God and Science James Fodor, March 2017

Incompatibility

Independence (NOMA) “Science tries to document the factual character of the natural world, and to develop theories that coordinate and explain these facts. Religion, on the other hand, operates in the equally important, but utterly different, realm of human purposes, meanings, and values—subjects that the factual domain of science might illuminate, but can never resolve....These two magisteria do not overlap, nor do they encompass all inquiry (consider, for example, the magisterium of art and the meaning of beauty)” – Stephen Jay Gould

Concordance

The Conflict Thesis 1874

The Conflict Thesis “The history of Science is not a mere record of isolated discoveries; it is a narrative of the conflict of two contending powers, the expansive force of the human intellect on one side, and the compression arising from traditionary faith and human interests on the other.” – John Draper

The Conflict Thesis 1896

The Conflict Thesis “In all modern history, interference with science in the supposed interest of religion, no matter how conscientious such interference may have been, has resulted in the direst evils both to religion and to science—and invariably. And, on the other hand, all untrammeled scientific investigation, no matter how dangerous to religion some of its stages may have seemed, for the time, to be, has invariably resulted in the highest good of religion and of science.” - Andrew White

The Conflict Thesis “The vast majority of authors in the science and religion field is critical of the conflict model and believes it is based on a shallow and partisan reading of the historical record.” https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/religion-science/#ScieReliChri

The Conflict Thesis

Summary Table Conflict NOMA Concord Evolution Religious scientists Origin of life Galileo Active dialogue Fine tuning Gene technologies Oversimplified history Genetic information Big Bang Theory Fact/value distinction Origin of the universe Old Earth Consciousness Faith vs reason Laws of nature

1. Cosmological Argument P1. The universe began to exist P2. Everything that begins to exist has a cause P3. If the universe had a cause, that cause was a personal creator C. A personal creator exists

2. Teleological Argument P1. The universe is fine-tuned for the existence of embodied, intelligent life P2. The only explanations for this fine-tuning are chance, physical necessity, or design P3. Chance and physical necessity are not plausible explanations Fine-tuning can only be explained by design