RELG 340 - Science and Religion
Module 5
Module Learning Objectives and their relationships to Course Learning Objectives
Upon successful completion of this Module, you will be able to :
- Describe and discuss the views of a physicist on the Science and Religion dialogue. (CLO A)
- Describe and discuss some of the theories of cosmology and the origin of the universe. (CLO B)
- Describe and discuss how a physicist formulated a religious response to current scientific theories. (CLOs F & G)
Readings
- Quarks, Chaos, & Christianity : chapters 4, 5 & 6
- Notes for this Module
InterNet Links for this Module
- Biographies of people mentioned in the readings
- Links for this Module
- Other useful articles can be found by using Search Engines such as GoodSearch
- Remember - always cite your sources
Reading Report 5
- From chapter 4 : What was the theory about the structure of matter when Dr. Polkinghorne started his research in theoretical physics, and how did it develop subsequently
- How do "nothing-butters" (reductionists) see the world
- What does Dr. Polkinghorne think is the most surprising and significant thing in the history of the universe
- How does Dr. Polkinghorne deal with statements such as "human beings are genetic survival machines" and "human beings are computers made of meat"
- What mistake did the eighteenth-century physicists make regarding the nature of the universe
- What implications does the previous question have for twentieth-century (and twenty-first-century) biologists
- Besides scientists, what other groups of people have something to contribute to the account of human nature, and why
- According to Dr. Polkinghorne, what are some of the attractions of a religious account of human nature
- From chapter 5 : How did Dr. Polkinghorne pray for or with patients who were close to death
- What three things should we consider with regard to prayer
- How does Dr. Polkinghorne describe prayer (see p.92)
- What sorts of questions does Dr. Polkinghorne ask about prayer
- According to Dr. Polkinghorne, what is the first thing we are doing when we pray
- How does Dr. Polkinghorne use the example of laser light to illustrate the action of prayer
- What did John Lucas say about prayer, and how should this impact the way we pray
- From chapter 6 : According to Dr. Polkinghorne, how could some of Jesus' healing miracles be understood
- According to Dr. Polkinghorne, what types of miracle stories could be open to "natural" explanation, and what is his attitude towards them
- With regard to miracles, what can science tell us, and what can science not do
- According to Dr. Polkinghorne, what is strange in regard to Jesus' death, as compared to the deaths of religions leaders such as the Buddha
- According to Dr. Polkinghorne, what three things does the Resurrection of Jesus vindicate
Use MSWord or a text editor such as Notepad to prepare and save your work, then submit it as one document.
Discussion Board 5
Thread - Whom would you most like to have been :
Isaac Newton, Werner Heisenberg, Boris Podolski, Nathan Rosen?
Choose whom you would most like to have been, write an account of his life, and say why you chose him rather than any of the others.
Replies to 2 of your classmates' threads - If possible, choose Threads which deal with different people.
What are your thoughts about the people chosen, and their influence on the dialog between Science and Religion?
Copyright © 1999 Shirley J. Rollinson, all Rights Reserved
