God and the Natural Sciences (HPSC20020)
Undergraduate level 2Points: 12.5On Campus (Parkville)
Overview
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Recent popular debates over the relationship between science and religion have too often degenerated into shouted polemics between religious fundamentalists and new atheists. Yet many of the really important historical, philosophical and theological questions call for more careful scholarly attention. This subject examines the complex relationship between religion and the natural sciences. Historically, religious concerns guided the science of Kepler, Newton and many other pioneers of the Scientific Revolution. For them, studying the universe demonstrated the attributes of God. This view was eventually replaced by radically different ones: to some science and religion are necessarily antagonistic, to others they belong to separate realms, while others still see a mutually illuminating consonance between the two. We examine this shift, the reasoning (good and bad) behind it and its residues, and the way these views have shaped contemporary debates over God and the natural sciences.
In the second half of the subject, we explore some of the metaphysical, theological and existential questions arising from Darwinian evolutionary and modern cosmology, before offering some final reflections on the relationship between the 'personal God' of religious experience and the 'philosophers God' posited to explain facts about the natural world.
Intended learning outcomes
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- Arrive at a deeper understanding of the complex historical relationship between religion, theology and the natural sciences, across a range of historical periods including the early modern period and the nineteenth century
- Systematically reflect on philosophical questions raised by modern science and religion
- Engage in some of the contemporary philosophical debates in cosmology, evolutionary biology and neuroscience
- Infer systematically about difficult intellectual problems of an abstract nature
- Conduct independent research, speaking and writing clearly and reading carefully
- Utilize methods of critical analysis and argument, leading to improved general reasoning and analytical skills.
Generic skills
On completion of this subject, students should be able to:
- Apply research skills through competent use of the library and other information sources
- Conduct Critical analysis of texts, images, and objects
- Consolidate multiple viewpoints in a responsible and ethical manner
- Develop problem-solving and analytical skills
- Engage with real world ideas and problems.
Last updated: 9 April 2025