Indeed, science is a subset of the theological, but theologians seem to have abandoned serious scientific research. Hundreds of years ago, the scientists were clergy men well trained in theology. Charles Darwin himself was an ordained minister. It was actually a part of qualifying to be a scientist. Virtually all of the institutions of higher learning were established by churches and clergy men. What happened that has brought us to where we are now, where science seems to be in the mindset of all as being the pillar of truth? The Scriptures say that the church is the pillar of truth. Does that statement correspond to anyone's thinking these days? We think of churches as social clubs built around theology, not as strong institutions of education where one can discover the treasures of wisdom and truth. Clearly, there has been a falling away among the churches and theologians. In fact, I find more theologians campaigning for the theory of evolution to explain origins, and more sure of evolution as being the right solution, than I do scientists. Nearly all of the pillars of evolution have expressed doubt and skepticism at one time or another that evolution is a satisfactory answer, but the theologians talk like it is an open and shut case.
There are a lot of reasons why this is the case. When I read scientific literature, I find a great amount of reductionistic thinking, skepticism, a willingness to disprove and discard false ideas. When I read theological literature, it is all about how to re-explain the same things over and over again. Reductionism is even a dirty word. Skepticism is discouraged. In all, it seems to be all about tickling ears with some new way to describe an old idea. Very disappointing, and even boring for me. I wish the churches would rise up again to be the pillar of truth and wisdom that God has ordained for them to be. I wish they would embrace education strongly and do a better job than the public school system. I wish our understanding of the separation of church and state was such that it did not discriminate against religious institutions of learning. I wish the churches did not discourage the tools of science which have helped it progress rapidly in the accumulation of knowledge; namely, reductionism and skepticism should not be dirty words. Neither should the word "dualism" be shunned. These aspects of theology hurt the progress of knowledge and wisdom. You had asked about literature, perhaps in relationship to this. I would never consider teaching a course on Theology and Science without including Thomas Kuhn's classic work (which your friend Victor did, btw) but also Karl Popper's, "The Logic of Scientific Discovery" and J.R. Platt's classic 1964 publication in Science, "Strong Inference." I have brought these works up before, and you ridiculed me for even mentioning such "dated" publications. The thing is, these works do help convey how science is different from other disciplines of learning, and what makes science progress rapidly in knowledge and wisdom while other systems stagnate. Not every scientist agrees that these men are right, but most of the colleagues I have been associated with do and most of what they say resonates with my understanding very well. Their works are not the newest fad, but they make timeless good points nonetheless. I think they truly help pinpoint why science has been successful over the last few hundred years in advancing knowledge. David Miller. ----- Original Message ----- From: Lance Muir To: TruthTalk@mail.innglory.org Sent: Monday, January 16, 2006 6:47 AM Subject: [TruthTalk] Why more theology than science? DM: I should be pleased to put you in touch with Dr. Shepherd. He's open to substantive input as the course will not be taught until September, 2007. Please remind me of your scientific credentials so that I might commend you to him. Just a thought re: your query: As the cosmos is the God's and, not that of the scientists perhaps the scientific considerations ought be subsumed under the theological. Lance ---------- "Let your speech be always with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer every man." (Colossians 4:6) http://www.InnGlory.org If you do not want to receive posts from this list, send an email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and you will be unsubscribed. If you have a friend who wants to join, tell him to send an e-mail to [EMAIL PROTECTED] and he will be subscribed.
