Re: Separation of science and religion
Moorad Alexanian (alexanian@UNCWIL.EDU)
Tue, 18 Nov 1997 16:33:27 -0500 (EST)At 03:44 PM 11/18/97 -0500, George Murphy wrote:
>Moorad Alexanian wrote:
>> The statement is that religion, whose subject
>> matter is the spiritual, when making scientific statements is going outside
>> its bounds into another discipline, science.
>
> Christianity is "spiritual" in the sense that it has to do with
>our relationship with God, but not in the sense that it isn't interested
>in the material world. Creation, Incarnation, sacraments, corporal
>works of mercy, & resurrection of the body are major aspects of the
>faith. Thus the concerns of science & theology certainly overlap -
>though that doesn't make natural science part of theology or vice versa.
>OTOH, it is appropriate for Christians to place science in the context
>of Christian thought in order better to understand creation &c. (& that
>is of practical, as well as theoretical, significance. We can "visit
>the sick" most effectively if we know about medical science as well as
>the gospel.)
> George Murphy
It is true that "Creation, Incarnation, sacraments, corporal works of mercy,
& resurrection of the body are major aspects of the faith" but they are not
the subject matter of science. It is also true that "we can visit the sick
most effectively if we know about medical science as well as the gospel" but
that is true since we would be healing not only the body but also the spirit
of the patient. Faith does have an effect on the well being of an individual
but it is not presently the subject matter of science. Let us not forget
that man is mind, body and spirit and each element may be studied by the
appropriate disciple. However, eventually the different forms of knowledge
have to be integrated to give us a true picture of what man is.
Moorad