
result of a random
explosion like the BB
- Liberal
- Christians & Evolution
- Literalist
- Earth is
6000 years
old
- creation
is a
miracle
- claim that
there is no
fossil evidence
to prove that
man existed
more than 6000
years ago
- 17th Century
Archbishop James
Usher added the
ages in the Old
Testament &
proposed that the
creation of the world
was in 4004 BCE
making it 6000 years
old, scientists
believe that it is in
fact 4.54 billion
years old
- 6000 years is not
enough time for
evolution to have
reached this level
- Adam & Eve
were created
as adults &
were the 1st
humans
- fossil evidence is
considered by
some as evidence
for the Great Flood
- animals died
during the flood &
those are what
fossils are
- dinosaurs lived at the
same time as man but
became extinct after the
flood (they believe that
man & dinosaur must
have co-existed due to
the Earth's age)
- DNA is not
evidence of
evolution but
the direct
work of God
- "Evolution is a myth
and underneath the
covers is actually a
spiritual deception" -
www.creationsim.org
- "Evolution is a myth
and underneath the
covers is actually a
spiritual deception" -
www.creationsim.org
- DNA is not
evidence of
evolution but
the direct
work of God
- dinosaurs lived at the
same time as man but
became extinct after the
flood (they believe that
man & dinosaur must
have co-existed due to
the Earth's age)
- fossil evidence is
considered by
some as evidence
for the Great Flood
- animals died
during the flood &
those are what
fossils are
- Adam & Eve
were created
as adults &
were the 1st
humans
- 6000 years is not
enough time for
evolution to have
reached this level
- 17th Century
Archbishop James
Usher added the
ages in the Old
Testament &
proposed that the
creation of the world
was in 4004 BCE
making it 6000 years
old, scientists
believe that it is in
fact 4.54 billion
years old
- claim that
there is no
fossil evidence
to prove that
man existed
more than 6000
years ago
- creation
is a
miracle
- Earth is
6000 years
old
- Liberal
- open to Biblical
Criticism
- see the creationist
perception as
problematic due to
literalist approach
- theory of evolution
does not contradict
the belief that God
created human
beings
- humans are
radically
different from
animals - more
self-aware, able
to pray &
worship
- human consciousness
has moved beyond the
physical processes of
the body
- in animals the brain
controls instinct, as
species get more
complex the cortex
increases in size
- humans have a
brain 3 times larger
than would have
been predicted for a
primate of our size
- God brought
evolution to a point
where humanity as
we know it was
bound to occur
- humans have souls
- Genesis 1,
order from
chaos
- Evolution,
simple life
forms to
complex
ones
- Evolution,
simple life
forms to
complex
ones
- Genesis 1,
order from
chaos
- humans have souls
- God brought
evolution to a point
where humanity as
we know it was
bound to occur
- humans have a
brain 3 times larger
than would have
been predicted for a
primate of our size
- in animals the brain
controls instinct, as
species get more
complex the cortex
increases in size
- human consciousness
has moved beyond the
physical processes of
the body
- humans are
radically
different from
animals - more
self-aware, able
to pray &
worship
- theory of evolution
does not contradict
the belief that God
created human
beings
- see the creationist
perception as
problematic due to
literalist approach
- open to Biblical
Criticism
- Literalist
- Christians &
the BBT
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