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In the late 1800s, two books were published in the United States, arguing that science and religion were locked in an inevitable zero-sum conflict that would only be resolved when one winner emerged and completely vanquished its opponent. This viewpoint came to be called the “warfare thesis.” At the time of their publication, both books were severely criticized by book reviewers for shoddy scholarship and rampant unfairness. The reviewers’ critical assessments have subsequently been confirmed by historians.

Yet, despite their dubious scholarship and questionable arguments, both books have cast an outsized shadow over American culture for the past 150-odd years. The myth of an inevitable, brutal conflict between science and spirituality skews the way many people think about both science and also spirituality. This fallacy provides a distorted lens through which we view other historical figures and events.

In this episode, we will re-examine three historical episodes where persons of science were allegedly persecuted or condemned for their scientific research or teaching by “religious people.” Under the guidance of a historian, we will look at the actual facts, the contexts, and other influential factors in each of these episodes. The results of our investigation will prove fascinating.

For Further Reading:

The Warfare Between Science and Religion, The Idea that Wouldn’t Die, edited by Jeff Hardin, Ronald L. Numbers, and Ronald A. Binzley, Baltimore Johns Hokins University Press, 2018, is a collection of essays by historians that includes an examination of the two books by Draper and White, as well as a careful examination of the “Galileo affair.”

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In this episode, we will explore an important question in scientific cosmology and spirituality: Our universe contains a number of physical constants woven into diverse equations that govern physical laws and determine the conditions for life. Over the years, physicists have marveled at how the values of these physical constants are just right for the emergence of carbon-based life, such as humans. In fact, these values appear to be perfectly fine tuned for life. Why is that?

Physicists call this phenomenon the “Anthropic Principle” because it enables human life. This Anthropic Principle raises an intriguing question: Was it just a lucky coincidence that these physical constants are just right for the emergence of carbon-based life? Or, do these well calibrated physical constants provide evidence of Design? In other words, did some “Higher Power”—God, perhaps—design the universe so that life would emerge as part of the evolutionary process? This is a real puzzle.

In this episode, we will examine this puzzle, with the assistance of Dr. Gintaras Duda, who is Chair of the Physics Department at Creighton University in Omaha.

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Since Ian Barbour’s pioneering work in the mid-1960s, there has been a lively dialogue between spirituality and many scientific disciplines, including physics, biology, neuroscience, and genetics. By comparison, there has been relatively little dialogue between spirituality and mathematics. In this episode, Richard explores this emerging intersection with Dr. Sarah Voss, a mathematician and ordained pastor in the Unitarian Universalist Church. They also discuss her book, A Math Mystic’s Guide to Creative Spirituality.

Dr. Voss has dedicated much of her life to nurturing an emerging dialogue between math and spirituality. One of her most important contributions has been the development of “Mathaphors,” a word that she coined. Mathaphors occur when someone uses a law or insight from mathematics as a metaphor to understand some aspect of spirituality. For instance, Voss uses Snell’s rule—which describes how light bends, or refracts, when it passes from one transparent medium to another—as a Mathaphor to describe the human spirit when it experiences redemption.

In addition to Mathaphors, Richard and Sarah discuss how to affirm and learn from different religions in a pluralistic society. They also reflect on mysticism as a contributing component of the mathematics and spirituality interface.

Books Cited:

Sarah Voss, Math Mystic’s guide to Creative Spirituality, Wipf & Stock, Eugene, Oregon, 2024.

John Hick, An Interpretation of Religion: Human Response to the Transcendent, Yale University Press, New Haven, Connecticut, 1989.

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Richard discusses the different ways ethics can inform the science and spirituality relationship. To lay the groundwork for his exploration of ethics in science and spirituality, Richard begins by drawing two very important distinctions: First, he discusses the distinction between ethics and morality. Second, he explains the distinction between secular or philosophical ethics versus religious or spiritual ethics.

From there, Richard proposes a Fivefold typology for relating religious or spiritual ethics with science. The five categories are:

1. Separation. In this category, spiritual ethics and science are kept completely separate from one another.
2. Independent Incorporation. Here, persons of faith reach ethical conclusions based solely on their interpretation of their religious tradition’s teachings and sacred scriptures concerning a particular issue. However, after reaching their ethical position, they will then invoke scientific observation and research to buttress their ethical conclusion or make it more accessible to others who do not share the same religious perspective. The key here is that their ethical position is predetermined before they draw from science.
3. Scientifically Informed. In this category, religious ethics incorporates scientific research and data into its ethical reflection. That is, scientific discoveries actually shape and influence the reflections, deliberations, and conclusions of spiritual ethics.
4. Mutually Informing. In this category, spiritual ethics and science mutually inform one another at the applied level. Spiritual ethics and science mutually shape and inform one another on particular ethical questions. Two examples of mutually informing are: (1) What ethical obligations would human space explorers owe to non-sentient extraterrestrial life, if it were discovered in our solar system? and (2) What are the ethical considerations for the use of the new genetic technology, CRISPR?
5. Foundation Integration. This category is at a deeper level than “Mutually Informing.” In this category, spiritual ethics and science mutually inform one another at the meta- or foundational level. Science and spiritual ethics will be used to inform the foundational assumptions, building blocks, and paradigms of one another. This mutual informing frequently occurs around the question, “What does it mean to be human?”

For Further Information:

• “We need to talk about human genome editing,” (Editorial) 8 January 2025,Nature 637, 252 (2025).
• Exploring the Origin, Extent, and Future of Life: Philosophical, Theological and Ethical Perspectives, ed. Connie Bertka, Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 2009. (This volume contains a collection of essays written by NASA scientists, as well as religious ethicists and theologians, concerning the obligations human space explorers may owe to non-sentient extraterrestrial life, if it is discovered in our Solar System.

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In this solo episode, Richard Randolph begins by acknowledging the disastrous misunderstanding prevalent in society that science and spirituality are somehow locked in a bitter winner-take-all conflict for supremacy. Against this false myth, Richard asserts that, on the contrary, most religions and spiritualities have historically supported and nurtured science as an important human endeavor. He provides evidence supporting this claim from Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism, Native American perspectives, and Christianity.

Richard claims that science can actually deepen and strengthen our religious faith or spirituality. He provides three illustrations of this claim, based upon his personal experiences in life. These three illustrations draw from scientific cosmology, ornithology, and quantum physics. He concludes by suggesting that people from other spiritual backgrounds may also find that the sciences can actually deepen and strengthen their spiritualities, as well.

For further information:

Gregory Cajete, Native Science, Natural Laws of Interdependence, Santa Fe, New Mexico: Clear Light Books, 2000.

Shawn Wilson, Research Is Ceremony, Indigenous Research Methods, Fernwood Publishing, 2008.

For more information about Sandhill cranes, check out the Rowe Sanctuary website at: https://rowe.audubon.org/.

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In this solo episode, Richard Randolph does a deep dive into our understanding of spirituality. He acknowledges that people have different spiritualities. Yet at the same time, he believes that these diverse spiritualities all share a common core of seven attributes, which are essential for authentic spirituality. These seven attributes are:

1. Openness
2. Being part of something larger than oneself
3. Loving kindness
4. Forgiveness
5. Humility
6. Gratitude
7. Disciplined Spiritual Practice

To share your thoughts on this episode, and all episodes, email him at richard@scienceandspirituality.org.

References of Books Quoted.

• Lisa Miller, The Awakened Brain, The Psychology of Spirituality Penguin Books, 2021. (The quotation is found on page 8.)
• Shawn Wilson, Research Is Ceremony, Indigenous Research Methods, Fernwood Publishing, 2008. (The quotation is found on page 91.)

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Robert J. Russell is a very unique individual and highly qualified in the area of science and spirituality. Now retired, he has a Ph.D. in Physics from the University of California, Santa Cruz and he is an ordained pastor in the United Church of Christ.

In this interview, Richard Randolph and Robert Russell discuss Christian theodicy--or, The Problem of Evil--and the theological challenge it poses for Christians. Here's the challenge: "How do we reconcile the presence of Evil in the world, if we believe that God is all-loving and all-knowing and all-powerful?"

They also discuss current research into Big Bang Cosmology and prevailing cosmological scenarios concerning the destiny of the universe. Then, they look at the Christian concept of God the Creator. Christian doctrine holds that God created the universe out of nothing and that God continues as an active Creator in the present.

Following the work of British cosmologist John Polkinghorne, Bob and Richard explore the possibility that God as Creator is also preparing to redeem all of Creation at the eschaton, or end time. This line of theological thought offers a unique pathway that Christians may follow as they try to reconcile the Problem of Evil in the world.

In the interview, Bob also explains his proposal for “creative mutual interaction.” This methodology proposes different paths that researchers in science and theology may use to interact with each other.

For more information,
Robert J. Russell, Cosmology: From Alpha to Omega, Fortress Press, 2008. (See especially Chapter 10 for Bob’s methodological proposal for “Creative Mutual Interaction” (CMI).

John Polkinghorne, The Faith of a Physicist, Princeton University Press, 1994.
Check out the website for The Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences at
https://www.ctns.org/.

(Please note that a longer, video version of this interview is available online on the Science and
Spirituality YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@ScienceSpiritualityInstitue.)

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In this episode, Richard explores the ethical challenges and spiritual questions raised by the new CRISPR technology with Dr. Marnie Gelbart, who is Director of Programs at the Harvard Medical School’s Personal Genetics Education & Dialogue Program (PGED).

Richard began with an overview of CRISPR technology, emphasizing its precision and potential cost-effectiveness. He emphasized that, in germline applications, CRISPR could potentially allow humans to control their own evolution. Richard also described the potential benefits of CRISPR in agriculture, medicine, and the environment.

He discussed the recent success of Colossal Biosciences, which used the CRISPR technology to revive the dire wolf, a species that has been extinct for over 10,000 years. Although they were not able to re-create in totality the dire wolf genome, the scientists were able to create a close phenotype—that is, a close physical approximation.

Marnie described her journey as a scientist, which ultimately led to her current position with PGED. She then described the recent approval of a CRISPR technology to treat the sickle cell disorder.

Marnie and Richard discussed the ethical challenges and spiritual questions raised by CRISPR. She emphasized the importance of fair access to CRISPR treatments and the need to build trust in the biomedical enterprise. We also discussed the philosophical and spiritual questions raised by CRISPR, especially the risk of undermining the respect and dignity owed human persons and the potential risk for the commodification of reproduction and children. We agreed on the importance of diverse perspectives on these challenges and questions, especially recognizing the partnership between science and spiritual perspectives.

For more information:

• Check out the PGED website at www.pged.org. (Be sure to download your free copy PGED’s new card game, “Share your stance on personal genetics.”
• Jennifer Doudna and Samuel Sternberg, A Crack in Creation, Gene Editing and the Unthinkable Power to Control Evolution, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2017. (Dr. Doudna was co-winner of the 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, awarded for her pioneering work on CRISPR.)
• The quotation from Nature in its 8 January 2025 Editorial reads in part, “The past few decades have shown that new technologies are being developed ahead of conversations on their ethics or social or environmental impacts. From the atomic bomb to artificial intelligence, discussions of risks, benefits, safety, regulations and transparency have had to play catch-up…[This] mistake should not be repeated[with genetic engineering].”

On Dire Wolves, see:

• D. T. Max, “Life After Death, The genetics startup that resurrected the dire wolf” in The New Yorker, 14 April 2025, pp. 30-39, 41.
• Andrea Thompson, “Did Scientists Actually De-Extinct the Dire Wolf?” in Scientific American, 8 April 2025, accessed online at https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/the-dire-wolf-isnt-back-but-heres-what-de-extinction-tech-can-actually-do/, 16 April 2025.