1 in 4 Americans Still Geocentric — Statistics released by the National Science Foundation indicate that to the question “Does the Earth go around the Sun, or does the Sun go around the Earth,” 26 percent of those surveyed answered incorrectly. In the same survey, just 39 percent answered correctly (true) that “The universe began […]
Items included on this page come from a variety of sources. The perspectives conveyed may or may not express a Lutheran ethos. They can serve our instruction as discussion-starters, examples (positive and negative), and illustrations of intersections between God’s two kingdoms, intersections sometimes characterized by tension, sometimes by congruence. Inclusion does not imply endorsement.
Rethinking the Origins Debate
Rethinking the Origins Debate — Most Americans—and most Christians—do not fall neatly into creationist or evolutionist camps. This critique of polling techniques challenges the conflict model in the science-and-religion discussion and contends that the usual surveys conflate nuanced and complex beliefs, forcing responses into convenient but inaccurate labels. The piece could be used in course […]
What Scientific Idea is Ready for Retirement?
What Scientific Idea is Ready for Retirement? — This is the annual question-at-large from Edge.org that generated over 170 responses from scientists, artists, scholars and public figures. Several entries might be used as brief points of departure for two-kingdoms and science-and-religion topics. For ex, the first entry would retire the-theory-of-everything projects. The second entry by […]
The Closing of the Scientific Mind
The Closing of the Scientific Mind — A critique on trends and voices in the sciences that, in the author’s view, overstep what science can claim. David Gelernter is a professor of computer science at Yale
Are We Genetically Inclined to Be Materialistic?
Are We Genetically Inclined to Be Materialistic? — New research suggests certain cultures place a brake on what social scientists call “the endowment effect,” whereas capitalistic societies put it on steroids. This 5 min. audio clip might be used to explore a biblical anthropology, the nature of community, or other themes related to human nature.
Science as Bits and Pieces
Science as Bits and Pieces — Philip Kitcher doubts the Grand Theory claims for science. His essay argues that science is not metaphysics but pragmatics and that the case for a seamless science is highly overrated, particularly by those who would like science to supplant religion. See Can Science Explain Everything? for a follow-up discussion.
Christian Perspectives on Animal Rights
Christian Perspectives on Animal Rights — Animal welfare is a lively topic among Christians in the United States and England, including some political or theological conservatives. As Christians ask how their faith requires them to treat animals, they may force animal rights activists, a mostly secular lot, to reconsider their views on Christians.
How Christianity Makes Emotional Sense
How Christianity Makes “Emotional Sense” — A discussion on the limits of reason and argument in witness and apologetics as well as the role of the affective character in faith and convictions.
Two Inventories on Moral Response and Reasoning
Two Inventories on Moral Response and Reasoning – These two unrelated sources offer a variety of topics, features, and examples that might be used in various disciplines from genetics to philosophy. Radiolab Season 2/Episode 3, Morality, includes several vignettes of the current usual topics in science and morality. The Evolution of Conscience from First Things […]
Science Supremacists: a Discussion in The New Republic
Science Supremacists — There’s a fight going on in the pages of The New Republic. Over the last couple of months, evolutionary psychologist Steven Pinker has been duking it out with Leon Wieseltier, literary editor of the magazine, over two great human endeavors: science and the humanities.
Models, Examples, and Suggestions for Instruction
True Paradox: How Christianity Make Sense of Our Complex World by David Skeel (Veritas Books IVP, 2014)
David Skeel teaches corporate law at the UofPenn Law School. This book calmly presents five chapters in 160 pages that explain the Christian account of life to a skeptical, distracted, yet still-interested society. No simple answers here to human complexities. Rather, Skeel discusses how these complexities point us toward Christ.
