The Convergence of Science and Belief

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The Convergence of Science and Belief
Georges Mallet
The Convergence of Science and Belief
Georges Mallet
Academica PressWashington
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Mallet, Georges (author)
Title: The convergence of science and belief | Mallet, Georges.
Description: Washington : Academica Press, 2025. | Includes references.
Identifiers: LCCN 2021952081 | ISBN 9781680534184 (hardcover) | 9781680534191 (e-book)
In Loving Memory of My Mother
Acknowledgments
I am deeply grateful to my daughter, Laure, whose unwavering encouragement, invaluable technical advice, and wholehearted dedication have been instrumental in promoting my work.
My heartfelt thanks also go to my partner, Joëlle, and my son, Frédéric, whose steadfast support and thoughtful guidance were a constant source of strength throughout the writing process.
The infectious enthusiasm of my grandchildren, Maxence and Tristan, who championed me as a "writer" among their acquaintances, has been inspiring and motivating.
I am equally thankful to the readers of my previous essay "Les scientifiques et Dieu" for their insightful and constructive feedback, which has helped me grow as a writer.
A special thank-you to Christopher Rex for his generosity in spontaneously offering me to create my first cover.
Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Prolegomena xv
Chapiter 1.Overview of the interplay between Science and Religion 1
Chapter 2.The Minds that shaped our understanding of the universe 7
2.1. Axial Era: From the dawn of the8th century to the beginning of the 2nd century BC. 11
2.2. The Masters [Th] 15
2.3. Birth of Jesus Christ: Year 0 ofthe Gregorian calendar of the so-called "Christian Era." 21
2.4. Church Fathers: Reason as an ally of Faith. 24
2.5. 7th to 13th century. Hellenization of the Arab-Islamic world 26
2.6. 14th to 17th century: Introduction to heliocentrism 37
2.7. 17th century: Development of experimental sciences,Physics becomes Mathematics, The telescope gives access tothe universe =& Heliocentrism* Theory of Gravitation:Newton unifies Heaven and Earth 40
2.8. 18th Century: The Age of Enlightenmentchampioned by rationalist thinkers 63
2.9. 19th-century: The Atom Electromagneticwaves - Maxwell's equations 65
2.10. 20th century Theories of quantum and Relativity, Einsteinunifies space and time, mass and energy Expansion of the universeTelescopes operating: in I-R, Radio waves, and X-rays, allow us tosee a new facet of the universe that is no longer limited to ourgalaxy and invisible to our eyes. 77
2.11. 21st century Human Genome: The Language of God?Will gravitational waves replace Galileo's telescope? 127
Appendix 1.. Illustration of a misuse ofthe 3 first proposals of the Kalam. (ref.90, p. 27) 140
Appendix 2. 141
Chapter 3.Unraveling the Mysteries of the Universe 143
3.1. Warning. 143
3.2. Our universe history through the Big Bang theory. 145
Appendix 3: Before the Bang. 174
Chapter 4.Beyond the Bang: Unveiling the Cosmic Tapestry 177
4.1. The Cosmic Inflationary Expansion. 177
4.1.1. Description 177
4.1.2. Contributions. 179
4.1.3. Flat Infinite Space. 181
4.2. Multiverse or Multiple Universes. 181
4.2.1. The fascinating Branary Universe. 182
4.2.2. Cyclic universes. 183
4.3. CCC theory (Conformal Cyclic Cosmology) [Pen] 184
Chapter 5.Scientists speak out 189
5.1. Should the text of Genesis be taken literally? 190
5.1.1 The Creation of the Universe. 195
5.1.2. Man, the Image of God? 201
5.2. Is the universe the result of chance or a divine plan?Insights from specialists. 210
5.3. Is life on Earth the result of chance? 217
5.4. Does the theory of evolution (1859) contradict Genesis? 233
5.5. Does scientific rationality exclude faith? 254
5.6. Is this world the best of all worlds? 292
5.7. Why did God allow Evil? 297
5.8. Is death an end in itself? 307
Conclusion 311
Bibliography 321
Authors 331
Glossary 357
To our esteemed readers!
You will make a captivating journey across science and spirituality within these pages. We've dedicated a significant portion of this work to delve into the most groundbreaking scientific discoveries. Why, you may ask? Because, just as materialists cannot confirm or deny God's existence, neither can scientists. However, scientific breakthroughs serve as objective building blocks, empowering us to engage our intellect and craft our perspective on this profound question. These insights can complem
The initial section, comprising chapters 2 to 4, is tailored to kindle the curiosity of high school students entering the fifth year in England or 10th grade in the United States. However, you don't need to embark on a linear reading journey. If you are well-versed in the realm of science and are eager to delve into the opinions of esteemed scientists you have encountered before, feel free to skip ahead. You can always return to these chapters through the convenient Author Name Index (Pp. 331-35
Welcome to a world where science and spirituality intertwine, inviting you to explore the profound mysteries that lie at the heart of our existence.
Happy Readings!
Prolegomena
Why is there something rather than nothing?
G. Leibniz[Lz2]
From the dawn of time, humanity has been fascinated by the origins of life, leading to passionate debates and countless theories. Every civilization has sought to unlock the mysteries of nature, which once terrified our ancestors, prompting them to associate gods with celestial bodies. This curiosity sets humans apart from other creatures, driven by our pursuit of knowledge and rational understanding.
The Genesis story, foundational to the three Abrahamic religions, attributes the creation of the universe and humanity to God. This belief has persisted, aided by religious leaders who have preserved these teachings. Yet, ancient Greek philosophers, known as "pre-Socratics," sought to explain the natural world by physical and mechanical means, without dismissing the existence of deities. Aristotle, often called the "Father of Logic," acknowledged the importance of Physics for understanding natur
Pope John Paul II explains in his Encyclical "Fides et Ratio" [JP] (p. 37) that:
"...deep in the heart of man are sown the desire and longing for God,"
opinion shared by most religions.
So, Leibniz's question remains pertinent as our scientific understanding continues to evolve, although a definitive answer remains elusive.
Faith is not a cultural inheritance but a personal choice based on trust in God's love for us. Rooted in Christ's message and the stories of early Christians, martyrs, and saints, our faith teaches us "moral law," and the concepts of good and evil. Blaise Pascal, argues that faith doesn't need science to prove God's existence, as Scripture states:
"...God is a hidden God. it is the heart that feels God, not reason...."
So, as a scientist and Christian believer, why do I choose to show that faith and science can coexist and even complement each other, using examples from some of history's most famous scientists
convinced that truth is not based on the reputation of the one who states it, whether he is a Nobel Prize winner (a prize that has only existed since 1901) or not?
I aim to nourish, inspire, and challenge the faith of those around me, helping them see that even "rationalists" and "materialists" can appreciate the profound connection between science and belief in a higher power. In this exploration, I won't exclude agnostics or atheists whose work has significantly contributed to the progress of science. St. Thomas Aquinas once said:
"What one man can bring through his geniusis little compared to the whole of science."
I recognize that this essay may draw criticism, both constructive (which I'll appreciate) and baseless (which I'll ignore). However, if it helps even one person see the harmony between faith and science, I'll consider my mission accomplished. In this way, I hope to engage young readers in a meaningful conversation about the interconnectedness of Faith and science in our quest to understand the world around us.
Atheists of good faith, hope that scientists will prove the non-existence of God. In the meantime, let them meditate on the aphorism of the philosopher Sir Anthony Kenny (Liverpool 1931):
"After all, if there is no God, then God is in an incalculable way the greatest creation of the human imagination...."
Chapiter 1. Overview of the interplay between Science and Religion
"For a long time, we thought that science wasgoing to chase away the religious function, that was a mistake."
Hubert Reeves
The interplay between science and faith has sparked countless debates with materialist thinkers claiming rationality as their stronghold. These are the same "common sense advocates" who cried foul when Albert Einstein an assistant examiner in Bern at the Swiss patent Office, proposed his Theory of Relativity, inviting us to review our relationship with time and space. However, reason and logic are not exclusive to science and philosophy
they have played pivotal roles in establishing the doctrin
In Chapter 2 we will embark with the great scientists on a journey through the main steps that have led us to our current understanding of the Universe. It is important to note that our knowledge remains incomplete, yet it should not undermine the Faith of those who hold it. Nor, should it be used to establish faith solely on scientific foundations, as some have erroneously attempted with the emergence of the Big Bang theory (cf. chap.3).
We will see that, as far back as the 7th century B.C., Hellenistic philosophers embarked on a quest to unravel the mysteries of nature, seeking mechanistic explanations instead of relying on poetic and mythological interpretations. These philosophers, known as "the Ionians," delved into the enigmatic workings of the natural world while still acknowledging the existence of divinities. However, their radical ideas were met with resistance by some Athenians, who accused them of denying gods' powers
In parallel, the Persians embraced Zoroastrianism, a monotheistic religion centered around Ahura Mazda as the supreme god. Meanwhile, India was already practicing Buddhism and Brahminic Hinduism, with Hinduists drawing wisdom from the Vedas, ancient Sanskrit texts. The Vedas dating back 5,000 years before our era, encompassed various branches of knowledge and became the foundation for the development of Vedäntasütras, revealing the essence of the Vedas.
The destruction of "Milesian School" by the Persians in 494 B.C., and the emergence of the "Eleatic School" paved the way for the flourishing of Greek scientific philosophy. Although the proposed solutions were rudimentary, these philosophers laid the groundwork for future philosophical masters, who would shape the history course.
At the beginning of the 4th century B.C. philosophical systems were already advanced but with many unanswered questions. However, the decline of Hellenistic philosophy coincided with geopolitical shifts
as Rome's dominion expanded over Greek cities, leading to a transformation in philosophical themes. During the prosperous period of the Roman Empire, philosophy evolved toward materialism, skepticism, and mysticism, intertwining with Judaism and Christianity in Alexandria.
Neoplatonism emerged under the guidance of influential philosophers like Philon of Alexandria, contributing to the development of Christian philosophy. Early Church Fathers and thinkers such as Origen and Plotinus, alongside St Augustine of Hippo, achieved a significant synthesis of philosophical and theological thought. Their contributions fostered the Hellenization of the Muslim empire during the Middle Ages, as Arabic spread from India to Spain, blending Indian, Sassanid, Jewish, Christian, B
The Renaissance, which began in the middle of the 15th century, coming from Italy and spreading rapidly throughout Europe, brought about an artistic and cultural renovation. This movement challenged the predominant focus on God. Besides, with the advent of Johannes Gutenberg's movable metal type press, allowing the printing of both sides of a sheet of paper, knowledge became more accessible, allowing the dissemination of biblical texts (the Bible was 1455 the 1st book printed by this process), G
The scientific revolution of the 20th century revolutionized humanity's understanding of the Universe. Geniuses such as Galileo Galilei a convinced Catholic, Johannes Kepler a Lutheran Protestant, Nicolas Copernicus, a Catholic canon, René Descartes a Catholic, and Isaac Newton an Anglican played pivotal roles in this transformation. Galilei's observations through the telescope challenged the geocentric model, while Kepler's laws of heliocentric motion unveiled the harmony and mathematical preci
The subsequent centuries witnessed remarkable advancements in physics, with Albert Einstein's theories of relativity reshaping our understanding of time, space, and gravity
allowing scientists to reach the infinitely large (from a few km to the limits of the known universe, that is of the order of 1024 km), the quantum mechanics delved into the peculiar nature of the real world, revealing the fundamental uncertainties and interconnectedness of the subatomic world allowing the interpretation of
"Modern atomic physics has pushed the natural sciences off the materialistic path they were on in the nineteenth century."
In recent years the detection of gravitational waves has provided further evidence of cosmic events that occurred billions (109) of years ago.
While Science has made tremendous progress in unraveling the mysteries of the universe, allowing us for example, to know that the history of the universe began 13.8 billion (13.8.109) years ago: "instant 0," and that the Big Bang model can explain scientifically the sequence of events that occurred since Planck's time tP (= 10-43 s), to the present day, some fundamental questions still elude our grasp:
- What preceded the Big Bang? Although I have great respect for St. Augustine I don't agree with his provocative answer:
"...before God created heaven and earth, he made nothing," [Aug1]
An answer to a question he asked himself [Aug], echoing the one he was often asked:
"...what did God do before he created heaven and earth"?
- What were the initial conditions of the universe? Here, the religious belief steps in, offering answers rooted in faith, spirituality, and the quest for transcendence. Religion continues to provide a source of solace, purpose, and moral guidance, addressing questions that science alone cannot answer.
We will meet some, for whom Faith and Science are inseparable. This is the case of the Jewish scientist, Rabbi Carl Feit:
"Religion and science are two ways of studying the world, and each guides our search for understanding."
As well as the 1964 Nobel Prize for Physics, the Protestant Ch. Townes professes that there are:
"convergence between science and religion," [To]
although, the former is based on rationality and the latter on revelation. He demonstrates that the gap between scientific intuition and revelation is narrow or even non-existent.
We cannot scientifically prove God's existence, nor that He is the Universe's Creator because God does enter in the scientific parameters which are only concerned with the matter. Also, I adhere to the following proposals of A. Einstein:
"...science can only affirm what is, but not what ought to be...Religion, on the other hand, deals only with the values of human thought and action."
This idea, that humanity needs both the "wings" of science and religion to progress and find balance, is consistent with Baha'i teachings, a collection of talks and writings of Abdu'l-Baha the eldest son of Abdu'lBaha, the founder and central figure of Baha'i faith, a distinct faith that emerged from Islam in the 19th century in Persia (now Iran), and is characterized by its belief in the unity of all religions, the oneness of humanity, and the promotion of world peace. According to it, Baha'u'l
"Religion and science are the two wings upon which man's intelligence can soar into the heights, with which the human soul can progress. It is not possible to fly with one wing alone."
More recently, St. John Paul II had a similar point of view and stated in the preamble to his Encyclical "Fides et Ratio" [JP]:
"FAITH AND REASON are like the two wings that enable the human spirit to soar toward the contemplation of truth. It is God who has placed in the heart of man the desire to know the truth and, in the end, to know Himself so that, knowing and loving Him, he can attain the full truth about himself."
These two last quotes underscore the idea, shared by other religious leaders, that science and religion can work together, rather than being in conflict.
Chapter 2. The Minds that shaped our understanding of the universe
2.1. Axial Era: From the dawn of the 8th century to the beginning of the 2nd century BC.
2.2. The Masters [Th]
2.3. Birth of Jesus Christ: Year 0 of the Gregorian calendar65F of the so-called "Christian Era."
2.4. Church Fathers: Reason as an ally of Faith.
2.5. 7th to 13th century. Hellenization of the Arab-Islamic world
2.6. 14th to 17th century: Introduction to heliocentrism
2.7. 17th century: Development of experimental sciences, Physics becomes Mathematics, The telescope gives access to the universe =& Heliocentrism* Theory of Gravitation: Newton unifies Heaven and Earth141F
2.8. 18th Century: The Age of Enlightenment championed by rationalist thinkers
2.9. 19th-century: The Atom Electromagnetic waves - Maxwell's equations
2.10. 20th century Theories of quantum and Relativity, Einstein unifies space and time, mass and energy Expansion of the universe Telescopes operating: in I-R, Radio waves, and X-rays, allow us to see a new facet of the universe that is no longer limi...
2.11. 21st century Human Genome: The Language of God? Will gravitational waves replace Galileo's telescope?
Appendix 1.. Illustration of a misuse of the 3 first proposals of the Kalam. (ref.90, p. 27)
Appendix 2.
"The heavens tell of the glory of God
the firmament publishes the work of his hands"
David Psalm 19:2
"By faith, we understand that the universe was ordered by the word of God,
so that what is visible originates from the invisible"
St Paul's Letter to the Hebrews 11: 3
"There can be no opposition between faith and science."
St. John Paul II
Caution. In this chapter, I aim to distill the key scientific breakthroughs that, much like assembling pieces of a puzzle, have brought us to our current understanding of the Universe. While this understanding is far from complete, it should not undermine the Faith of those who hold it, nor should it be misconstrued as an attempt to validate faith through science, as some have mistakenly done with the advent of the Big Bang theory.
This chapter invites the average reader to appreciate the remarkable qualities inherent in the laws governing the Universe and the fundamental particles. Without Life as we know it, these qualities could not exist
they are revealed through scientific progress. Moreover, it highlights how scientific advancements can prompt profound religious inquiries, paving the way for a meaningful dialogue between science and religion.
Belief in a higher power has deep roots in human history, serving as an innate and compelling need for individuals who have continually pondered the purpose, of their existence, their origins, and what lies beyond this life. As the philosopher E. Kant [Ka2] once aptly noted:
"Our reason has this peculiar fate, concerning one class of its knowledge, it is always troubled with questions which cannot be ignored because they spring from the very nature of reason, and which cannot be answered, because they transcend the powers of human reason."
In the beginning, men believed in the existence of more or less important gods that they had to honor in order not to suffer their wrath, then, of a Trinity, or even of a single God. Thus, archaeologists have found in the caves of Skhul and Qafzeh (in Israel) burials and funerary furniture dating back to the ancestors of Homo Sapiens and Neanderthals, that is to say, more than 100,000 years BC
similarly, rock paintings associated with shamanism (mediation between Man and the world of the spirit
The first traces of Greek mythology and Mycenean civilization go back to the 18th century before our era. The Universe and more particularly the Sky and the Earth, respectively assimilated to Ouranos (Saturn) the father and Gaia (Ge) the mother, would have generated the Titans, the first gods, monsters with superhuman forces. Following a titanic battle, the most powerful of them: Cronos, is sent to Tartarus by his son Zeus, who becomes the king of the gods. Although stronger than all his brother
The inhabitants of ancient Egypt (-3,150 to -50 B.C.), the union of Upper and Lower Egypt, respectively in the South and the North, adored gods who were eternal, like the soul, but did not believe in reincarnation. The cycles were very important: that of the Sun (24 hours), that of the great flood of the Nile (annual), and that of births and deaths. At that time, they shared the feeling that in the beginning there had been a "noun," a great primordial ocean, of which the Nile was a part, at the
In 69 Caligula had a temple built on the capitol in honor of Isis who then became the universal goddess: "the mother." A short parenthesis opened in the middle of the 14th century B.C. under the influence of Amenhotep IV who, completing the work of his predecessor, imposed Aten as the only God of Egypt, assimilating him to the Sun, thus making him a descendant of Atum-Re. He took advantage of this to attribute to himself the name of Akhenaten (the brilliance of Aten). The high priests, generally
For the Chinese, the universe is then the result of the interaction between Yin (Earth) and Yang (Heaven). This holistic vision with its alternating cycles was enough for them.
The Torah "Jewish Law" - comprising 613 commandments compiled in the Pentateuch - initially attributed to Moses, the second "man of God" (the first being Adam), includes Genesis teaching that God, infinite power, the perfectness form of existence, Creator of the Earth and Life, is eternal and elusive to human reason, is then law for the Hebrews. This may explain why they did not seek, in the beginning, to know scientifically the origins of the world and left the field open to the Greek, Ionian,
"This, in practice, is the faith of all physicists: the deeper we search, the greater our wonder, the greater our wonder at what we see."
Sura 67, 3-4. Quoted by A. Salam on receiving the Nobel Prize in Physics.
This period, as defined by the Christian existentialist philosopher Karl Jasper [Ja], seemed interesting to me because it is the temporal crossroads where humanity questioned the myths and customs, ... that gave rhythm to its life and gave rise to spirituality and the main religions that we know:
- Judaism in Palestine with the prophets Joshua, Samuel, Elijah, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, ... leading to the Bible,
- Zoroastrianism in Persia,
- Buddhism and Brahminic Hinduism in India with the Upanishads (ref.6-p.2), - Confucianism in China.
Considering the purpose of this essay, the pre-Socratic period, although pagan, is interesting because it gave birth to Greek scientific philosophy. The Ionians, who were at the "center" of the world, traveled a lot and were open to the ideas of other peoples, especially the Egyptians, whom they liked to visit to meet the scientists of the time, who were none other than the high priests. The first ones searched for the primordial substance that would explain the laws of Nature and free man from
- Water for Thales of Milet. Mathematician, he was trained in geometry in Egypt (we all studied in high school the "theorem of Thales" from which we can deduce, for example, the height of an object according to the length of its shadow, ...). When he wrote: "everything is full of gods" he went further than his contemporaries and assumed the presence of gods in certain inanimate objects. According to Aristotle, Thales was the first of the Ionian philosophers to believe that the universe was a big
- The Apeiron, for Anaximander, the initiator of meteorology, and a Thales' disciple. This indefinite substance could be assimilated to the ether, which had been conveyed until A. Einstein. Apeiron was [Bt] for its designer "immortal, imperishable and engendered," all the divine attributes of the time.
- Fire for Heraclitus of Ephesus, symbolized constant change. Fire is omnipresent (like the Sun), it was the divine symbol of Zoroastrianism, the first known monotheistic religion (ref.5-p.2). Heraclitus' principle is that:
"What exists is not being but becoming: there is the only reality in change. The real is only the being, it is absolute, the One, the Truth, the Goodness...."
Plato admired his philosophy. On the other hand, Aristotle attacked it because too much based on the field of the senses.
- The Air for Anaximenes. It is also essential to Life, and it can be transformed into water by condensation. Let's note that Diogenes of Sinope assimilated God (Zeus) into the Air.
- Fire and Earth for the Eleate Parmenides, a pupil of Xenophanes of Colophon. It remained of him a famous work: "Of the Nature" which treats the eternity of the being. With Zeno of Elea, his pupil, they made the distinction between the world of the senses which is subjective, material, thus degradable, and the Intelligible world, of "the universal Being," that of the Spirit, which is eternal, immutable, revealed by the Reason.
- Then, the 4 elements: Water, Air, Fire, and Earth were gathered by Empedocles of Agrigento. Let's note that at this time the Hindu currents directed by Brahmanas, had arrived at the same conclusion. He believed in the metempsychosis of the souls, in the expectation of a better future but, did not grant the gods any power in the organization and the conduct of the world [Bt].
The atom concept, an unbreakable particle, was probably introduced by Leucippus and his disciple Democritus
nevertheless, it will be necessary to wait 22 centuries so that the first modern atomic theory is worked out by John Dalton (1801). For Leucippus, the Earth was at the center of the world. Democritus sought, among other things, "the origin of the idea of gods" [Bt] and already envisaged the possibility that there were several universes, an idea taken up by Descartes and then at the end of
Let's note that among the 6 great philosophical currents coming from Brahmanism, two: the Vaisésika and the Nyaya were the followers of 9 basic substances, 4 of which were common to the 4 elements of Empedocles. These 9 substances have the properties of the atom
namely, eternity, uniqueness, and great number, B. Pullman [Pu] calls them "Indian atoms." For the followers of this religion, God omniscient, is one of the 2 variants of the soul which is one of the 5 other basic substances that they r
Philolaos of Crotone. Scientist, he is the first of the Greek philosophers to affirm that the Earth is not immobile but turns around a "central fire" (center of the world) distinct from the Sun, fire that he calls: "Hestia." Twenty centuries later, Copernicus would admit having been influenced by his work!
"The fundamental creative principle is found in mathematics. Therefore,in a certain sense, I consider it true and possible for pure thought toapprehend reality, as the ancients revered."
Albert Einstein ([Ei1] p. 134)
Socrates is an icon of philosophers. His intellectual journey in Physics led him to reject it, as well as the physicists. He said:
"... their physical science is impossible because the field of the world exceeds us and its study generates only contradictions
it is even impious, the gods having reserved this field to themselves: if it were possible moreover it would be useless to make the men good and happy."
Deeply troubled by the moral decay within Athenian society, Socrates attributed the blame to the sophists and the physicists who:
"... had applied themselves entirely to the study of Nature and, moved by a truly scientific spirit, had tried to reduce the moving multiplicity of things to the stable unity of a principle."
Yet, Socrates, demonstrating his merits, applied a scientific methodology to his philosophical quest for Wisdom. Despite his disdain for prevailing immorality, he embarked on a noble mission: the moral transformation of his fellow citizens. His unique approach involved direct dialogues, incorporating an "ironic" phase where he feigned ignorance to prompt his interlocutors to unveil their understanding. The "maieutic" aspect, reminiscent of his mother's midwifery and father's medical background,
While his condemnation of impiety met resistance, Socrates emerged as one of the most religious philosophers of his era. He proposed that the multitude of gods revered by his fellow citizens served a singular, imperceptible deity, not a creator, but an organizer of the universe. This divine force, encompassing the entire world, desired the well-being of its creations. Socrates urged veneration and beseeched humanity to seek guidance from this benevolent force to reach virtue and goodness.
In the captivating world of Plato's intellectual exploration, the realms of Physics and Astronomy intertwine with his profound philosophical musings. Plato a luminary of ancient thought, delved into the celestial mysteries with a fervor for meteors and a deep connection to Empedocles of Agrigento's four elements. Elevating his cosmology to new heights, Plato introduced a fifth element, sculpted by the hands of the demiurge, a mathematician of divine proportions. Plato, a devotee of Pythagoras, t
"Let no one enter here who is not a geometer,"
a testament to his awe for the timeless dance between numbers and geometric wonders.
In his magnum opus: the Timaeus[Pla], Plato orchestrates a symphony of intellect through the voices of Socrates, Timaeus, Critias, and Hermocrates. Their dialogue weaves a tapestry of Plato's scientific and political vision, anchored by five elements embodying the essence of matter.
Each of his 5 elements, which would be the smallest parts of the matter, corresponds to one of five regular polyhedra whose faces are identical, regular polygons:
- Fire, the fiery essence, symbolizing vision, is pictured by a tetrahedron: a pyramid with four identical faces in the form of equilateral triangles,
- Earth, grounded in materiality, takes the form of a cube with 6 identical square faces
each consisting of 4 half-equilateral triangles.
- Air dances in the octahedron, 8 identical faces, similar to those of fire,
- Water flows gracefully in the icosahedron: 20 identical faces, similar to the previous ones,
- Its fifth element is the dodecahedron, with 12 identical pentagonal faces, also made up of the basic elements of Pythagoras, mirroring the universe's foundation, an animated and organic whole, of spherical form.
Plato, the philosopher-pioneer, championed the Dialectic and metempsychosis, embracing the concept that learning is akin to remembering:
"Learning by reason is more like remembering previous knowledge than discovering entirely new truths."
He envisioned an ideal world beyond the senses and championed a Craftsman benevolent to all. Stating the timeless existence, Plato unfolded the canvas of eudemonism.
Shaped by the unjust trial of his mentor Socrates, Plato's quest crystallizes in defining the conditions of a just state.
Plato was:
- deist by some sides: believes in an eternal God, the Demiurge
efficient cause of the world who took hold of the five elements, eternal too, and shaped them (did not create them) in the most beautiful and best possible way, thus giving them a precise, particular form. But:
- Pagan, because kept all the gods of Greek mythology that were subordinate to God, making them faithful servants, emanations of the Royal Soul.
Nevertheless, he rejected from mythology all that seemed to him absurd in particular the "lying fables" of Homer, while recognizing his ignorance of the nature of the gods.
François-Joseph Thonnard [Th], a philosopher par excellence, ordained an Augustinian priest in 1922, encapsulated Plato's essence:
"... his philosophy is dominated and unified by the theory of IDEAS: the proper object of our science (dialectics) is the world of Ideas of which the sensible world is only the shadow or the copy."
Aristotle, the Master Mind of Metaphysics, often hailed as the "Prince of philosophers," was a towering intellect whose influence on the world of thought remains immeasurable. While physics was the science of nature's universal causes in his eyes, it paled in comparison to the grandeur of his magnum opus, /MMetaphysics. We will explore Aristotle's world, where he delved deep into metaphysical realms and expanded our understanding of the natural world.
a) Eudonism and Beyond: Aristotle a fervent follower of eudemonism, pursued the ultimate human good and happiness. Though he was a student of Plato, he did not share his Master's ideas. Instead, Aristotle charted his unique path in philosophy, making a profound impact that still resonates today.
b) The Four Elements and the Fifth Essence (fig. 1). Aristotle's elemental theories, based on the four "qualities" two active (hot and cold) and two passive (dry and humid), gave rise to the four classical elements: earth, water, air, and fire. To these, he introduced the enigmatic fifth element, the "ether," contributing to a richer understanding of the cosmos.
c) Convinced Anti-Atomist. In a world filled with countless particles, Aristotle rejected both the concept of the Atom and that of the Vacuum, believing it would hinder all forms of motion. Instead, he introduced the notion of Ylem, the fundamental substance from which all matter originates, containing infinite potential within itself. Today, physicists of particles call it: "the string" cf. § 4.2.1.
/
Fig.1. Elements and qualities
d) A Different Universe: Aristotle, drawing on the astronomical knowledge of his time, defended the "geocentric" model where the Earth (round), stood still at the center
while the Sun, the 5 Planets he had observed (Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn), the Moon and the stars turn around it. This was a radical stance, five centuries ahead of Ptolemy (ref.68-p.17), reflecting his deep-rooted beliefs and interpretation of ancient texts, like Genesis.
e) The First Motor: In Aristotle's world, rest was the natural state of all things. He postulated the existence of:
"a first, motor, immobile, pure (immaterial) Force and Thought, unalterable, omniscient, omnipotent, eternal" [Ro1],
Responsible for setting the world into motion. This concept would later inspire many philosophical and theological discussions.
f) A Universe without a Creator: Aristotle challenged the prevailing idea of a god as a creator. He rejected the notion of a temporal beginning of the world, envisioning a universe that had always existed. His ideas had profound implications for the understanding of time and matter.
g) The Unity of Body and Soul: In Aristotle's philosophy, the soul was the essence of all living beings. He posited that human souls possessed not only the faculties of plants and animals but also the intellectual capacity for reasoning, distinguishing us as unique creatures.
h) Dynamics and the Four Causes: Aristotle's "Physics" (eight books) delves into the dynamics of the natural world, guided by his theory of the four causes. He explored the natural places of the elements and made distinctions between natural and violent motion, providing valuable insights into the concept of motion.
i) The Legacy of Impetus Theory: to address specific cases of motion, Aristotle introduced "Impetus theory," which evolved over centuries, finding its way into the works of philosophers and scientists like Philoponus (490-570 A-C), and Avicenna (ref.101, p.30) This theory eventually made room for Newton's groundbreaking first law of motion, also named "Inertia law," solidifying the framework for understanding how objects behave in the absence of forces.
In conclusion, Aristotle's profound philosophical insights and scientific inquiries continue to inspire and shape our understanding of the world. His pursuit of metaphysical truths, his theories on the elements, and his unique perspectives on motion and the cosmos ensure that he remains a pivotal figure in the history of human thought.
Epicurus, like Democritus, thought that only the concepts of vacuum and atoms - particles: unbreakable, impenetrable, with different dimensions, sizes, and weights - could explain the real world
excluding any causality from the influence of gods and exempting man from revering their wisdom. The atomists of that time shared the idea of an uncreated, eternal world and time, the fruit of chance. He was one of the few (Plato was one of them) who wondered about the possibility of other living beings
Aristarchus of Samos. Astronomer, he is one of the first to have had the idea that the Earth rotates on itself and around the Sun, which made little noise at the time because it was contrary to the Aristotelian ideas as well as to that of the great mathematician and astronomer Hipparchus. He also developed methods of calculating the distances between the Earth and the Sun and between the Earth and the Moon by taking the diameter of the Moon for a unit.
Eratosthenes, the inventor of Geography, imagined two systems of projection of the geographical area known at the time and compiled all available data. His work, rediscovered in the West in the 15th century, revived scientific geography.
Philo of Alexandria, a Jewish philosopher, sketches Neoplatonism linking Aristotelian philosophy to biblical works. By using, even abusing, allegorical interpretations, he concludes that there is no discrepancy between Plato's idea of God, the creator of the universe, and the one stated by the Bible, which is surprising because, for Plato, the matter was eternal. According to Philo, God by his transcendence, cannot be known by non-philosophers
the angels are his intermediaries with men, and mor
A revolution began, as Jean-Jacques Rousseau would point out [Ru]: Jesus established a spiritual kingdom on earth, separating the theological and political systems, which was not the case with the pagans, where each people had its gods, or even with Moses, who proposed the God of Israel.
Christianity, in line with Judaism, adopted the Old Testament and particularly Genesis, leading the official Christian philosophy to reject, for several centuries, Aristarchus' heliocentrism.
St. Paul the Apostle was one of the first Christians to give a rational basis to his statements when he argued notably in Athens (Acts 17: 16-23), with Stoics and Epicureans.
Claudius Ptolemy, is at the origin:
- of the "geocentric" model, an error that prevailed for 14 centuries (until Copernicus)
it made I. Newton say ([Ne2]-T.2-Intro. §III): "There is a great appearance that the authority of Aristotle, which was almost the only rule of authority at the time of Ptolemy, is what led this great astronomer into error...." In this model, the Earth, spherical, is at the center of 8 spheres carrying the Moon, the Sun, the 5 known Planets traveling epicycles around their spheres, and the 8th: the "celestia
"...there is nothing so difficult as to put an error in the place of truth."
- of the "Geography," a treatise on cartography, compiling geographical knowledge around 150 BC (Roman Empire).
But it is with Origen, a Christian theologian, that Christian theology begins. He knew, like his successors, how to apply in a critical way the rational philosophy of Plato to interpret the texts of the Septuagint. His gigantic work, called Origenism, was a source of inspiration for the Church Fathers. At the end of the 19th century, the Catholic Cardinal Giovanni Mercati found an ancient work (stored in the National Library of Religions in Paris) on which one can see Origen's Hexapla, a synopsi
"Among those of the East, the first place belongs to Origen, a man admirable for the promptness of his mind ... It is from his numerous works ...... that almost all his successors have drawn."
This was confirmed by Pope Benedict XVI in 2007, during a tribute he paid to him at a seminar organized in his honor.
Plotinus, making a synthesis of Plato's work, interpreted allegorically the biblical texts by applying the method of this last one, creating the "Neoplatonism," outlined by Philo of Alexandria. This will lead to a mystical philosophy crossed by a great religious breath. The ONE as he calls God, transcendent, is at the top of the pyramid and addresses his creatures through his intermediaries: Intelligence - the source of Truth, made up of a multitude of Ideas - which he creates, which in turn pro
"If we submit everything to reason, our religion willhave nothing mysterious or supernatural about it.
If we shove the principles of reason, our religion will be absurd."
Blaise Pascal ([Pa] 273-173)
St. Augustine "the African," a nickname he gave himself to remind his belonging to the Latinized Berber intelligentsia, was one of the greatest rhetors and Christian thinkers of the West. Theologian and Philosopher, the reading of the "Hortensius" by Cicero the eclectic incited him to study philosophy and then teach rhetoric. He returned to Christianity at the age of 33, thanks to the Neoplatonic preaching of Ambrose of Milan who gave him new tools to rethink the faith of his youth, and especial
St. Augustine adhered to the four Cardinal Virtues concept enunciated by Plato
namely Prudence or Wisdom, Courage, Moderation, and Justice. Until St. Thomas Aquinas took up the torch, 850 years later, he was the reference for the Christian Western and Catholics. Although he never doubted the existence of God, he proposed a rational demonstration of his existence and deduced the attributes of God [Th]. For him, as for St. John Duns Scotus (ref.128, p.36) and William of Ockham (ref.581, p.188), t
From the 5th to the 6th century, the barbarians slaughtered the Greco-Roman civilization, dealing a heavy blow to Philosophy, which struggled to get back on track. The Arab Muslim Empire will take over.
"I feel like saying: it doesn't matter what the religion is as long as there is God"
George Smoot
We often overlook the rich set of influences that shaped what we refer to as the "Arab sciences" or the "Islamic Golden Age" (5th to 13th c.). These remarkable developments were the fruit of collaborative contributions from Hindu, Chinese, Persian (particularly from the Academy of Gondishapur), and Greek thinkers. Following the closure of the pagan schools of Athens in 538 by Justinian I, these brilliant minds sought refuge in Alexandria, Harran (S-E of present-day Turkey, near Syria and Iraq),
Among the main rationalists we have retained in chronological order:
- Al Khwarizmi, Mathematician, Astronomer, Astrologer, and Persian Geographer, was a member of the Houses of Wisdom whose role, in the transmission of Persian, Syriac, Indian, Chinese, and Greek knowledge, is considerable because he translated, and annotated in some cases, into Arabic and then into Latin the main texts of the schools of Philosophy, Medicine, Mathematics, Astronomy, .... of these countries. He introduced into the Muslim empire the Indian decimal system and algebra, hence his appe
- Al-Kindi Muslim, nicknamed "the father of Arab philosophy," was commissioned by various caliphs, including Al-Mamûn to translate Greek works. Founder in 830 of the House of Wisdom in Baghdad, he was one of the greatest Hellenising philosophers of the Arab world. Rationalist, follower of Aristotelianism, he studied mathematics, physics, astronomy, morals, and metaphysics, the first source of knowledge of the reason for things according to him. Physics came after because he considered it as the
- Muhammad al-Fazari Muslim, Astronomer, and Astrologer built the first astrolabe (device to measure the height of the stars) in the Muslim world.
- Abbas ibn Firnas Muslim, Poet, Physician, and Chemist. He invented a planisphere, a water clock, and various instruments to work quartz and glass
but is also known to have tried to fly by himself wearing feathers, the landing was reportedly painful.
- Al-Razi Persian scholar. An atomist, opposed to Aristotelianism, Al-Razi read a lot of Greek and Hindu works that influenced him, as did his contacts with the Chinese free thinkers and scientists, who were numerous in Tehran. He was one of the greatest Iranian scholars, who contributed to developing disciplines such as Alchemy, Medicine, and Philosophy. Defender of the animal cause, he advocated vegetarianism. Officially Muslim, he was critical of Islam
rejecting the idea of a single god, he
- Al Fârâbi, Persian Muslim philosopher. He studied in Baghdad the political Philosophy of Plato, Mathematics, Arts ... He frequented the Nestorians and all the great thinkers of the time. Called the "Second Master" by Maimonides, for whom the first was Aristotle, he was Avicenna's teacher and contributed, like Al-Kindi, to the spread of Aristotelian and Neoplatonic thought in the Muslim world while integrating his data.
- Saadja Gaon was the first Rabbi-philosopher to attempt to reconcile his rabbinic Jewish tradition with Aristotelian philosophy. This opposed him to the Caraïsts, who rejected the Oral Law.
- It should be noted that the Christians had not remained inactive. From the 7th century onwards, a set of doctrines was born, interpreting the known universe in the light of reason. Their method is intellectual and dialectical. They rethink Greco-Roman philosophy, and initiate scholasticism - independent philosophy and perfect science in its order - subject to faith. If the period extending from the 7th to the 12th century was that of the development of these new doctrines, the 13th century was
- Alhazen. Raised in the Shiite movement, he abandoned the study of Islamic texts to turn to the sciences because he was disillusioned with religious quarrels of a theological nature. The specialists say that he is the heir of the Greek and Indian scientists. He was the first to:
- base his research on experimentation rather than reasoning,
- realize that an object with continuous motion only stops when acted upon by a force. His work influenced Johannes Kepler.
- Avicenna, the "Prince of Scholars" according to his students, was a deistic Muslim of Iranian origin. A student of Al-Fârâbi, he was influenced at an early age (21) by the ideas of Aristotle, the philosopher par excellence, and the Koran. A mystical philosopher (the third Master - after Aristotle and Al-Fârâbi - according to his students), he tried to reconcile the Aristotelians and the Neoplatonists. According to him, God created the world but does not take care of human problems
their lives
- At the top God, who is not only the pure Act and first Motor of Aristotle but above all the Necessary Being, the source of all possibilities, the only one whose intimate nature (essence) is identical to existence. First Cause, in relation with his creatures through the intermediary of the First Caused who possesses "the Holy Spirit." For some, Aristotle was a pantheist.
- Below, the Celestial world, whose management God entrusts to a perfect Intelligence: the First Cause. This latter is an intermediary between its Creator and the 1st sphere of which it creates the soul and the secondary Intelligence, playing the same role for the 2nd internal sphere
this is until one arrives at the last celestial sphere moved by the human Intelligence or human Soul managing the:
The terrestrial world contains, in its center, the immobile Earth and its satellite the Moon according to the model of Ptolemy.
- Michel Psellos, a Christian monk, was called: "consul of the philosophers" by Constantine IX. Writer, a Neoplatonic philosopher, he taught at the University of Constantinople. He was very erudite: History, Rhetoric, Theology, Geometry, Medicine... He was the author of numerous works and contributed to the scientific and literary Renaissance of the 11th century.
- Avicebron an Andalusian Rabbi, was also a follower of Neoplatonism, but he influenced the Jews less than Christian scholasticism. According to his teaching: from the ineffable God comes the universe, then the angels, the souls, and finally the men.
- Abu'l-Barakât al-Baghdadi, a Jewish physician was forced to convert to Islam. A physicist, he was interested in kinematics, linking force and acceleration, and defending the theory of vacuum and experimentation in science. As a philosopher, he introduced a concept of metaphysical time breaking the link between space and time, opposing Aristotle's conception of time, for whom time is a measure of movement, existing only if there is a change. Al-Baghdadi professed the immortality of the soul, in
- Guillaume de Conches Catholic theologian, a humanist, and physicist of renown, and an influential member of the School of Chartres, defended atomism, the soul of the world, and the use of dialectics.
- Zahir al-Dîn al-Bayhaqî. A Muslim and, according to some, a descendant of one of Mohammed's companions. He dedicated himself to the study of sacred texts, Mathematics, and Astrology. He authored numerous works across various disciplines of his time and was a precursor to the Encyclopedia.
- Al-Ghazali. Sufi Theologian, a defender of the orthodoxy of the Koran, opposed Avicenna. He was a philosopher who also tried to reconcile faith and reason, his principle was that reason alone is incapable of discovering the truth and that mystical enlightenment must be added to it.
- Averroes, of his true name Ibn Rochd, a Muslim Andalusian of Berber origin, received a strong religious education in Hadith and Fiqh from his father, he then studied Physics, Astronomy, Philosophy, Mathematics, and Medicine before becoming a physician at the Almohad court (a Berber dynasty that ruled the Maghreb and Al Andalus from 1120 to 1269). In 1166, at the request of the Caliph, he studied and translated the works of Aristotle, striving to distinguish between science and faith. According
Averroes was one of the greatest thinkers of Muslim Spain, legitimizing Philosophy according to Muslim law. His work remained a reference in the West until the end of the 16th century. His Aristotelian conception of God as the Creator of the Earth, rather than as a craftsman, was opposed to traditional interpretations of the Quran, leading to unjust suspicions of heresy.
- At that time Moses Maimonides, born Moses ben Maimon, the greatest rabbi of the Middle Ages, hence his nickname: "the second Moses," sought to strengthen Jews' faith. Physicist, metaphysician, philosopher, and theologian, believed that the scientific search for God would bring him closer. To do this, he applied Aristotelian philosophy to the reading of the Bible. Although, he adhered to the five elements of Aristotle, to the absence of emptiness, ... he differed from him. For Maimonides God, e
"(that) there is necessarily agreement between faith and philosophy... in case of disagreement, although the Bible is "One" and expresses the truth it is necessary to have an allegorical reading,"
because for him, reason does not contradict the Bible but explains it.
Maimonides' thought radiated far beyond the Jewish community and crossed the centuries
exerting an influence not only on medieval philosophers such as St. Albert the Great, St. Thomas Aquinas who fought against him, John Duns Scotus, ... on those of the Enlightenment: Baruch Spinoza, Moses Mendelssohn, but even today. The scientist and Orthodox Jewish philosopher Yeshayahu Leibowitz, a controversial figure in contemporary Judaism, was one of his followers.
We cannot avoid the fact that he had opponents, the best known of whom, Solomon Ben Abraham of Montpellier (Middle of the 13th century), found contradictions between the Talmud and the tendency of Maimonides to allegorize biblical narratives, downplaying the role of miracles. His incitement to have Maimonides' works publicly burned by Dominican monks led to his ex-communication by Maimonides' horrified followers. The respected rabbi Moses ben Nachman, nicknamed "Ramban," an admirer of Maimonides
According to B. Pullman ([Pu] ref.3-p.68), for Maimonides, the only limit of God is his inability to do evil.
From the 13th century onwards, most of the thinkers of the Muslim empire attacked rational thought. The Persian Muslim theologian, mathematician, physicist, astronomer, physician, and philosopher, Nasir al-Din al-Tusi was one of the last Muslim masters of thought adept at rationalism. This is perhaps one of the reasons (in addition to the "sacking" of Averroes) that made Abdus Salam, an Ahmadi Muslim winner of the 1979 Nobel Prize in Physics, state:
"... of all the great civilizations of the planet, the Islamic community is the one that has given science the most restricted place."
Among the precursors of Thomism who tried to merge philosophy and theology, to correct Aristotle's opposition to the dogma of God the Creator, in particular, by relying on St. Augustine, let's quote the first great secular scholastic of the 13th century:
- Guillaume d'Auvergne, a Catholic theologian. He was influenced by Avicenna and St Augustine and achieved a synthesis between Christian concepts and Aristotelian ontology reviewed by the Neoplatonists. Partisan of a hierarchy: the angels, immaterial and without form, being above the men made of matter, thus subjected to corruption.
- Defending the Neoplatonist eclecticism one could quote Dominicans like Roland of Cremona, Hughes of Saint-Cher, ...
as well as Franciscans: Alexandre de Hales (Halesowen, UK 1180 - 1245 Paris), Jean de la Rochelle (La Rochelle 1200-1245 Paris) ... but the Master was:
- St. Albert the Great. Dominican theologian he taught at the University of Paris where his most prestigious pupil was St Thomas Aquinas. St Albert the Great was a Philosopher, passionate about Greek and Arabic science, he made many experiments to try to reconcile science and faith. It is not for his scientific contribution that I mention him, even though it is generally agreed that it was important, but because he made the Arab thinkers known in the West and introduced into his teaching Peripat
St Thomas Aquinas. Dominican theologian, a specialist in oriental religions, established a dialogue with the Jewish and Arab thoughts of his time. A philosopher, he criticized Averroism but was an undeniable peripatetic. His Holiness Urban IV entrusted him with the revision of Aristotle's texts, "resurrecting" him on occasion for the Christian community, imposing the application of his principles, but distancing himself on certain fundamental points, incompatible with the Christian faith. His wo
On the other hand, the Franciscans felt closer to the theses of St John Duns Scotus. Franciscan, theologian philosopher, nicknamed the "Subtle Doctor," the founder of "Scotism," a school characterized by a metaphysical formalism, the "univocity of the being" and voluntarism (an autonomous force that allows us the possession of the real from which it deduces the individual freedom of the man), also proposes to defend the Faith by the Reason, attaching himself to demonstrate that God created the w
1. The limit which separates the natural from the supernatural depends on the free determination of God, justifying his skepticism towards the absolute immortality of the soul, who would deny God the power to abandon some of them.
2. The three first commandments, concerning the duties of men towards God, are alone of absolute natural right
the others are of natural right consecutive to the free will of God. If he often arrives at the same conclusions as St Thomas Aquinas, the spirit is different, the attacks are all the easier as the latter is no longer of this world to defend his theses. Despite everything, the "subtlety," at the limit fallacious of his argumentation, served him well. He will be himself the target of th
It was a time of exciting discoveries and debates that changed our understanding of the universe. We will meet:
- Ibn al-Shatir, a Muslim mathematician and astronomer who fixed the hours of the prayers in the mosque of Damascus. He wasn't a typical thinker, he didn't stick to Aristotle's ideas but improved Ptolemy's geocentric model. In his ingenious work, he realized numerous devices of astronomical measurements that demonstrated that all the planets could revolve around a single point, laying the groundwork for:
- Copernicus, a Catholic canon, and renowned scientist suggested timidly in 1514, the heliocentric model, where the Earth revolves around the Sun. Copernicus acknowledged that he was influenced by the writings of ancient Greeks he had studied, as well as by those of Persian and Greek astronomers. Although his ideas on the heliocentric system spread from 1533, until they reached the hands of Pope Clement VII, he was never worried by the Catholic Church.
But the journey to acceptance wasn't smooth. Martin Luther and John Calvin, early reformers but geocentrism followers, criticized heliocentrism. If Copernicus' dedication to understanding God's creations prevailed, the definitive printing of his work: "On the Revolutions of the Heavenly Spheres," was not published until shortly before his death, leaving him time to dedicate a copy to Pope Paul III. Copernicus would have written about his thesis:
"To know the mighty works of God
to understand His wisdom and majesty and power
to appreciate, in degree, the wonderful working of His laws, all this must surely be a mode of worship agreeable and acceptable to the Highest, to whom ignorance cannot be more grateful than knowledge."
We will remember the opinion of Isaac Newton who, speaking of Copernicus, wrote later ([Ne2] T2. p.2):
"This great man renewed the ancient system of the Babylonians & Pythagoras, ... thus the sun was put back in the center of the world."
- In Meantime, in 1453 Fra Mauro, a Benedictine monk, made the first planisphere of the known world. In 1459 he offered an improved copy to Alfonso V, king of Portugal, to encourage him to continue to finance explorers.
- As Copernicus' ideas spread, a unique dialogue unfolded at the end of the 16th century with Chinese philosophers and scientists. Jesuits like Matteo Ricci brought Christianity, Western Philosophy, and advanced sciences such as Mathematics, and Astronomy to China. Xu Guangqi, "the servant of God," a disciple of great value
and a renowned astronomer who converted to Christianity, played a crucial role in this exchange. Joining the Jesuit brotherhood he became one of the three pillars of Chinese
We can imagine the excitement of those times, a clash of ideas, the pursuit of knowledge, and the unfolding of a new understanding of our place in the cosmos. These pioneers, from Ibn al-Shatir to Copernicus and the Jesuits, paved the way for a scientific revolution that still shapes our world today.
"The most important thing in the known universe is still immediately behind the astronomer's eyes."
Holmes Rolston
In the 17th century, the sciences began to take precedence over theological philosophy. Nonetheless, religious faith remained alive, fueled by the controversies between Jesuits and Jansenists. Crowds flocked to hear the sermons of the great Catholic orator Bossuet, a member of the French Academy. He did not hesitate to remind kings, including Louis XIV, of their duties towards the people (cf. ref. 181-p. 40).
The evolution of scientific knowledge will be the fruit of the intuitions of geniuses such as G. Galileo, Catholic, J. Kepler, Lutheran, I. Newton, Anglican, J. C. Maxwell, Presbyterian, M. Planck, Protestant, A. Einstein, Spinozian deist... who put their intuitions and mathematical theories to the test of the results of the experiment. A. Einstein will write (cf. [Ei1] p.133):
"... any attempt to deduce logically, from elementary experiments, the fundamental concepts and basic laws of mechanics, remains doomed to failure... The axiomatic foundation of theoretical physics is not deduced from experience, but must be established spontaneously, and freely,... The usable mathematical concepts can be suggested by experience, but never, in any case, deduced."
1609. Galileo Galilei, a Catholic Astronomer, knew how to distinguish between religion and science. His name is inseparable from the birth of modern science combining experimentation and mathematical interpretation. Improving the existing glasses, he made "Galileo's telescope," putting the cosmos within reach of humanity. With his telescope, he observed that four small satellites revolve around Jupiter, proving that Ptolemy's model of the Earth as the center of the solar system was wrong. Despit
According to the historian and biographer Walter Isaacson, the Catholic polymath Leonardo da Vinci associated, a century before G. Galileo, experimentation with observation. Leonardo da Vinci wrote ([Is] p.173):
"My method is to experiment and then, thanks to reasoning, to interpret the experiments."
As he grew older, he closely associated experience and theory.
The last resistance to the heliocentric theory disappeared in 1687 with the work of Isaac Newton [Ne2]:
"The true system of the world having been discovered ...Ptolemy and those who wished to support this opinion of the rest of the Earth (he attributes the responsibility to Aristotle) ... were obliged to embarrass the heavens with different Epicycles, & with an innumerable quantity of circles, very difficult to conceive & to employ, for there is nothing so difficult as to put an error in the place of truth."
1609 & 1618 Johannes Kepler, Lutheran, was described by A. Einstein as "a wonderful man," writing[Ei1 p.VIII]: "clear-sighted mind ... no one before him and even since has opened new ways of thinking, research, ...... genius inventor of particular guiding methods .... All these reasons make us admire him...." Kepler was the imperial mathematician of Rudolf II (Holy Roman Emperor) and founded dioptrics, which was to become optics, a field of Physics to which he contributed a lot. As an astronomer
Kepler, a devoted Protestant, wrote in "Cosmographic Mystery" that he felt called by God to make known to men the magnificence of the divine work. For him mathematics is uncreated, it participates in God, which did not prevent him, on the contrary, from being an astronomer supporter of heliocentrism.
In 1620, the renowned philosopher of sciences, and statesman Lord Francis Bacon, an Anglican, who can be considered one of the pioneers of the scientific method and empiricism published "Novum organum scientiarum" [Bn], his major work in which he advocates for a new method of acquiring knowledge, based on systematic observation, experimentation, and inductive reasoning, contrasting with previous deductive methods.
1637. René Descartes, a Catholic scientist, had a revelation during the night of 10/11/1619 [Br]:
"... there is a fundamental agreement between the laws of nature and the laws of mathematics."
This revelation influenced the course of his life. To avoid falling victim to prejudice, he made a clean sweep of everything in which he could have the slightest doubt. The fact of denying everything he had been taught justified, according to him, that he thought, hence a truth taken from the Latin "Cogito, ergo sum" which appeared to him unmistakable and which he translated as:
"... I think, therefore I am."
According to the Christian philosopher Georg Hegel, his philosophy - at the origin of a renewed interest in the Pythagorean idea of the involvement of numbers in the formation of the universe - broke with the past. Encouraged by Cardinal de Berulle to deepen his modern approach to Philosophy - which, although he was a Catholic, broke with traditional Christian philosophy - he published in 1637 the "Discourse of the Method," his major philosophical work: an intuitive and deductive mathematical me
"...I know that God is the author of all things and that these [eternal] truths are something, and therefore that he is the author of them. I say that I know it, and not that I conceive it, nor understand it
for one cannot know that God is infinite and all-powerful, even though our soul being finite cannot understand nor conceive it."
His method was revolutionary at the time
it went against the flow of Aristotle's method for whom the perception of things plays a primordial role in world knowledge. The Christian Philosopher G. Hegel considered Aristotle the author of the revolution of mind, marking the beginning of modern philosophy, he made him a hero. To access scientific knowledge, "the Cartesian method" requires, that we follow four rules. The first precept:
"... never to receive anything as true that I did not know to be such
that is, to carefully avoid haste and prevention
and to understand nothing more in my judgments than what would present itself so clearly and distinctly to my mind that I would have no occasion to doubt of it."
The psychiatrist and Christian philosopher K. Jasper will state two and a half centuries later:
"There is more intelligent than exploring the unknown, for example, doubting the known."
R. Descartes applied his method successfully to the sciences and published three famous articles on Dioptric, Meteors, and Geometry (he invented analytical geometry, combining geometry and algebra). About Dioptric, every high school student knows Snell-Descartes' laws on reflection and refraction. Pierre de Fermat, also a catholic, did not adhere to R. Descartes' demonstration and proposed in 1657 a more metaphysical method [Ne2] whose principle is that:
"...the author of Nature ... made the light go from one point to another by the path of the shortest time,"
it is known in optics as "Fermat's Principle" and used in Mechanics as laws of reflection and refraction called: the "Principle of least action."
With the success of his method in the realm of science, R. Descartes then applied it to the knowledge of God and His work. While waiting to arrive there, he "formed a moral by provision (provisional) ... to obey the laws and customs of my country, ... to modify one's desires rather than the world, to overcome oneself instead of trying to dominate the elements, to act always with firmness and resolution."
Then, relying on his Method he:
"... tasks to demonstrate the existence of God and the soul separated from the body."
If he separated the soul from the body he was nevertheless convinced that the soul interacted with the body at the level of the pineal gland. This spirit-matter dualism has been challenged by many philosophers, as well as by the theory of evolution. This later raises the question: when appeared the soul in man's life? Nevertheless, it has supporters among recognized scientists such as Sir John Eccles Deist, one of the greatest neurophysiologists of the 20th century, co-winner in 1963 with A.L. H
"The more I study the brain the less materialistic I am."
R. Descartes, a convinced Catholic, starting from the postulate that the effect can only draw its reality from its cause, otherwise it would draw it from nothingness, deduced ([Br] - p. 294) that:
".. the ideas of corporeal things.... are not formally in me, since I am only a thing that thinks
..... being myself a substance it seems that they (the ideas) can be contained in me eminently. Hence there remains only the idea of God..... infinite, eternal, immutable, independent, all-knowing, all-powerful substance, and by which I and all things that are... were created and produced,"
and gives his definition of God. According to him, there is no finality in nature but only determinisms produced by efficient causes. The free will would be only illusion because if the man is conscious of his acts he does not know the causes that lead him to act as he does. Nevertheless, for him [Sc], Man is united to God by Love, a constant and eternal love conditioning his salvation.
This philosophy, called: "modern" for its time, postulates that reason and revelation are independent. One can distinguish three pillars (concepts) in his philosophy: God, the World, and the Self separating the matter from the spirit, thus the body from the soul. Nevertheless, he places God much higher than the other two by linking the Self and the World, because He is in both. His abundant correspondence is interesting, particularly that with the Jesuit Father Marin Mersenne, "the secretary of
I am astonished that a courageous man (although of fragile health he joined the international military school of the Prince of Orange as an observer at the age of 22, and did not hesitate to fight a duel for the beautiful eyes of a lady), could burn his book "The World" when he learned the result of the trial of G. Galileo, whose ideas he shared, under the pretext that:
"... I would not want for anything in the world, that it came out of my speech, where there was the slightest word which was disapproved by the Church."
It's noteworthy that R. Descartes was among the first scientists to use the concept of "imaginary number" which is the product of a real number y by "i" (where i2 = -1) giving the imaginary number "iy." The addition of the real number x gives the "complex number": x + iy which will be promoted a century later by L. Euler. G. Leibniz is quoted as saying of them:
". imaginary numbers are a fine and wonderful resource of the divine intellect, almost an amphibian between being and non-being."
R. Descartes played a central role in the 17th century, some attacked him, and others adulated him. It was the case of the prominent scientist Blaise Pascal, an apologist of Christianity who was a precocious child. From childhood, he devoted his life to the pursuit of truth, with the help of reason. As a teenager he frequented scientific and literary salons from 1640 onwards, revealing a budding genius with an exceptional capacity for invention, attaining great fame at an early age. He had, in h
- Physics and more particularly fluid mechanics where his measurements on the pressure of air contributed to prove the existence of the vacuum. Each of us has learned Pascal's theorem. From this came the invention of the hydraulic press, the barometer, and the syringe, ...
- Mathematics where he laid down the principles of infinitesimal calculus, probability 1 calculus, and combinatorial analysis
we can say that he opened the doors of modern science. We 1 1 owe him, among others: Pascal's triangle (representation in a triangle of the binomial coefficients, fig. 2), theorems in geometry, the resolution of the problem of the cycloid... He is the ancestor of 1 2 1 the calculating machine (1642). 1 3 3 1
1
1 1
1 2 1
1 3 3 1
1 4 6 4 1
Fig 2.
It is only in 1646, the year when he meets the Jansenists who look after his father, that he starts giving an important place to religion. He will focus on it in 1656 during what all commentators 1 4 6 4 1 have called: "the night of fire." After a sermon that "illuminated" him, he had, during the night, a Fig. 2 revelation of God that he recorded in "the memorial" as a reminder of this exceptional moment that was the origin of his renewed faith which grew to asceticism. He "converted to Christ"
From his philosophical and theologian work, devoted to God, we retain especially "Pensées" [Pa] collection of his writings dedicated to the defense of Christianity and Jansenists in particular
the draft of what should have been his "Apology of the Christian religion." In the last days of his life, he is reported to have said "If the physicians tell the truth, and God grants that I recover from this sickness, I am resolved to have no other work for the rest of my life except to serve the poor" |
Pascal, was in the line of R. Descartes with whom he shared the idea of separation of the eternal soul from the corruptible body, the infinitely great and small
that only God - author of all the wonders of nature - can apprehend in its globality
but in contrast to R. Descartes, for whom reason allows one to reach certainty
for B. Pascal the heart, which he places above the reason, seizes intuitively the truths escaping the rational demonstrations. So, in "Submission and use of reason, in what
"We must know to doubt where we need to do, to feel certain where we need to do, to submit where we need to do."
Pascal paved the way for the emergence of another profound thinker, Baruch Spinoza, a Jewish pantheist who came into prominence a few years later. Spinoza's intellectual journey was shaped by education under the tutelage of a rabbi who followed in the footsteps of the renowned M. Maimonides. This period instilled into Spinoza a unique perspective: he boldly dissociated Faith from Reason. He applied the Cartesian method of the Clear Idea to elucidate the concept of monism. Unlike R. Descartes, B.
- The first is the divine aspect, an immutable entity with various attributes, including the infinite and unique Substance, the originating Thought of Intelligence from which souls emanate, Infinity, Eternity, Omnipotence, Goodness, Virtue, and more.
- The second is the created aspect, comprising "modes" resulting from God's existence. These modes exist in a hierarchical order, resembling the intermediaries found in Plotinus' Philosophy. According to B. Spinoza the entire world, encompassing objects, humans, animals, minerals, and more, represents nothing but an emanation of God and shares in His eternal nature. Each element possesses a distinct code, but humans hold the highest position. In this view, humanity is inseparable from Nature, an
Despite his expulsion from the Amsterdam Jewish community before publishing any of his works, Spinoza was not an atheist. He advocated for believers to accept the dogma of God's existence as presented in religious Scriptures. He also encouraged the use of Reason to interpret all life's aspects. As a result, contemporary rabbis have sought to rehabilitate his legacy.
Furthermore, Spinoza's contemplations on infinity had a profound impact, on science and theology. His ideas influenced the mathematician Georg Cantor, a Lutheran, who would later develop the theory of sets.
Cantor's contributions have earned the admiration of scientists in the 21st century, highlighting the enduring relevance of Spinoza's philosophical insights.
Two centuries later, some of Spinoza's ideas, such as the "monism of body and Spirit" find resonance in the thought of the Spinozian pantheist biologist Henri Atlan. Atlan pioneered the theories of complexity and self-organization in living organisms, drawing parallels between science and biblical texts. Atlan's Judaism is distinctive, it "does not imply a belief in God," and it "is not a commandment" addressed to Moses. According to him "Judaism is only half a religion," positioned as the third
1640. John Wallis, after studying Theology at Cambridge was ordained a Presbyterian priest but quickly turned to mathematics, a field in which he proved to be one of the greatest geometers of the century according to G. Leibniz. For proof, he will be awarded the Savilian chair of geometry at Oxford.
1646. Pierre Gassendi, Catholic canon. Convinced of the existence of the vacuum, by the experiments of Evangelista Torricelli Catholic, and B. Pascal Catholic, Gassendi criticizes Aristotle's anti-atomism as well as his refutation of the vacuum. He works for the revival of the atomism of Epicurus of which he is a fervent defender. Mathematician and "first true astronomer, converted to Galileo's ideas" [Co] according to the Academician Françoise Combes, Professor at the Collège de France (chair "
1651. Christian Huygens, one of the greatest multiform scientists of all times, Calvinist, becomes known as a mathematician and will become a recognized specialist in geometry. In 1655 he published the first book on the calculation of probabilities. Fascinated by astronomy, observing Saturn (the 6th planet of the Earth, 2nd by its size and its mass, whose rings had been observed for the first time by Galileo in 1610), with a telescope carried out in the company of his brother, he discovered Tita
The professor of philosophy and historian of science Gianfranco Mormino has studied [Mor] the role played by God in the work of Ch. Huygens. After reading the codex "hugenorium 7A" (a collection of Huygens' writings) the author reports that although Huygens was opposed to the interference of theological questions in physics:
"...it is not necessary, perhaps, to involve God in these questions,"
he would have admitted, on several occasions the "necessary intervention of God" whether in his relativistic theory of motion and rest or, in his exchanges on the atom with G. Leibniz, whose point of view he did not share. Speaking about the immutable grains of sand in the centuries he would have written:
"... It is that the creator once made them be born such, and in the same way for the atoms."
In "The Cosmotheoros," his last work, Ch. Huygens does not reject the idea that God could have created on other planets "an infinite variety of beings" but it would be vain to believe that man can foresee their form. On the other hand, he thinks that since God imposed on nature simple universal laws, in limited numbers, it is so that the "reasonable beings" could find the causes.
1666. Gottfried Leibniz, Lutheran, nicknamed the "polymath" (universal mind), spanned the intellectual landscape, being at the same time a philosopher (his treatise of logic De Arte Combinatoria published at 20 years old put in light his thesis and himself), jurist, diplomat (ambassador in Paris from 1672 to 1676 he tried to convince Louis XIV to conquer Egypt). In 1672, under the direction of Christian Huygens, a Calvinist, he devoted himself to mathematics and physics. Inventor, he created the
His scientific research did not prevent him from devoting much of his time to Theology
on the contrary, they were complementary. Whereas R. Descartes - relying on the concept of the Clear Idea and the immutability (which cannot change) of God - had established the law of conservation of the quantity of motion (which he considered as an algebraic quantity, which is false), he established, by scientific reasoning, the laws of conservation of energy (which he called living force, an algebraic quan
"It appears more and more, although all the particular phenomena of nature can be explained mathematically or mechanically by those who hear them, that nevertheless the general principles of bodily nature and of mechanics itself are rather metaphysical than geometrical and belong rather to some indivisible forms or natures as causes of appearances than to body mass or extent."
- In 1676 he will have fruitful exchanges with B. Spinoza, he will go further than the latter in the idea of coherence and perfection of the world. Trying to reconcile reasoning and mathematics (algebra), he postulates the "Principle of sufficient reason":
"Nothing exists without sufficient reason,"
His authorship was contested by some who opposed him to the principle of causality of R. Descartes but this seems unjustified.
- In 1684, he published: "Reflections on Knowledge, Truths, and Ideas" establishing a direct relationship between the ideas of God and man.
- It was not until 1695 that he revisited the Pythagorean notion of "monads" [Lz2]:
a) "The monad is nothing other than a simple substance, which enters into the compounds
simple, that is, without parts....... These monads are the true atoms* of nature and, in a word, the elements of things...they [the monads] can only begin by creation and end by annihilation instead of what is composed, beginning or ending with parts. ....."
* his atom differed from the material atom of Democritus, whom he fought vigorously, by the fact that his monads have energy or force of their own and also because he could not admit that a "material being (the atom of Democritus) could be both indivisible and endowed with a true unity" ([Lz2]-2443). Let's note, that Bohr's atom (ref.298, p.90), as we know it today, is divisible, contrary to Leucippus' definition (ref.46, p.13), and has electronic and nuclear energies too.
b) "... monads must have some qualities, otherwise, they would not even be beings.. they would be indistinguishable from each other......[that] each monad be different, from each other. ... Monads have no windows through which anything can enter or leave them......Monads cannot be altered or transformed...the natural changes of monads come from an internal principle...they are endowed with perception and appetite [internal principle making the passage from one perception to another]."
This idea will be taken up by the Jesuit Teilhard de Chardin and the atheist J. Haldane (ref.672-p.172).
c) "I agree that the general name of monad and entelechy suffices for simple substances because they have in them a certain perfection, there is a sufficiency which makes them sources of their internal actions and, as it were, incorporeal automata.... and that only those whose perception is more distinct and accompanied by memory are called souls.
G. Leibniz postulates that: the monads, in infinite number, are staggered one above the other, without empty space (for purely theological reasons he always denied the void, which was a serious error) between them
from the least perfects: elements of matter to the most perfect that of God, which he calls Soul, dominating all the other monads. Between them, he places the monads of the beasts, which have clear Ideas, and those of the finite spirits (men), which have clear, sometimes confused, but
"... the study of the preformation of plants and animals confirms my system of the pre-established harmony between soul and body, where the body is inclined by its original constitution to execute, with the help of external things, all that it does according to the will of the soul" because "the principle of action is in the souls."
Lutheran Irenist, G. Leibniz maintained an important correspondence with the great French Catholic theologian Bossuet but, his spiritualist and optimistic rationalism will be one of the causes of the nonadhesion of this one. Some of his theological arguments were taken up and developed in the 20th century by the great Deist mathematician Kurt Gödel in "Gödel's Ontological Proof," a work published after his death, in which he asserted his faith in God.
In 1669 the distinguished Isaac Newton - affectionately referred to as the "Great Mr. Newton," by the eminent Deist Voltaire, a leading figure of the Enlightenment era - succeeded Isaac Barrow, his professor at Trinity College, Cambridge. Barrow, the first occupant of the Lucasian Chair of Mathematics, initially Anglican had converted to Catholicism and left a lasting legacy. During Newton's time at Trinity College, he forged a friendship with the Anglican John Ray, who shared his passion for na
John Ray became one of the first British parson-naturalists: priests in charge of a parish for whom natural science study is connected with their religious work. For him, like later for another eminent parson, the naturalist, and Christian apologist William Paley, the world's complexity was evidence of the existence of a Creator. In 1659, he was influenced by the future Anglican bishop of Chester (Province of York), John Wilkins a natural philosopher, and co-founder of the Royal Society of Londo
1685 Jacques Bernoulli, a Protestant, published his first important papers in Mathematics: on probability, logic, and algebra. Known for the Bernoulli differential equation that he solved, his discovery of the sequence whose limit is the value of the mathematical constant "e"...
1687 Isaac Newton publishes: "Opticks" [Ne1] in Latin, a treatise on light (completing a first edition published in 1675) qualified by the Christian scientific abbot Alexis de Rochon:
"... of immortal work, one of the most beautiful monuments of the genius of Newton...."
He was aware of the works of Canon Pierre Gassendi, of the Jesuit Francesco Grimaldi, of the Irish scholar Robert Boyle, Anglican, an ardent defender of the Christian faith, whose name remained attached to that of Father Edme Mariotte, physicist and botanist, for their evidence of a law of perfect gases, the law of BoyleMariotte, and of R. Descartes, whom he quoted. In the conclusion of Opticks, which he presents in the form of questions, I. Newton deals in the last one (the XXXIst) with some ex
"All this considered, it seems to me very probable that God formed matter at the beginning of solid, heavy, hard, impenetrable, mobile particles, of such sizes, figures, and other properties ... so hard that they never wear out or break, nothing being able (according to the ordinary course of Nature) to divide what was created primitively by God."
And this one occulted by Marat in his French translation:
"...there is no doubt that, if the worship of false gods had not blinded the Pagans, their philosophical morality would have gone beyond the stage of the 4 Cardinal Virtues
and instead of teaching the Transmigration of Souls, and the worship of the Sun and Moon, and the departed Heroes, they would have taught us to worship our true Creator and Benefactor, as their ancestors did under the Government of Noah and his Sons before they were corrupted."
This passage gives us a glimpse of his obsession: the return to the original religion, taught by Christ and his apostles.
The same year, based on the work of G. Galileo and J. Kepler, Newton published his famous treatise: "Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica" [Ne2], a monumental work in which he established the "Theory of Gravitation" or "Law of Universal Attraction," confirmed by the Cavendish's experiment. He demonstrates that the kinematics of the planets resides in the forces exerted on them. His expression of the gravitational force (in 1/d2, where "d" is the distance between the object and the center
The concept of the "material point" that he introduced allowed all physical phenomena, including light, to be interpreted by Mechanics. We also owe him the introduction of differential equations, a subject of conflict with G. Leibniz who claimed authorship.
Newton formulated rigorously the Principle of Inertia (called "Newton's first law"), that Galileo had partially formulated.
Newton's laws teach us that there is no absolute rest, which has considerable implications in Physics because we can no longer know if two events that occurred at different times took place, in the same place, or not, in space. On the other hand, he believed in absolute time, a notion that seems obvious but is not when it comes to bodies moving at speeds close to the speed of light, which is what the theory of relativity postulates. If some of the bases of the Newtonian theory, turned out to be
In Book 3 (volume 2 of [Ne2] pp. 174-175) he develops in the "General Scholia" some of the religious ideas inspired by his work, leaving no doubt about his faith:
"... the arrangement of the Sun, the planets & the comets can only be the work of an almighty & intelligent Being."
". we see that the one who arranged this universe, put the fixed stars at an immense distance from each other, lest these globes fall on each other by the force of their gravity."
He ends this work by leaving the door open to new experiments that could explain the forces of gravity:
"I have not yet been able to deduce from phenomena the reason for these properties of gravity, and I cannot imagine any hypotheses. For everything that cannot be deduced from phenomena is a hypothesis & hypotheses, whether metaphysical, physical, mechanical or those of occult qualities, must not be accepted in experimental philosophy."
It is well known that he refuted R. Descartes' conception, which he considered too materialistic, preferring a spiritual cause that he did not want to put forward without strong scientific arguments. This did not prevent his friend Nicolas Fatio de Duillier, a Protestant, mathematician, and astrophysicist, from supporting the research on the causes of gravitation undertaken by the physicist Georges-Louis Le Sage for whom "ultramontane corpuscles" were responsible for the forces of gravitation. T
According to specialists, Sir Isaac Newton's theological work of [Ba], is, as important as his scientific work, if not more so. Newton was particularly interested in the interpretation of prophecies (the book of Daniel, the Apocalypse according to St. John) of which he thought he had found the codes, and in the history of the Church. A follower of a "religious rationalism," he was a fierce supporter of the "true religion," which he summarized in the two great commandments, namely, the love of Go
"Faith consists in believing when it is beyond the power of reason to believe.
It is not enough that a thing be possible for it to be believed."
Voltaire
The 18th century saw the emergence of atheism, notably represented by figures such as Sigmund Freud, the pioneer of psychoanalysis. This era also witnessed intellectual clashes, including some between Freud and Leonhard Euler, a prominent Protestant physicist and revered mathematician of the time, whom Pierre S. de Laplace referred to as "our Master to all." Euler did not shy away from engaging in vigorous debates. In "Letters to a German Princess" he stated:
"Since we are creatures of God, we ought to conform ourselves to His will, and to acknowledge His supreme dominion. This is the first and most essential of our duties. But how can we fulfill this duty, if we are ignorant of God, and of His relations to us? It is, therefore, necessary, to please Him, that we should know Him, and that we should know ourselves as His creatures. This is the foundation of all religion, natural and revealed."
1728. James Bradley, an Anglican (vicar of Bristow) was the first astronomer to prove experimentally that the Earth revolves around the Sun. This, in 1741, led Benedict XIV the "Pope of the Enlightenment" to authorize the publication of the complete works of G. Galileo, implicitly revising the sentences against him. He authorized the publication of works on heliocentrism in 1757. Let's note that Vatican II (1962-1965) made amends for the trial of Galileo and that, in 1979, Pope St. John Paul II
The end of the century will see the birth of the "Prince of Mathematics" namely Johann C. Gauss, a Christian, author of a considerable body of work, most of which was not published until after his death. According to Wikipedia, A. Einstein said of him:
"Without Gaussian geometry, the theory of relativity would not exist."
I have not been able to verify its truth, but it is probable when we know that to define what is commonly called "the Riemannian geometry" (Gottingen 1854, subject of his habilitation dissertation) on which A. Einstein relied, the Lutheran Bernhard Riemann drew inspiration from the concept of "Gaussian Curvature" (see Google scholar, for confirmed mathematicians). On his tombstone (Bizangolo, IT) one can read: "Here rests in God" Georg F. B Riemann. followed by the 8:28 verse of St Paul Apostle'
"We know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are called according to his purpose."
"God made the integers, everything else is the work of man."
L. Kronecker
For the Christian mathematician, L. Kronecker who worked on number theory and algebra, only natural numbers (positive integers) were real and concrete, while other numbers: fractions, irrational numbers (real numbers that cannot be represented by the ratio of two integers, as p = 3,14159., e = 2,718., etc.), complex numbers, etc) were artificial and abstract creation of human minds. He was a critic of Georg Cantor's work on set theory (ref.174-p.51). The above epigraph was reported in 1893, in a
In 1801 John Dalton, Quaker, mathematician, meteorologist, and chemist stated what is called: "Dalton's Law." As early as 1794 he published some of his results obtained in the field of meteorology but especially an article on dyschromatopsia (he had noticed that he could not distinguish certain colors), hence the term "color blindness" given to people suffering from this retinal malformation. In 1805 he published the first volume of "A New System of Chemical Philosophy," a work in which he devel
In 1811 Amedeo Avogadro, Catholic stated Avogadro's law that some call Avogadro - Ampère because the latter published the same result 3 years later: "equal volumes of perfect gases, in the same conditions of temperature and pressure, contain the same number of molecules."
N= 6.022 140 857 1023 mole-1 (N, called Avogadro's number is one of the 7 universal constants
it is equal to the number of molecules contained in a mole of any chemical compound.
In 1814 Pierre Laplace, published: "Essai philosophique sur les probabilités" (philosophical essay on probabilities), a work in which he gives his interpretation of "determinism." According to Laplace universe is determined by a set of laws that, if we know the initial conditions, allow us to predict everything that will follow. This is verified in the case of planet movement, for example, which we can predict perfectly. But he also applied this principle to human behavior, which alienated the C
In 1822 Augustin Fresnel, a Catholic engineer and physicist, patented a groundbreaking innovation: "the Fresnel lens." Using multiple prisms arranged concentrically to capture and concentrate light from a single source (no more than 250W) he revolutionized lighthouse optics and significantly improved the efficiency and range of light signals emitted from lighthouses, improving their effectiveness in guiding ships and warning them of dangerous coastlines. During the 19th and 20th centuries, they
In the 1840s the mathematician and physicist Sir William Rowan Hamilton, an Anglican, contributed to the development of optics, dynamics, and algebra. His work on the theory of quaternions intended initially for use in classical mechanics will find applications later in quantum mechanics and quantum field theory.
In 1843 James P. Joule, Called "The Great Experimenter who was Guided by God" by the novelist Ann Lamont, Joule derived from his experiments on mechanical energy (W) conversion into heat Q, the conversion factor J = W/Q. But it will be only in 1847 - after a new presentation of his experiments attended by scientists among whom the Calvinist Presbyterian Michael Faraday, (ref. 235, p.71) and the Anglican Evangelical Sir George G. Stokes (Church of Ireland), who supported his demonstration - that
J. Joule was a sincere Christian, I will say: a Long Life Learning gifted experimenter, but also an intuitive scientist. According to A. Lamont, concerning the relation Energy-Heat, he wrote [Lam]:
". the phenomena of nature, whether mechanical, chemical, or vital, consist almost entirely of a continual conversion. into one another. This is why order is maintained in the universe, nothing is disturbed, nothing ever lost, but the whole machinery, however complicated, works smoothly and harmoniously...the whole being governed by the sovereign will of God."
It's difficult to separate the two Irish protestants Sir George Stokes, a passionate Evangelical, and Lord Kelvin a devoted Christian, very close friends for 60 years despite their different personalities. They were among the most prominent scientists of the 19th century and played leading roles in Britain's scientific institutions. They made pioneering work in hydrodynamics, optics, and electricity. "The Correspondence Between Sir George G. Stokes and Sir William Thomson, Baron of Largs" has be
In 1846 Urbain Le Verrier, Catholic, was famous thanks to the observation in Berlin, by the astronomer Johann Galle, a Catholic too, of Neptune a new planet whose trajectory he had just communicated to him the same day. John C. Adams, an Anglican, had also predicted the existence of this planet but had not published his work.
In 1847 Maria Mitchell discovers a new comet which will be named "Miss Mitchell's Comet" and calculates its orbit. What, for some, may seem an anecdotal discovery, interests me because her career is remarkable. She was educated by her father, a schoolmaster but, above all, passionate about Mathematics and Astronomy, passions that he transmitted to his daughter by making her his assistant from the age of 11 or 12 in his small observatory. Although she did not go to university, she became a profes
In 1859 Charles Darwin, initially Anglican, Unitarian then Agnostic (but never materialistic (cf. [Da] p.6), a great observer of nature, an admirer of the eminent Anglican scientist William Whewell, published: "The Origin of Species" which will make the effect of a tsunami even if it was not its goal
he wrote in fact:
"I see no good reason why the views given in this volume should shock the religious feelings of anyone. ... A celebrated author and divine has written to me that:"
He has gradually learnt to see that it is just as noble a conception of the Deity to believe in that He created, a few original forms capable of self-development into other needful forms, as to believe that He required a fresh act of creation to supply the voids caused by the action of His laws [Dar].
This, brings us back to the question: did He (God) feel obliged to create Man? But it goes into the direction of deism or even theism as some, F. Collins [Col2] for example, wrote. Let's note, however, that Darwin's work, in the continuity of Jean-Baptiste Lamarck's work, was mostly condemned by Protestants and Anglicans. The Catholics, who could not ignore the theses of St. Augustine (4th century, cf. [Ag1] pp. 26, 132 & 148), did not attack this theory, provided that "the presence of God was n
In chapter 5.3. we will discuss the perception, by some contemporary believing scientists, of this theory.
In 1865, the distinguished physicist James Clerk Maxwell, an Evangelist Presbyterian, forged a crucial connection between previous experiments in electricity and magnetism, particularly those by the Calvinist Presbyterian Michael Faraday. Maxwell deduced that the electric and magnetic forces are essentially one force, which he coined the "electromagnetic force." Photons were identified as the "messengers" or "vectors" of this force. Consequently, he reduced the number of fundamental forces to 4
Later, A. Einstein mentioning Maxwell, wrote [Ei1]: "Before him, I conceived physical reality ... as a set of material points. ..... After him, I conceive the physical reality as represented by continuous fields represented by partial differential equations." During the centenary of Maxwell's birth (1931) A. Einstein, speaking of Maxwell's work, will say: "The most profound and fruitful that physics has known since the time of Newton." In the meantime, in 1877 the "father of statistical physics,
Although L. Boltzmann was hailed as a 19th-century "hero of scientific materialism" by some Marxists, including Vladimir Lenin, I resonate more with Ranjbar's perspective. Ranjbar encapsulates [Ra] Boltzmann's version of materialism, asserting that it doesn't negate the existence of a deity. Instead, he emphasizes the presence of an external, scientifically knowable world:
"His version of materialism did not entail the rejection of deity but rather the claim, that an external world does exist and is knowable by science" [Ra].
1873, is marked by the reception of Louis Pasteur, often hailed as the "benefactor of humanity," and rightfully so, at the French Academy of Sciences. Placing him within the landscape of the 19th century becomes a challenge, considering the sheer magnitude of his scientific contribution.
In the 1840s, Pasteur embarked on an intellectual journey that seamlessly intertwined light, chemistry, and crystallography. His groundbreaking work illuminated the effect of specific crystals on light, laying the sturdy foundation of stereochemistry. This early phase showcased his brilliance and set the stage for future advancements in synthetic chemistry.
Transitioning into the crossroads of the 1850s and 1860s, Pasteur delved into the intricate mechanics of fermentation, a venture that would steer him toward the realm of biology. His advocacy for asepsis, coupled with the revelation of "aerobic" and "anaerobic" microorganisms, not only explained the mysterious formation of ferments but, also revolutionized industries like vinegar and beer production. His agricultural impact was no less remarkable, introducing innovative vine care methods.
Among his numerous inventions, pasteurization stands out as a game changer, transforming the food safety landscape. As the 1870s and 1880s unfolded, Pasteur's focus shifted towards researching disease-causing microorganisms. During this decade he pioneered several breakthroughs, leaving an indelible mark on medical science.
Beyond his brilliance, Pasteur's unwavering faith as a Catholic added a unique dimension to his persona. His humanity commitment, coupled with a profound understanding of the interplay between science and spirituality, solidified his legacy as a figure of immense significance in the tapestry of 19th-century discoveries. In this mosaic of scientific progress, Pasteur's contributions shine as a beacon of innovation and compassion, transcending the boundaries of his era and leaving an enduring impa
In 1880, Pierre Curie and his brother Jacques, demonstrated experimentally, with an electrometer that they had realized, that quartz, tourmaline, and other crystals are piezoelectric. This effect predicted by the renowned mineralogist and Catholic priest Rene J. Haüy is based on the geometric properties of these crystals. One year later, in 1881, the Franco-Luxembourgish Gabriel Lippmann, a Jewish physicist, known for his numerous works in Electricity, Optics, Thermodynamics, and Photochemistry.
While piezoelectric applications were limited to weight measurements, pedestrian and vehicle traffic counting, and speed measurements for many years, they are currently experiencing significant development in the medical sector. Among the pioneers, we can mention the teams of D. Vasilescu, who highlighted piezoelectricity in amino acids in 1970, followed by Colin's team who highlighted it in biological polymers.
Since piezoelectricity operates in a range of medical implications:
- Biomechanics and Tissue Engineering in the field of orthopedics and regenerative medicine,
- Sensors and diagnostic tools, exploiting piezoelectric properties of proteins by AI allow the detection of early diseases, and the monitoring of biological processes.
In 1887 A. Michelson, one of the giants of the late 19th century, collaborated with chemist Edward Morley on one of the most important experiments of the 19th century. To reconcile the theories of I. Newton and J. C. Maxwell postulated the existence of a colorless, odorless, and imperceptible gas, named "ether," to act as a medium for EMWs. Despite their sophisticated and precise measurements, they observed neither the expected ether wind nor a variation in the speed of light. Initially deemed a
A. Michelson will earn the 1907 Nobel Prize in Physics "for his optical precision instruments and the spectroscopic and metrological investigations carried out with their aid."
In 1888, Heinrich Hertz, an engineering physicist, affirmed Maxwell's theory by successfully generating EMWs, solidifying its validity.
In 1895, the Catholic turned Anglican, Guglielmo Marconi, improving on Hertz's instrumentation, made in Salvan (Swiss Alps) the first telegraph link between his house and a receptor located at 2km behind the "Celestini" hill. This experiment earned him the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1909, along with Karl Ferdinand Braun, "in recognition of their contributions to the development of wireless telegraphy." Let's note that G. Marconi underestimated the importance of the work done by John A. Fleming,
In 1898 Ernest Rutherford, the "father of nuclear physics," highlighted the presence of particles a and ß during the disintegration of uranium. An Anglican near YEC (ref. 653-p.235) he was awarded the 1908 Nobel Prize for Physics "for his investigations into the disintegration of the elements, and the chemistry of radioactive substances."
"It is in the smallest things that God is the greatest."
Jean-Henri Fabre
We hope that the reader, who has persevered up to this point, will understand how stimulating the dialogue - between the experimentation that controls, and the mathematical concepts that advance the ideas - is for both parties. These exchanges became more difficult with the advent of scientific cosmology whose predictions require a very sharp technology, but it continues.
In 1900, Karl Landsteiner biologist, physician, and immunologist "the father of transfusion," identified three blood groups which would become 4, following the 1910 Descatello et al. work. We had to wait 8 years before this discovery became the object of extensive work. In 1909 he discovered the polio virus. This discovery will be of very great importance in many fields of medicine. K. Landsteiner was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology "for his discovery of human blood groups" in 1930. Born i
In 1901 Max Planck Lutheran, a prominent theoretical physicist opened the door to the first quantum revolution, that would last some thirty years. It will concern all scientific domains and give rise to the transistor, the laser, computers, smartphones, and GPS (Global Positioning Systems),... In 1933, Louis de Broglie, Catholic, 1929 Nobel Prize in Physics will say, during his reception at the Academy of Sciences, speaking of Mr. Planck:
- "... the work he accomplished is one of those which give its author an immortal glory..."
Physicists of the centuries to come will always speak of Planck's constant "h" and will not cease to repeat with admiration the name of the one who revealed to men the existence of the quantum Theory.
After fruitful research on thermodynamics and particularly on black radiation law, M. Planck published in Annalen der Physics, two articles including: "On the Elementary quanta in Matter and Electricity," laying the foundations of Quantum Physics, introducing, what we call "Planck's postulate" according to which the emission and absorption of electromagnetic energy (including light) by the matter are discontinuous and are done by discrete quantum (quantum of elementary action or quantum energy)
In 1903, E. Rutherford published with Frederick Soddy that radioactive elements spontaneously transmute from one chemical element to another of lower mass. In 1908, he received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry "for his research into the disintegration of elements and the chemistry of radioactive substances." At the same time, he supervised the scattered experiments of alpha particles by thin gold foils made by Hans Geiger and Ernest Marsden (Sir in 1948) which allowed him, thanks to the invention of
The same year, Henri Becquerel was awarded half of the Nobel Prize in Physics: "In recognition of the extraordinary services he has rendered by his discovery of spontaneous radioactivity," the other half going to a couple of French scientists Marie Curie, of Polish origin, and her husband Pierre Curie (ref.241, p.74) "In recognition of the extraordinary services they have rendered by their joint researches on the radiation phenomena discovered by Professor Henri Becquerel." In 1911, Marie Cu
Marie Curie was the first scientist to have received twice the Nobel Prize in Science. She will be followed by four other scientists: the engineer John Bardeen (1956 and 1972), the biochemist Frederick Sanger (in 1958 and 1980), cf. (ref. 438, p.130), and Karl B. Sharpless (2001 and 2022).
In 1904 Lord Rayleigh (3rd Baron) born John William Strutt, a devout Anglican, mathematician, received the Nobel Prize in Physics "for his investigations of the densities of the most important gases and his discovery of argon in connection with these studies." He made extensive contributions to science, studying the light scattering by particles smallest that the light's wavelength used, he described what we call "Rayleigh scattering." On this occasion, he quoted Psalm 111:2:
"The Works of the Lord are great, sought out of all them that have pleasure therein,"
This law justifies the blue color of the sky
a question that one day everyone has asked or will ask a scientist.
1905, a year that would forever alter the scientific landscape, Albert Einstein, a profound thinker aligned with Pantheist Spinozian beliefs (he didn't believe in a personal God who interferes with human affairs, but rather in a cosmic spirit that manifests itself in the harmony of natural laws), made an astonishing entrance into the scientific community. His contemplations on field theory would shape the unveiling of the principle of invariance of the speed of light and pave the way for the inc
Einstein, challenged bravely the traditional concepts of ether and absolute time, justifying Michelson and Morley's experimental results, and proposing the abandonment of these concepts. He boldly redefined the essence of relativity (under the name of "Principle of relativity"), amalgamating Newton's fundamental principle of physics - that the laws of the universe remain consistent for all observers in motion - with Maxwell's revolutionary laws of electromagnetism. This amalgamation explained th
- Time and distances were now relative in systems in motion relative to each other, necessitating a new understanding of simultaneity and dissolving the concept of absolute time. Lorentz's transformation became indispensable in comprehending these complex space-time relationships. This re-evaluation allowed for a more nuanced interpretation of biblical events, embracing a less dogmatic view of their dating.
- the iconic relation E = mc2 emerged, unveiling the intimate connection between energy E and mass m*. It illuminated that an ordinary body of mass m (variable with speed) could never surpass the speed of light in vacuum: the celerity c.
*The equivalence between mass and energy is known since the works on the radioactivity of Becquerel, Curie, and Rutherford. It is easily demonstrated that one gram of uranium has an energy of 9.10.13 J,
- This transformative theory, not only challenged Newtonian mechanics but also offered a refined perspective on gravitation. Unlike Newton's theory, the gravitational constant could be repulsive, enabling an interpretation of the expansive Universe (cf. § 4.1.1.) marking a paradigm shift in cosmology.
Yet, even with these revolutionary ideas, Einstein acknowledged the enduring validity of Newton's mechanics within the realm of low velocities compared to the celerity c. The conservation laws, once distinct for mass and energy, unified into the singular "law of conservation of mass or energy." In the face of skepticism, Einstein responded with profound insight:
"The Lord is subtle, but He is not cruel."
In the same year, A. Einstein applied Planck's theory to elucidate the photoelectric effect discovered by H. Hertz in 1888, affirming the quantum nature of light, a radiation made up of photons, and furthering the quantum theory's foundations.
Einstein would be awarded the 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics "for his contributions to theoretical physics especially for his discovery of the law of the photoelectric effect."
Einstein's genius didn't stop there, in 1915, uniting inertia and gravity, and introducing the Principle of Equivalence, he formulated the theory of the gravitational field, also known as the Theory of General Relativity (TGR), revealing that gravitation emerged from the curvature of space-time due to the presence of mass and energy.
In 1916, Einstein predicted gravitational waves resulting from matter displacement, anticipating their confirmation a century later. In effect, the 15/09/2015, we will learn their evidence by LIGO (ref.455-p.135). He also envisaged the existence of regions with such immense space-time curvature that not even light could escape, birthing the concept of "black hole," a name proposed in 1969 by the Unitarian theoretical physicist John Wheeler, a specialist in the Theory of General Relativity, and o
Einstein tested his theory by calculating with accuracy the "advance of the perihelion of Mercury," an effect known for 6 decades but which the Newtonian theory does not correct exactly.
Illustration of the space-time curvature. Taking again the example proposed by B. Greene [Gr] we can imagine that space-time would be perfectly flat in the absence of any mass or energy, like a bare floor. On the other hand, under the effect of stars, of energies of all kinds, it deforms like our parquet floor on which we have placed objects of varying weight. If the source of energy (star, light) is mobile, the variation of curvature also moves at the speed of light. Newton's space and time are
"Space is no longer rigid, it can participate in physical events" [Ei1].
In 1917, a pivotal year, Einstein's enhancements to TGR paved the way for a burgeoning community of "cosmologists," physicists, and astronomers. Their mathematical models soared beyond the confines of everyday Euclidean space (bounded by three dimensions), venturing into n-dimensional realms to unravel the mysteries of the universe beyond our solar system.
Their exploration extended far beyond our solar abode, delving into the vast expanse of the "Milky Way," a mere fraction of the universe, as elucidated in Chap. III).
Einstein, in the early stages, grasped that resolving TGR's equations required a universe either expanding or contracting toward the grand spectacle of a Big Crunch, a cataclysm collapse. However, Einstein, a visionary of his era, envisaged a perpetual universe, steadfast and stationary, resisting the notion of a beginning or an end. This perspective stood at odds with some contemporaneous scientists, notably Alexander Friedmann. Consequently, to counterbalance the attractive effect of the gravi
In certain cosmic domains, the repulsive pressure of the atoms could overpower, rendering the gravitational constant negative, propelling an expansion (as detailed § 4.1.1.). To bolster this notion, Einstein introduced the "cosmological constant," energy (qualified by G. Lemaître: "exotic energy") filling all the Universe, akin to the long discarded "ether" after Maxwell's work. In the realm of Science, experimentation holds the trump card, and we awaited the revelations of 1929 and 1979 for int
Among the earliest adherents to TGR was Sir Arthur Eddington, a Quaker, and then Secretary of the Royal Astronomical Society of England. He had the distinction of being the first to peruse Einstein's submission for publication. Collaborating with the Royal Astronomer Sir Frank Dyson, a Baptist, Eddington spearheaded a mission to the island of Principe (Gulf of Guinea). Here, during the momentous solar eclipse of May 29, 1919, they confirmed Einstein's calculated angular deviation of light rays n
Meantime, in 1910 Frederic Soddy highlighted the existence of isotopes and was awarded the 1921 Nobel Prize of Chemistry "for his contributions to our knowledge of the chemistry of radioactive substances, and his research on the origin and nature of isotopes."
Note. The AXZ nuclei are represented by their symbol X, the atomic number Z which is equal to the number of protons (p), and their atomic mass A, equal to the sum of protons and neutrons (n). Two nuclei with the same Z (e.g., hydrogen 1H1 (1p), deuterium 1H2 (1p +1n), and tritium 1H3 (1p + 2n)) are called isotopes.
While, in 1912 the Catholic Alexis Carrel, surgeon, and biologist, had been awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine "in recognition of the work on vascular suture and the transplantation of blood vessels and organs." In 1903 he left France for Canada because, having claimed in 1902 that he witnessed during a pilgrim in Lourdes (FR), a miraculous cure, he had made a lot of enmities among his university's colleagues, and he could not obtain a hospital appointment. In this epoch, the tren
"I believe in the existence of God, in the immortality of the soul, in Revelation, and in all the Catholic Church teachers."
The same year (1912), the Catholic physicist Max von Laüe published the mathematical formulation of the passage of waves of light through a periodic crystalline arrangement of particles, establishing the fact that Xrays are electromagnetic waves, and are diffracted by crystals, a theory confirmed by the P. Knipping and W. Friedrich's experiments. His scientific work extended over a wide field: General Relativity, superconductivity, and entropy, . He exerted a great influence, on the direction an
"In Adelaide, he was a churchwarden, and went to church constantly but I don't think he ever talked to us about religion."
In 1913, Niels Bohr - delving into quantum physics, rather than into the Electromagnetic theory from J.C. Maxwell, crafted "Bohr's atomic model" by combining classical mechanics with Planck's quantization. This model, justified in the great lines, atomic radiation observed, and surpassed Rutherford's earlier attempts. with whom he had worked, did not. To realize this, he had to postulate two revolutionary concepts: stationary states and the absence of electrodynamic radiation (cf. J.C. Maxwell)
In 1919, E. Rutherford, and two of his doctoral students, demonstrated experimentally the existence of the proton, and in 1920 that of the neutron which was highlighted in 1932 by Sir James Chadwick honored with the 1935 Nobel Prize of Chemistry "For the discovery of the neutron."
In 1922, A. Friedmann, relying on the initial equations of General Relativity demonstrated that the universe is expanding without convincing A. Einstein. What the latter will regret in 1929 when Edwin Hubble proved that the universe is in expansion.
In 1924, E. Hubble observed that our galaxy (the Milky Way) is not unique: there are currently more than 100 billion galaxies, each containing billions of stars, not counting the dwarf galaxies .
The same year Louis de Broglie, Catholic, supported a thesis: "Research on the theory of Quantum" at the origin of the principle of the wave-particle duality of corpuscles. According to which:
"... the theory of relativity leads to associate the uniform motion of any independent particle of matter or radiation to the propagation of a wave."
He was able to establish the relation ? = h/p between the wavelength ? of the wave associated with the particle (that we call "matter-wave") and its momentum p = mv (v is the velocity and m the mass). His application to atomic electrons, associating standing waves to the stationary states of Bohr's atom, such that the circumference of the orbit contains an integer number of wavelengths, lifted the mystery surrounding the quantization of atomic states and electronic transitions. As early as 1927,
Louis de Broglie's thesis was the starting point of Wave Mechanics and Erwin Schrödinger equation. His groundbreaking work was the foundation for the development of quantum mechanics. Erwin, a Catholic born of a Catholic father and a Lutheran mother, was sympathetic to Hindu philosophies [Sc] (cf. chapter 5) dealing with the ways of salvation for the soul. Speaking of particles represented by wave functions he stated:
"The unity and continuity of Vedanta are reflected in the unity and continuity of wave mechanics." Reasoning by the absurd, he wrote (cf. [Sc]-p.27):
"If from the outset we decide to leave aside, as too naive and childish, the idea of a soul that would inhabit the body as if it were its home, which would leave it at the moment of death and continue to exist outside of it, then we could ... arrive at illogical conclusions such as the fact that the disappearance of the Ego would lead to the disappearance of the World."
The years 1925 to 1927 stand as a pivotal period, witnessing the birth of quantum mechanics and the emergence of foundational principles that continue to shape our understanding of our universe. This period saw the convergence of revolutionary ideas and formulations. The intertwining of science, philosophy, and spirituality during this time laid the groundwork for a new era in physics.
a) The "Exclusion Principle" and Metaphysical Explorations. In 1925, the eminent physicist Wolfgang Pauli, a devout Catholic introduced the Exclusion Principle, a fundamental concept stating that 2 electrons in an atom cannot be in the same quantum state. This principle, a cornerstone of quantum mechanics, is also called "Pauli's Principle."
W. Pauli is also known for his work on the theory of relativity and atomic theory with W. Heisenberg, N. Bohr, and A. Einstein .... We also owe him the prediction in 1930 of the existence of the neutrino to explain the disintegration ß (cf. Rutherford experiment in 1898). The neutrino, which plays an exceptional role in nuclear physics, and serves as a messenger of the Big Bang, was only discovered in 1956.
Pauli's deep exploration into the metaphysical implications of Quantum Theory showcased his dedication to scientific understanding and the philosophical and theological dimensions of existence.
b) Matrix Formulation and Statistical Interpretation. The Matrix formulation of quantum mechanics is a mathematical framework that allows a rigorous description of quantum phenomena using matrices and linear operators. It was created by two Lutheran physicists, Werner Heisenberg and Max Born, as well as Pascual Jordan who had defended his thesis in 1924 in Göttingen under the direction of M. Born. According to this formulation, the physical properties of particles are represented by matrices tha
Following closely, in 1926, W. Heisenberg formulated the "Uncertainty Principle" that S. Hawking prefers to call the "Principle of Indeterminacy" because it "refers to the absence of a determination of a physical quantity." A consequence of this principle is that at the atomic scale, the result of any measurement is not unique, it is affected by a certain probability, so it cannot be predicted with absolute certainty. This indeterminacy results from the fact that in the atomic domain, any measur
c) Schrödinger's Wave Mechanics and the Schrodinger Equation. In 1926, Erwin Schrödinger, building on Louis de Broglie's wave-corpuscle duality, introduced the Schrodinger equation, a fundamental differential equation describing the evolution of a wave associated with a subatomic particle. This formulation known as Wave Mechanics, united wave-like behavior with the behavior of particles.
These two formulations of quantum mechanics are equivalent but, the matrix formulation has some advantages over the wave formulation, such as being more suitable for discrete systems.
In 1927 Paul Dirac a Deist at the end of his life, with a fascinating philosophical journey from Atheism to Agnosticism completed the Quantum Theory of electromagnetic fields. His formulation of "the Dirac equation" profoundly linked quantum theory with special relativity, ultimately predicting the existence of antiparticles!
It's noteworthy that the whole of these works not only consolidated quantum mechanics but also garnered recognition from physicists like A. Einstein, and Louis de Broglie,.. Besides:
- Werner Heisenberg received the 1932 Nobel Prize in Physics for "the creation of quantum mechanics, the application of which led, among other things, to the discovery of the allotropic varieties of hydrogen
" while,
- P. Dirac will share the 1933 Nobel Prize in Physics with E. Schrödinger "for the discovery of new and useful forms of atomic theory."
- W. Pauli will be awarded the 1945 Nobel Prize in Physics "for the discovery of the principle of exclusion,"
- Max Born will be awarded half of the 1954 Nobel Prize in Physics "for his fundamental research in quantum mechanics, especially for his statistical interpretation of the wave function," the other half going to Walther Bothe, Lutheran too "for the coincidence method and for his discoveries made therewith."
The year 1927 marked a pivotal moment when the profound philosophical debates around determinism, indeterminacy, and the nature of reality were epitomized by the renowned Solvay Congress. Einstein, a key figure in these discussions, famously asserted:
"God does not play dice" [He],
emphasizing his belief in a deterministic universe.
N. Bohr, an atheist, on the other hand, retorted, advocating for complementarity and acknowledging the intrinsic indeterminacy at the heart of quantum mechanics:
"Who are you, Einstein, to tell God what to do?."
Schrödinger, like Einstein, opposed the probabilistic interpretation of quantum physics. This shows that even the greatest can be wrong. Nevertheless, for Catholics for example this would not be a problem, because it supports the hypothesis that God has left us free will, which was not the case with deterministic theories like Newtonian and relativity.
These debates highlighted the ongoing dialogue between scientific discovery and philosophical or religious beliefs. Eminent physicists like W. Pauli and S. Hawking emphasized the fundamental role of indeterminacy in our universe, acknowledging its deep connection to the nature of reality.
According to W. Pauli [He], Catholic, the Principle of Indeterminacy rejecting that of causality, the "narrow" perception of the physicists of an objective world, subject of the divergences of view with the religion, which is subjective, should lead the physicists to:
"... respect a middle ground, perhaps that of Bohr's complementarity. A science that has adopted this way of thinking will not only be more tolerant of the various forms of religion
it will perhaps, thanks to a better overview, be able to contribute to the world of values."
Pauli's opinion is shared by another great Catholic scientist: V.F. Hess (ref.332-p.99), 1936 Nobel Prize in Physics.
For the Agnostic Stephen Hawking [Ha2]:
"The principle of indeterminacy is indeed one of the fundamental properties of the Universe in which we live."
In "Une Belle Histoire du Temps" [Ha1], Hawkins states (p.107):
"... one could postulate the existence of a series of laws determining events which would be accessible to a supernatural being capable, unlike us, of observing the present state of the universe without disturbing it."
Notes. 1. While A. Einstein and I. Newton's universes are local: an interaction between two objects A and B can only take place if someone or something connects them, the Quantum Mechanics universe is not necessarily local: it reveals quantum entanglements (interactions) between binomials located at very great distances (light-years) from each other. The pre-requisite, which is not easy to achieve experimentally, is that these two particles A et B have been created in the same quantum state in t
Between 1980 and 1982, Alain Aspect et al., using specific photons made pairs of entangled particles and demonstrated in 1982 at Orsay - with 2 detectors spaced 12m apart - that this Quantum Mechanics prediction is right. In 1988 a Swiss demonstrated it for particles 30km apart, followed in 2017 by Juan Yin et al. who sent entangled photons from the QUESS (QUantum Experiments at Space Scale) satellite, orbiting 500km from the Earth to terrestrial satellites spaced at 1203km. The effect is instan
Based on such work, on the indeterminism highlighted by E. Heisenberg in the case of sub-atomic particles (emphasis added), . "pseudo-scientists" directed their research several decades ago towards a mystical interpretation of Quantum Mechanics. For Amit Goswami, for example, it is necessary to introduce into science a new paradigm: that of consciousness primacy over matter, making God and the world one thing. This would be a justification for pantheism, in my opinion.
As we read this essay, we discover that quantum mechanics has led renowned scientists, even Nobel Prizes in Physics, to ask philosophical questions. Richard Feynman, 1965 Nobel Prize in Physics (ref.361-p.108), describing himself as a freethinker, demonstrates that the present no longer derives from a single past. It is the combination of several possible pasts. His explanation is based on Davisson 1937 Nobel Prize in Physics and Germer's experiment (ref.306-p.91). To simplify we will say that t
The same year (1927), Professor Arthur H. Compton a Presbyterian won half part of the Nobel Prize in Physics "for his discovery of the effect named after him." He demonstrated that, when the matter is submitted to X-rays, there is an emission of secondary X-radiations of energies depending on the direction of emission. This effect is known as "Compton scattering." Let's notice that, following the discovery of X-rays, by Wilhelm Rontgen - who received 1901 the first Nobel Prize of Physics "in rec
"part of the quest for God, the creator."
Carl D. Anderson published the discovery of the first antiparticle: "the anti-electron," (which is named: "positron") which earned him in 1936 half of the Nobel Prize in Physics "For his discovery of the positron." The other half was awarded to the Catholic Victor Franz Hess "for his discovery of the cosmic ray." In conclusion of "My Faith," he says:
"What is certain is that, when Faith comes, there follows a great serenity of soul and a deep peace in the human heart."
In 1928 Sir Alexander Fleming a Presbyterian physician, and microbiologist returning from a holiday noticed in his Petri dishes an unusual "mold juice" secreting something, which proved to be able to inhibit the growth of bacteria. Although he published his discovery in 1929, it was not until 1939 that the team of the pharmacologist and pathologist Sir Howard Florey, an Agnostic, began the work of extracting, purifying, and transforming penicillin, into a potent antibiotic, and in 1940 the exper
"... his life's discoveries were more than chance, it was the invisible hand of God on his life and work."
Proving, that although having some difficulties with religious institutions, he nevertheless believed in God.
His ashes are buried at the Anglican St Paul's Cathedral, and his son Robert, a medical generalist was an Anglican.
Let's note that, before moving to London, where he will integrate into the Royal Polytechnic Institution, Fleming attended the Kilmarnock Academy (a Scottish secondary school) just as did, in 1893, Lord John Boyd Orr, 1st Baron of Brechin, a future famous scientific researcher in nutrition, and a member of the Free Church of Scotland (dissident Anglicans) was deeply religious until his death and manifested this in his stance in favor of the unfortunate. In 1949, Sir J. Boyd Orr was awarded the N
In 1929 Edwin Hubble observed, thanks to the telescope of Mt Wilson in California (2,5m in diameter), that the galaxies move away from each other confirming thus, that "the universe is in expansion," as demonstrated by A. Friedmann in 1922. He deduced from his measurements the law of "Hubble-Lemaitre" according to which the galaxies move away at a speed v proportional to the distance d that separates them
the coefficient of proportionality "Ho" was called the "Hubble constant." This is one of t
It is noteworthy that galaxies located sufficiently far from us can appear to move at speeds greater than that of light. However, this phenomenon does not challenge the theory of relativity, as these galaxies are not actually moving through space but are instead following the expansion of space itself. Let's note that the speed limit for moving particles is only valuable within space.
This discovery had a significant impact on A. Einstein, leading him to abandon his idea of a stationary universe, which he later admitted was the greatest mistake of his life. The concept of the "cosmological constant" was also temporarily set aside.
Despite these setbacks, we can agree with the sentiment expressed by M. Planck in [PL1, p1]:
"... the theory of relativity ... has proved to be the completion and crowning achievement of classical physics...... it has made it possible to take an important step in the direction of the standardization and refinement of its concepts."
The same year the couple of biochemists Gerty Cori a Jewish converted to Catholicism and the Catholic Carl Cori, published what came to be known as "Cori's cycle," explaining how glucose and glycogen are converted in the liver and bloodstream
answering one of the most fundamental questions about how the human body works. Their subsequent work on carbohydrate metabolism changed our understanding of diabetes. This earned them, the 1947 Nobel Prize of Physiology or Medicine "for their discovery of
Always in 1929, the nuclear physicist Ernest O. Lawrence, an Anglican, invented the cyclotron, the first cyclical particle accelerator
using magnetic and electrostatic fields to accelerate charged particles. He will improve it in 1931, reaching higher energies. The cyclotron is widely used in the medical field, particularly to produce radioisotopes used in radiotherapy and high-energy charged particles used in proton therapy. He will be awarded the 1939 Nobel Prize in Physics "for the invention
In 1930 Georges Lemaitre, a Belgian Catholic Canon, physicist, and astronomer, understood all the interest in the theory of Relativity and proposed the theory of the "primitive atom" at the origin of the Big Bang. He predicts that this state, where the density of matter and energy were extreme, should have given rise to the emission of radiation that A. Penzias and R. Wilson discovered in 1965 (ref.361-p.76). Although, this idea seemed to be a godsend for Christians since it agreed with the thes
In 1932, using the Cockroft & Walton generator or multiplier, that they have realized, John D. Cockcroft and Ernst T. S. Walton performed the first artificial nuclear disintegration in history. Their electrostatic generator creates a high DC voltage from a low voltage input. After a brilliant education in physics at St. John's College, Cambridge, J. Cockroft, a Methodist, prepared his thesis under the Anglican E. Rutherford's supervision, in his Cavendish Laboratory in Cambridge. He met there, i
In 1934 the Nobel Prize in Physics Louis de Broglie, a Catholic, developed photon wave mechanics [Bro] demonstrating how the photon theory of light finds its place in the more general framework of wave mechanics.
In 1938 Otto Hahn, a Lutheran, nicknamed "Fritz" and the "father of nuclear chemistry," and his assistant Friedrich Strassmann were the first to realize, in December, the fission of uranium nuclei thanks to neutrons. In effect, this discovery, which has been used since 1950 to produce electricity, will unfortunately give rise, first of all, to a frantic race for the development of devastating nuclear bombs.
It should be noted that Lise Meitner, a Protestant nuclear physicist, and theoretician, director since 1917 of a physics laboratory that had just been created, had involved Otto Hahn as soon as 1934 (with whom she had collaborated since 1907) and Fritz Strassmann in the study of Uranium, which led to the discovery of fission four years later. Although she converted to Protestantism in 1908, she was Jewish by birth and had to go into exile in Sweden in 1938 (a country whose nationality she adopte
After having noticed the damage created in Japan for which he felt responsible, Otto Hahn said:
"... I thank God on my knees that we (the Germans) did not make the uranium bomb."
Numerous have been German scientists who contributed to the process of nuclear fission and the realization of atomic bombs. After the war, Hahn militated against the use of nuclear weapons and served as the first president of the German Atomic Energy Commission.
In 1939, Robert Oppenheimer a mystic, and his student George Volkoff wrote an article: "On Massive Neutron Cores" demonstrating that, when contracting stars reach a certain critical radius. There is a distance (now called "horizon event") below which nothing can escape its gravitational field, making the star invisible because any light ray or object penetrating inside this surface will be absorbed by the star. We are approaching the term "black body."
In 1948 George Gamow - whose work significantly influenced the field of astrophysics, cosmology, and nuclear physics explained, among other things, how some elements are formed through nucleosynthesis (ref. 461-p.137) - and his student Ralph Alpher proposed, in the line of the "primitive soup" model of G. Lemaitre, a model of the formation of the universe: a "dense soup of neutrons and protons" named "Ylem," that Fred Hoyle, coined by derision "Big Bang," during a televised interview in the 1950
In 1957, B2FH, Fred Hoyle & al. developed the complete theory of nucleosynthesis of elements in stars
a theory that F. Hoyle had predicted theoretically in 1946. While the Big Bang theory only explains the formation in the universe of nuclei of atomic mass less than or equal to 7, through this theory its authors demonstrate that the temperature conditions for 3 nuclei of Helium (4He2) to combine and give a nucleus of carbon: 12C6, are met in stars. This is called the "triple reaction a," (a = a
"Who could not tell you ".that a superior mathematical intelligence must have designed the properties of the carbon atom?""
In 1958 Arthur Leonard Schawlow, the "Protestant fairy," a Methodist, and Charles Townes, a devout Protestant too, published "The Theory of Laser
" Laser is an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulation Emission of Radiation. Three years earlier they had co-authored a book "Microwave Spectroscopy." In 1960 Ch. Townes and A. Schawlow took out a patent for the Laser. Townes will share the 1964 Nobel Prize in Physics with Nicolay G. Basov and Aleksandr M. Prokhorov, a theist "for fundamental wo
Since its discovery, the laser has been extensively used because the generated light is coherent (all the photons emitted having the same wavelength) and directional (a tiny beam, when other sources produce diffuse beams). It is at the origin of the attribution of Nobel Prizes. Thus, in 1997 Steven Chu, Claude Cohen Tannoudji, and William Daniel Phillips were awarded "for the development of methods to cool and trap atoms with laser light." Although a practicing Jew, C. Cohen-Tannoudji leaves the
"I believe in God. I believe in a personal God who acts in and interacts with the creation. I believe that the observations about the orderliness of the physical universe, and the apparently fine-tuning of the conditions of the universe for the development of life suggest that an intelligent Creator is responsible . I believe in God because of a personal faith, a faith consistent with what I know about science."
In 1965 Richard Feynman, describing himself as a freethinker, Sin-Itiro Tomonaga and Julian Schwinger, Jewish shared the Nobel Prize in Physics: "For their fundamental work in quantum electrodynamics, with deep-plowing consequences for the physics of elementary particles."
The same year, Arno Penzias, an orthodox Jewish, and Robert W. Wilson, researchers at Bell Telephone Laboratories (Murray Hill, NJ), working on new antennas, observed a signal from the atmosphere in the microwave range that they did not expect. After verifications, it turned out that it corresponded to the "fossil radiation" predicted by G. Lemaitre, then G. Gamow et al. under the name of "Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB)" which earned A. Penzias and R. Wilson to be co-recipients in 1978 of hal
It should be noted that at the same time at Princeton, Robert Dicke professor of Physics, and his ex-Ph.D. James Peebles tried to demonstrate this radiation with the help of the "Dike radiometer" that R. Dicke had developed at MIT, during the Second World War, and thanks to which he had been able to predict, 20 years earlier, a temperature of the fossil radiation lower than 20K. They could nevertheless theoretically confirm the discovery of A. Penzias and R. Wilson, as well as the validity of th
During this year, Sir Roger Penrose, an Agnostic Jew, using the Theory of General Relativity, demonstrates mathematically that a star collapsing under the effect of gravity will end up occupying a zero volume where the energy density and the curvature of space-time are infinite, giving what theoretical physicists name a "singularity" in a region of space called "black hole." This hypothesis will become the Penrose Theorem:
"Anybody collapsing under gravitational forces must form a singularity."
He will be awarded, in 2020, half part of the Nobel Prize in Physics "for the discovery that black hole formation is a robust prediction of the general theory of relativity."
At the time, a gifted student: Stephen Hawking, discovering Penrose's theorem during a seminar decides, despite the terrible illness that is beginning to take its toll, to dedicate his thesis to the study of time. Reversing the direction of time, he demonstrates that Penrose's theorem is still valid and that Friedman's expanding universe must have begun with a "singularity
" provided that its expansion was fast enough to avoid a collapse of the matter involved. He defended his thesis in 1969 and
In 1967, the Quaker Jocelyn Bell, a graduate student of the renowned Christian radio-astronomer Anthony Hewish, puts in evidence the first pulsars. A. Hewish is not convinced, thinking it is a flare star. Some called these observations "little green men," a common English expression for an extraterrestrial civilization. Renewing her measurements several times, she finally convinces Hewish who will be awarded together with Martin Ryle, the 1974 Nobel Prize in Physics "for their pioneering researc
"Born and brought up Quaker and still am active in Quakers, probably even very active in Quakers."
We will encounter various quotations of A. Hewish, but I retain here:
"As a Christian, I begin to comprehend what life is all about through belief in a creator, some of whose nature was revealed by a Man, who was born about 2,000 years ago."
At the end of his life, Sir Martin Ryle was more deeply committed to ethical and environmental questions than astronomy. He was the advocate of science and technology for the good of mankind instead of its selfdestruction. In 1983, answering a request from the Pontifical Academy he wrote:
"Our cleverness has grown prodigiously - but not our wisdom."
Seven years after the discovery of J. Bell Burnell, the Quaker Joseph H. Taylor Jr, and his research student Russell A. Hulse discover, with the radio telescope at Arecibo, Puerto Rico, the first binary pulsar: two stars in very close proximity (about a few distances Terre-Moon), rotating around each other. They will receive the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physics "for the discovery of a new type of pulsar, a discovery, that has opened up new possibilities for the study of gravitation." In 1978, J. H. T
"A scientific discovery is also a religious discovery. There is no conflict between science and religion. Our knowledge of God is made larger with every discovery we make about the world" (Brown 2002).
In 1970, S. Hawking [Ha2-p.52], joined forces with the esteemed R. Penrose, building upon the latter's theorem dating back to 1965. Together they penned an illuminating article that showcased, under certain conditions, how the presence of singularities need not challenge the validity of the Big Bang model. They demonstrated that black holes are delimited by a surface called an "event horizon" beyond which light rays are not absorbed but more or less deflected depending on their proximity. On the
In 1973, a pivotal moment in the quest to unveil the secrets of fundamental particles and the mysterious forces that govern them unfolded. David J. Gross Jew, H. David Politzer Jew, and Franck Wilczek (raised Catholic he became a Pantheist) made a groundbreaking theoretical revelation about the nature of the "strong force," affectionately dubbed the "color force," that binds quarks together: the elemental constituents of nucleons, which encompass neutrons and protons. Their revelation: the inter
This theoretical breakthrough has contributed significantly to the Standard Model, a fundamental framework in the particle physics realm. In recognition of their pioneering work, they were honored with the 2004 Nobel Prize in Physics "for the discovery of asymptotic freedom in the theory of the strong interaction." As explained by Lars Bergström, Secretary of the Nobel Committee for Physics, during an interview "This discovery has brought physics one step closer to fulfilling a grand dream, to f
During the ceremony, Wilczek expressed a sense of wonder and spirituality in the natural world:
"Another thing that shaped my thinking was religious training. I was brought up as a Roman Catholic. I loved the idea that there was a great drama and a grand plan behind existence. Later, under the influence of Bertrand Russell's writings and my increasing awareness of scientific knowledge, I lost faith in conventional religion. A big part of my later quest has been trying to regain some of the sense of purpose, and meaning that was lost. I'm still trying."
In 2022, receiving the prestigious Templeton Prize he will describe himself as a Pantheist.
In 1975, during a conference at the Rutherford-Appleton Laboratory near Oxford, in a fascinating twist, S. Hawking, a visionary ahead of his time, made an announcement that stunned the participants:
"Black holes emit radiation."
John G. Taylor, chairman of the session, was amazed and said: "This is nonsense." But S. Hawking, who had until then succeeded in convincing a great part of his scientific colleagues that no radiation, nor particle, could escape from the black hole, had finally accepted the idea put forward in 1973 by the Jewish theoretical physicist, Jacob Bekenstein, according to which black holes can have entropy and thus a temperature. Drawing upon the reliable realm of quantum field theory, according to whi
Hawking championed the notion, that the Big Bang doesn't necessarily require the crutch of a singularity (required by the General Relativity Theory). His captivating argument invited a fresh perspective, sparking a fervent debate among the scientific community. Here again, S. Hawking makes a total turnaround (which he acknowledges), proving that Reason is not always right about facts and that what seems obvious today can be contradicted tomorrow by recent discoveries. Among other things, he had
A prominent figure in this grand cosmic discourse is Ilya Prigogine, acclaimed as the father of irreversible thermodynamics, and a laureate of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1977 "for his contributions to nonequilibrium thermodynamics, particularly the theory of dissipative structures." His expertise allowed him to offer a thermodynamic approach to the genesis of the universe. In his revolutionary insights, Prigogine too defied the singularity, presenting an alternative viewpoint that stirred t
In 1978 Vera Rubin, Jewish astronomer, and astrophysicist published the results of work done with her colleague Kent Ford on about sixty galaxies, confirming the results of their measurements made at the beginning of the decade on the Andromeda galaxy. Namely, that the stars in the outer part and those in the center move at the same speed, which is not the case in the Milky Way for example, where the most distant move less quickly in order not to leave our galaxy under Newtonian and relativistic
In 1979 Alan Guth, a Ph.D. student at M.I.T. breathed new life into Einstein's "cosmological constant," unveiling it as: "space energy," "dark energy" or even "dark matter." This groundbreaking discovery, sometimes equated with the enigmatic "Higgs' field" (cf. year 2013, ref.449-p.134), set in motion Cosmological Inflation the pivotal starting point of contemporary scientific cosmology, by satisfactorily describing the macroscopic world of stars, galaxies, and the vast expense of the cosmos, wi
"... to explain why the cosmological radiation has the same temperature in all directions" ... "without invoking the act of a God willing to create beings such as us,"
as S. Hawking, who claimed to be an atheist, said jokingly. According to A. Guth, during the 10-45 seconds following the Bang, the universe experienced a fleeting burst of accelerated expansion, multiplying its initial radius by a factor of 1030. This extraordinary event fostered a relative uniformity throughout the universe.
In that same year, Sheldon L. Glashow, a Jewish physicist, Muhammad A. Salam, an Ahmanist Muslim physicist, and Steven Weinberg a cosmologist, were honored with the Nobel Prize in Physics "for their contributions to the unified theory of the weak and electromagnetic interactions between elementary particles, including, among other things, the prediction of the weak neutral current." Remarkably, more than a century after J.C. Maxwell integration of electric and magnetic forces into an "electromag
Meanwhile in the material chemistry realm, 1979 proved to be a profoundly fruitful year. John Goodenough, an Evangelist, and his team postulated that the cathode of Lithium (Li) batteries pioneered by Stanley Whittingham in 1976, could exhibit even greater potential if constructed using a metal oxide instead of a metal sulfide. Their foresight was vindicated in 1985 when Akira Yoshino replaced the Li anode with one crafted from petroleum coke, leading to the commercialization of the 1st Li-ion b
These lightweight, rechargeable, and powerful batteries, as expressed by Professor Göran K. Hansson, Secretary General of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, ushered in "a rechargeable world" on 9 October 2019.
It is worth mentioning Ashkin's extraordinary achievement with optical tweezers, which enable the manipulation of particles, atoms, molecules, and living cells by coaxing them toward the center of the laser beam. In 1987, Ashkin achieved the remarkable feat of capturing living bacteria without harming them. Today optical tweezers are widely employed to study biological systems, contributing to significant advancements in this field.
In 1980 the "String theory," initiated in 1968, attracted the attention of theoretical physicists. This theory is the fruit of the hard work of two theoretical Physicists, professors John H. Schwarz and Michael Green, co-initiators of the Green-Schwarz mechanism. In 2013 they were awarded the "Fundamental Physics Prize," the most lucrative (USD 3 million). They were convinced since the 1970s, despite the skepticism of the scientific community, that the string theory, the first quantum theory jus
In the pivotal year of 1989, the field of medical research witnessed a groundbreaking moment. A triumvirate of renowned, independent teams, helmed by distinguished scientists and eminent virologists, left an indelible mark on the medical realm. Thus, Dr. Harvey J. Alter, born in a Jewish family, Pr. Sir Michael Houghton, and Dr. Charles M. Rice, accomplished a monumental feat: the discovery of the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV). This discovery contributed to a significant leap forward in the future tre
In 1990, a momentous year unfolded, profoundly impacting Humanity and the delicate balance of life on Earth. The year marked a critical juncture as the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), an institution, established and shaped by Sir John Houghton in 1988, came to the forefront. J. Houghton, a distinguished environmental physicist and devoted Evangelical Christian, assumed the helm of this organization. In 1990, the IPCC released its inaugural comprehensive global report, illuminat
"an entirely scientific body not political" [Ho]
as he reiterated during the 25th-anniversary commemoration of the first IPCC report, in 2015.
Throughout his lifetime, Sir J. Houghton devoted himself to disseminating the science of climate change, reaching out to a diverse audience, from religious and scientific leaders to foreign dignitaries and fellow scientists. In the words of J. Houghton, the President of the John Ray Initiative:
"In this paper, I first list some of the growing threats to the environment and introduce the important concept of sustainability. I then explain the threat arising from human-induced climate change, summarizing its scientific basis and the most significant impacts. I proceed to outline the action that is necessary to halt climate change, especially in the energy sector. Finally, I emphasize the moral imperative for action and suggest how Christians, in particular, should respond to the challeng
In 2007, when the IPCC shared half of the Nobel Peace Prize "for their efforts to strengthen and disseminate knowledge about human-induced climate change and to lay the foundations for the measures that are needed to counteract such changes," Sir J. Houghton, alongside renowned climatologist and glaciologist Jean Jouzel, a Catholic, and member of the French Académie des Sciences, co-presided over the agency. Jean Jouzel was later co-awarded the prestigious Vetlesen Foundation Prize in 2012, ofte
However, it is equally crucial to recognize the foresight of a remarkable visionary, Svante Arrhenius, more than a century earlier. In 1896, Arrhenius a Nobel Laureate in Chemistry in 1903 "In recognition of the extraordinary service he had rendered to the advancement of chemistry by his electrolytic theory of dissociation," published a groundbreaking article in the "Philosophical Magazine and Journal of Science." In this foresighted work, he issued a prescient warning to the scientific communit
Notably, in 1990, Joseph E. Murray, a Catholic surgeon, jointly received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine with Edward D. Thomas "for their discoveries concerning organ and cell transplantation in the treatment of human disease." These pioneering researchers unveiled the means to manage organ transplant rejection, a phenomenon that had stymied earlier attempts, as recognized by the 1912 Nobel Prize Alexis Carrel, Catholic too (ref. 292-87) who referred to it as a "biological force" hinde
In 2005, he was awarded the Laetare Medal by the University of Notre Dame (IN-US) in recognition of outstanding service to the Catholic Church and society.
The 1990 year, was also a pivotal one, for the knowledge of the matter. The Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded jointly to Jerome I. Friedman, Henry W. Kendall, and Richard E. Taylor "for their pioneering investigations concerning the deep inelastic scattering of electrons on protons and bound neutrons, which have been of essential importance for the development of the quark model in particle physics."
Let's return in 1968. In this pivotal year, the 1990 Nobel laureates made a breakthrough, in our understanding of the inner structure of matter. Their series of investigations, called the "SLAC-MIT Experiment," because it was realized with the two-mile-long SLAC Accelerator (Stanford Linear Accelerator) put into evidence the first indications that the nucleons have an inner structure with point-like scattering centers, according to the "Standard Model" (ref.382-p.113). These were later interpret
In 1992 the scientists in charge of the COBE (COsmic Background Explorer) satellite officially announced that the mission, whose aim was to study the "fossil radiation" or "Cosmic Microwave Background" (CMB), had confirmed experimentally that the structures (galaxies, clusters of galaxies) that we now observe were in their germ state 380,000 years after the Big Bang (cf. p.179) validating the "Standard Cosmological Model"[Pee] of which J. Peebles, the 2019 Nobel Prize in Physics, is one of the p
"... it is the discovery of the century, perhaps even of all times."
Also in 1992, during the Meeting of the American Physical Society in Washington, G. Smoot declared:
"If you are religious, it is like seeing God,"
Stephen Maran, editor of the Astronomy and Astrophysics Encyclopedia, said:
"It's like Genesis."
and I will finish with the front page of Newsweek:
"The handwriting of God."
On October 6, 1995, the Haute-Provence Observatory in France (04) received honors for its groundbreaking achievements. Using the ELODIE spectrograph, built by a team of engineers and scientists led by the astrophysicist Michel Mayor, this latter and his student Didier Queloz, made a momentous announcement: the discovery of the first exoplanet (extra-solar planet), orbiting a star still alive located 51 light-years from the Sun. Their remarkable contribution earned them half of the 2019 Nobel Pri
In 1996, Christian Richard E. Smalley was bestowed with the Nobel Prize in Chemistry, a joint honor shared with Sir Harold W. Kroto and Robert F. Curl "for their discovery of fullerenes," a new form of carbon distinct from diamond and graphite. These incredibly stable molecules, despite being made up of 60 or more carbon atoms, arranged in a hollow sphere or tube, sparked up a revolution in chemistry. Their discovery has led groundbreaking research and innovations across multiple scientific fiel
Fuller's geodesic domes bore a striking resemblance to the new atom structure. Throughout his brilliant career, Smalley demonstrated an exceptional concern for pressing environmental issues. He was a driving force in global warming, affordable and clean energy, and the quest for sustainable alternatives to fossil fuels. In October 2005 at an alumni banquet at Tuskegee University (US-AL) he said:
"My short two years at Hope starting as a freshman in 1961 were immensely important to me. I went to chapel, studied religion, attended church more than I had ever done before, and was with people who took these issues seriously. I valued that greatly back then. Recently I have gone back to church regularly with a new focus to understand as best as I can what makes Christianity so vital and powerful in the lives of billions of people today, even though almost 2,000 years passed since the death a
Note. Readers unfamiliar with biological terms can consult Appendix 1, p. 140.
"... today we learn the language in which God created life..."
It is with this sentence that on 06/26/2000, Bill Clinton, the 42nd President of the USA and a Baptist Christian, presented to the international community, groundbreaking results from the Human Genome Sequencing Project. Over the past decade, two independent teams of physicians and biologists diligently have worked on sequencing the Human Genome (Appendix 2, p. 141) to identify all its protein-coding genes. This scientific feat is comparable to the presentation of the American West map by Meriwe
"Without a shadow of a doubt this is the most important, the most wonderful map ever produced by mankind."
The results of the Human Genome Sequencing project became available in September 2003
they compiled genetic data from diverse individuals worldwide, represented as a 3-billion letter text coded using the 4 letters A, T, G, and C (for the nucleotides: Adenine, Thymine, Guanine, Cytosine). This remarkable achievement sheds light on the intricate complexities of our genetic makeup and its impact on various traits and genetic diseases. However, it is now clear that only a small portion (1,5%) of th
Among the many esteemed scientists who contributed to this remarkable endeavor, it is worth mentioning Georgia M. Dunston, a Baptist Afro-American scientist, with an inspiring career. Despite facing racial segregation, she secured scholarships and grants to become the first member of her family to graduate from college. Driven by her passion for studying the human genome that she eloquently describes as "the most elegant living information and communication system known to science" Dunston focus
". the human genome encodes biblical truths on the laws of life revealed in and through research on human identity and population diversity. Moreover, I perceive and pose the genome human as a type of sacred text ...."
As a scientist, she claims that: "the concept of race has no place in biology. .. We all belong to Homo sapiens united by our shared humanity
" and "As a believer, I am convinced that the genome has been sequenced in our time to provide solid evidence from "big data science" for this generation, requires sense-based knowledge, to believe biblical truths of our identity and genomic inheritance in relationship to ourselves, others, and our God."
It is essential to enlighten the significant contributions of Frederick Sanger, a twice Nobel Prize laureate in Chemistry (1958 and 1980). His work on accurately and rapidly sequencing long stretches of DNA greatly influenced the realization of the Human Genome Sequencing Project. Additionally, Walter Gilbert's efforts, a biochemist, and physicist who joined J. Watson's team in 1960, were pivotal in advancing the groundbreaking scientific endeavor. Gilbert shared half of the 1980 Nobel Prize in
"for their contributions concerning the determination of base sequences in nucleic acids."
In 2007 the Nobel Prize for physics was awarded jointly to Albert Fert and Peter Grünberg, Catholic, "for the discovery of Giant Magnetoresistance (GMR)." The GMR discovery changed the way our computers look and function. It triggered the development of powerful magnetic hard disk reading heads, which have been used and improved since 1997. The performance of these heads has made it possible to multiply by a hundred the volume of information stored on the same surface. Although Gründberg declare
"Per se, they are all equivalent. What counts is how religion is practiced, for example with tolerance. And yet I believe that there is more than what we see, hear, etc., or can detect with instruments. But it is a feeling born out of many details of my personal experience and therefore impossible to share or communicate."
In 2009 Svante S. Pääbo, a Christian, sequences the Neanderthal genome from samples found in the Vindija cave in Croatia. It is now well established that modern humans (Homo Sapiens) have 99.5% identical genomes to Neanderthal. He would be awarded the 2022 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine "for his discoveries concerning the genomes of extinct hominids and human evolution."
In 2011 the Nobel Prize in Physics for "the discovery of the accelerated expansion of the universe through the observation of very distant Supernovas" in 1998, was awarded to Saul Perlmutter, Brian Schmidt & Adam Riess. Until 1998 physicists majority thought that the speed of expansion of the universe was decreasing under the effect of gravitational forces. An explanation of this expansion is found in the presence of Dark Matter (cf. p.81-p.90) constituting 25% of the total mass of the Universe
In the same year two famous scientists, covered many important distinctions, Emmanuelle Charpentier, a Catholic, and Jennifer Doudna, a Christian, met during a research conference, and began a collaboration that materialized in 2020 by obtaining the Nobel Prize in Chemistry: "for the development of a method for genome editing." The new tool: The CRISPR/Cas9 genetic scissors is revolutionary. Better known as the "Swiss Army knife of genome editing" because the Cas9 protein has the property of cut
On October 09, 2013, the Nobel Prize in Physics "For the theoretical discovery of a mechanism contributing to our understanding of the origin of mass of subatomic particles, which has been recently confirmed by the discovery of the predicted fundamental particle (the Higgs boson) by the ATLAS and CMS experiments conducted at the CERN Large Hadron Collider" is attributed jointly to the brilliant theoretical physicists Peter Higgs, and François Englert a Catholic. Indeed, on 4/7/2012 the scientifi
The same year, the ESA (European Space Agency) provided the scientific community with a map of the fossil radiation in the sky, available thanks to the measurements made by the European satellite Planck, put into orbit in 2009. This map shows slight anisotropies and small temperature variations (3rd decimal). It completes and refines the results provided by the American space observatory WMAP (acronym of: Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe), put into orbit in 2001.
On 11/06/2016, CERN announced to the scientific community the dawn of a new era: the first gravitational waves (G.W.) named "GW150914" (Gravitational Waves, year, month, day) were revealed on September 15th, 2015, by LIGO. These waves result from the merger -at 1 billion light-years from our Earth- of 2 black holes of masses respectively equal to 36 and 29 times the solar mass giving 1 black hole of mass equal to 62 times that of the sun. The 3 lost solar masses (36 + 29 = 65) are converted into
On 9/29/2017, CERN announced that VIRGO installed near Pisa-It, detected gravitational waves on August 14th, for the first time. It had just started working again. This discovery is important because the same gravitational waves were detected respectively 6ms and 14ms before by the LIGO detectors in Hanford (Washington) and Livingston (Louisiana) which were at their 4th detection (the 3rd one having taken place on January 4, 2017). These waves were due this time to the encounter of 2 black holes
"Like Galileo looking through his telescope, this is a breakthrough in astronomy."
The announcement that year by the Nobel committee that half of the 2017 physics prize was awarded to Rainer Weiss, a research professor at MIT, the other half being attributed to B. Barish and his colleague from Caltech, Kip Thorne, for "their decisive contribution to the realization of the LIGO/VIRGO interferometers and the observation of the first gravitational waves" predicted in 1916 by A. Einstein, that is to say, one century before, confirms that it is a major advance for all those who wan
It is noteworthy that in January 2019, the journal CERNCOURIER [CC1911] revealed that to date LIGO/VIRGO allowed the detection of 11 gravitational waves (G.W.s), 10 of which result from black hole mergers and neutron star collapses (ref.490, p.150). The last one observed GW170729 would have released, about 5 billion years ago, the equivalent of 5 solar masses in the form of gravitational radiation. According to Professor Dr. Alessandra Buonanno, a specialist in gravitational waves, some of these
With the study of G.W.s, scientists have a new technique to probe the Universe. It is a revolution comparable to the discovery of electromagnetic waves. Indeed, the G.W.s., resulting from the deformation of space-time, whose messengers are gravitons moving in gigantic numbers, are responsible for the gravitational force which has the particularity of being among the 4 known forces, the weakest and thus interacting the weakest with matter. It can pass through opaque media to the E.M.W. for exampl
Nevertheless, as our knowledge progresses, new questions arise, which may call into question what we thought we had acquired
but, showing that celestial mechanics is very elaborate although based on a small number of fundamental constants and that, if it all works in our Universe, it is not an effect of chance. The universe can only exist because the elementary particles, divided into 3 families, have the properties required for this. In the same way, if the Sun produces heat and light necessar
The same year the Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) obtained images of a black hole in the center of Messier 87 (MS87), a giant elliptical galaxy spotted for the first time in 1781 by the Christian Astronomer Charles Messier. It is located about 55 million light-years from Earth.
On April 9, 2019, the professor of Radio Astronomy Heino Fackle, a lay Pastor in a Protestant Church in the Netherlands, and chairman of the scientific council of the EHT's project, announced that he had obtained the first "image" of a black hole (Sagittarius A*) located in the center of our galaxy about 25,640 light-years away. In reality, only the dust and radiation at the outer limit of the event horizon are visible and delimit a dark disk containing the black hole.
The three Laureates of the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics made groundbreaking work studying compact and supermassive objects. But, as said David Haviland, chair of the Nobel Committee for Physics: "These exotic objects still pose many questions that beg for answers and motivate future research." We explained p.77 why Sir Penrose (ref.368-p.109), was awarded one-half of it. The other half was awarded jointly, to two leading figures in the field of Astronomy: Andrea Ghez, a professor at UCLA (CA-US)
The same year Professors Svante Pääbo (ref.442, p.192) and Hugo Zerberg correlated the virulence of COVID-19 and the greater vulnerability of certain patients, who needed hospitalization and ventilation three times more than others, with their greater Neanderthal DNA heritage, which is known to vary between 1 and 4% in modern humans (cf. Chapter 3). This effect is added to age and certain pathologies.
On the 12th of May 2022, Geoffrey C. Bower unveiled the first image of the accretion disk around Sagittarius A* confirming it. It is 1000 times smaller than M87. Its image is an average of various images captured by the EHT extracted from its 2017 observations. Although we can't see the event horizon itself, because it can't emit light, the glowing gas orbiting the black hole reveals a telltale signature: a dark central region (called a shadow) surrounded by a bright ring-like structure.
Will this century be the one of the unification of the four fundamental forces of the universe into one, according to the Theory Of Everything (TOE, ref.383-p.114)? this would open new perspectives for the physicists but also open up broader philosophical discussions. S. Hawking [Ha], who declared himself an agnostic, an eminent ambassador of science, and one of the most brilliant contemporary astrophysicists, and cosmologists, said:
"... if we manage to discover a unifying theory, it should be understandable by everyone...... all (the "classical" philosophers, in particular, who since the 20th century have given way to scientists capable of assimilating the mathematics and physics necessary for the development of modern cosmology) will be able to take part in the discussion of why we exist and why our universe exists. And if we ever find the answer, it will be the triumph of human reason which will allow us to know the mind
Let's note that S. Hawking remained always cautious about making definitive statements about the existence or nature of God within the context of scientific exploration.
I'll give the word to Alister McGrath (ref.739, p.272), a world-renowned expert on the relationship between science and religion, who expresses the same point of view:
"The Theory Of Everything says there is one big thing that explains everything
one place where the buck stops. But, that's exactly what Christians have been saying about God: the buck stops with Him. The Theory Of Everything: the method of making sense of the world, the theories that we know, could simply be an explanation of the mind of God" [CEA].
Indeed, if we believe that God created the world, there is an intrinsic rationality to the world that reflects God's wisdom and justice.
Proposition I. The simple substance is the "parcel." It can be compared to the atom, even if it does not correspond to the state of our knowledge. It has a zero mass (but when two parcels meet, they acquire a quantity and form a "body" having a quantity), is unlimited in number because God creates them when he wants, is the seat of the accident which does not last 2 instants (cf. proposition III): which is re-initiated or not, regularly, by God according to his will. Argument against causality a
Proposition II. Existence of the void. It is necessary to justify the parcel and the movement which would be impossible without a vacuum. These first two propositions disagree with Aristotle's ideas.
Proposition III. Time is composed of instants (cf. Aristotle: instants = small times divisible up to a certain value (h, mn, s, ...).
I will simply reproduce one example of demonstrations made by Salomon Munk the commentator of Moses Maimonides [Ma1]. Let two runners A and B run the same distance in different times. Suppose that A comes first, and B comes second. We say that A is faster than B. The Mu'tazilites said that there is no one faster than the other. Indeed, applying proposition III by saying that the very small running instants are interspersed with resting instants which are shorter for A than for B, it follows that
Their sophist reasonings were not appreciated by the Sufis who had a mystical vision of the Koran, a vision that is found among the Sunnis and the Shiites.
DNA (Deoxyribonucleic Acid) holding the fundamental genetic material serves as the blueprint for life. DNA results of the association of two very long polymeric chains, that wound each other, constituting a regular double helix. Each chain is a regular assembly of nucleotides (10 per turn of the helix) whose sugars are linked by a phosphate group. There are four main nucleotides, each is characterized by a different purine base (Adenine = A, and Guanine = G) or pyrimidine base (Thymine = T, and
Gene: the sequence of DNA, is the fundamental unit of heredity. It plays a crucial role in determining specific traits in living organisms (humans, animals, and plants) and can be classified into two main types:
- coding genes containing the instructions for producing a specific protein. Proteins are the main functional molecules in cells and play essential roles in cell structure, function, and regulation. Through a process named: "translation," DNA is transcribed into messenger RNA (mRNA), which is translated into a chain of amino acids to form the specific protein.
- non-coding genes don't directly code for a protein. Their roles are increasingly studied and understood
particularly the regulatory genes, which intervene in cell development, and various biological processes.
Chromosomes contain the DNA, a human has 22 pairs of chromosomes called "autosomes" and one pair of chromosomes, known as "gonosomes" which differentiates males (XY) from females (2X).
Human genome or genetic material. In individuals, we refer to the genotype, which encompasses the complete set of genes they possess. The observable characteristics, encompassing morphology, physiology, and behavior are collectively known as the phenotype. Remarkably, the human genome contains approximately 25,000 genes, contributing to the diversity of life as we know it.
International Genome Human Project: A Scientific Triumph of Collaboration and Discovery. The idea of this project, which was based on the full human genetic information, previously estimated at 150,000 genes, but revealed only 25,000, was launched in the late 1980s. At the time, it was not unanimously supported by the scientific community. It was James D. Watson who, at the end of the 1980s, succeeded in convincing the American Senate to embark on this adventure and finance the project. Rightly
Chapter 3. Unraveling the Mysteries of the Universe
3.1. Warning.
3.2. Our universe history through the Big Bang theory.
Expansion of the universe after the Planck time
Appendix 3: Before the Bang.
Not enough experiments have been made yet to be able to determine exactly the laws according to which this universal spirit acts.
Isaac Newton
"It seems to me that when confronted with the marvels of life and the universe, one must ask why and not just how .. I find a need for God in the universe and in my own life."
Arthur Schawlow
"I can understand that it is possible to look at the Earth and be an atheist, but I cannot understand that one can look up at night at the sky and say that there is no God" [Al].
Abraham Lincoln
We have seen in Chapter 2, that our scientific knowledge has evolved step by step, discovering constants, laws, fundamental forces, and fields, . thanks to the unceasing work of researchers: experimenters and theorists who improve, day after day, their tools that become more and more sophisticated because the task is immense. These efforts were not in vain, they allowed the description of limited domains of events
and, on the condition of neglecting certain effects or making approximations, sci
But no theory is immutable, it can be questioned, thus Newtonian mechanics despite its invaluable contribution welcomed the theory of relativity and quantum mechanics, which have broadened the scope of our knowledge, but which are still insufficient. To go further it is necessary not only to make the two mechanics (relativistic and quantum) compatible, but that one of the two, or even both, must be profoundly reworked [CC1911] given the increase observed over the last 20 years in the universe's
"A physical theory is not an explanation. It is a system of mathematical propositions, deduced from a small number of principles, which aim to represent as simply, as completely, and as accurately as possible, a set of experimental laws,"[Du]
is still valid but in the 20th century the positions are reversed: the experiment verifies the validity of the models proposed by theoretical physicists, and cosmologists, which require important means.
Adherence to the advanced theories on the origins of the universe requires from the non-specialist in cosmology, astronomy, and theoretical physics, a greater faith in science and scientists, or at least comparable to that which the average believer has in the Gospels, the testimonies of the apostles and the holy martyrs who gave their lives, sources of his faith in God. Because the picture of the universe that scientists give us, calls for very elaborate mathematical tools that few physicists m
"The testimony of the senses cannot be misleading
it is on it that scientific experimentation is based. But one can make, in the judgment, bad use of the sensory data" [Pa-Note 9].
Let us recall that the Principle of Indeterminacy (ref.316, p.93) and Gödel's theorem (ref.184, p.56) support the thesis according to which the world of the senses is different from the real world - because on the one hand, any observation of the object, has an action on it and thus disturbs its state, which is verified experimentally
and that on the other hand, to be able to study it objectively, we would have to place ourselves outside of it. however, E. Schrödinger (309-p.91), consider
"The world is giving to me only once, not one existing and one perceived" ([Sc2], p. 127).
He leaves the door open for others' prospects:
"I consider it possible that our models can be modified in such a fashion that they do not exhibit at any moment properties that cannot in principle be observed simultaneously" ([Sc2], p. 125).
In the intricate tapestry of our cosmic history, we embark on a journey that reveals the sublime qualities of our universe: its majestic order, breathtaking beauty, ethical imperative, and the profound sense of worship it inspires. As John Polkinghorne (ref.571-p.182) eloquently expresses:
"...the priceless characteristics of the world, its order, its beauty, its ethical imperative, its worship experience, reflect the personal traits of the Creator who is rational, joyful, good and holy." ([Po], p. 56).
In the spirit of Sir Isaac Newton who humbly declared in a letter to R. Hooke, in 1965:
"If I have seen further, it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants."
Our narrative begins not in that year, but in 1930 when the visionary astronomer and Catholic canon Georges Lemaître (ref.342, p.102) proposed the theory of the "primitive atom." This concept, which was the precursor of the Big Bang theory, evolved thanks to the insights of Georges Gamow (ref.349, p.105) and Ralph Alpher (ref.350, p.105), culminating in the publication of the first model in 1948. The BBC unveiled it to the public' in 1949, scientifically narrating the evolution of the Universe
"God was preparing hell for those who ask this question,"
we find ourselves unable to answer definitively. As we traverse the enigmatic span of 10-43s before Planck's Time (tp), a moment void of scientific insight, we encounter a canvas waiting for the brushstroke of favorable conditions. The "how" and "why" of these conditions elude scientific understanding, leaving us with tantalizing questions that persist to this day.
In Chapter IV, we delve into the different stages proposed by the Big Bang theory, exploring the lanes scientists navigate to refine this model and address the inquiries that naturally arise. A spotlight shines on
Alan (ref.391, p.116) Guth's 1979 inflationary theory, offering a lens that aligns with the earliest moments of cosmic evolution. Additionally, we venture into Roger Penrose's Conformal Cyclic Cosmology (C.C.C.), an intellectual odyssey honored by the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics.
According to the Big Bang theory, at the moment of the cosmic explosion, The universe existed as an infinitesimally small, infinitely dense "singularity" cloaked in an unimaginable high temperature
an awe-inspiring prelude to the symphony that unfolded afterward, beyond anything we can imagine.
- 10-43s ATB (After The Bang = after the explosion), the universe is an incandescent magma extremely dense whose temperature T is about 1032K. The space swells, its size increasing the temperature decreases. All elementary particles: quarks, leptons, bosons, photons, ... have a zero mass.
- 10-35s ATB, T ~ 1028K. Up to this temperature according to the Grand Unification Theory (G.U.T.) the 4 forces are one, and the symmetry is perfect. Below, according to Glasgow and al. the three nongravitational forces (cf. 1865 Maxwell's work refs. 234-p71 & ref. 236-p.71) are one.
- 10-11s ATB, T ~ 1015K. There is a cosmological phase transition: the Higgs field condenses to reach a non-zero value (until there, its value oscillates around 0 like the other fields) and fills the whole universe. It results that, all the masses of particles such as leptons, and quarks, ... take a non-zero value, hence a breaking of the symmetry, and the electromagnetic and weak nuclear forces mainly.
- 10-7s ATB, the universe is so dense and hot that we have a plasma of elementary constituents. Very quickly the nucleons (protons and neutrons) will be formed.
- 1s ATB, T ~ 1010K. The universe then contains photons that, are stopped by light particles such as electrons (e-), positrons (e+), neutrinos (?), antineutrinos (?*), protons (p = 1p1), neutrons (n = 1n0) with which they coexist. Cf. Soddy 1910- p.87 to understand the representation of a nuclei AXZ.
As the universe continues to expand the temperature T continues to decrease, and so does the production of antiparticles
electrons, and positrons which annihilate for a large part, producing photons. Some electrons will remain. S. Hawking points out [Ha2] that, if at that time the expansion rate had been even 1.10-16 times smaller than it was, the universe would have collapsed on itself and we can guess what would happen next.
- 100s ATB, T ~109K (this is the temperature at the heart of stars). The energy of thermal agitation having decreased, the strong nuclear force is sufficient to retain the protons and neutrons that will combine to produce deuterium nuclei D (= 2H1, hydrogen said "heavy" because its nucleus contains not only 1 proton but also 1 neutron). The deuterium nuclei D will combine with protons and neutrons to form helium nuclei (4He2) consisting of 2 neutrons (n = 1n0) and 2 protons (1p1), as well as hea
- A few minutes ATB (~ 3'): the universe was filled with a hot gas - composed of light atoms: 75% of hydrogen gas (made of 2 hydrogen nuclei 1H1), 23% of helium (4He2), deuterium (D = 2H1) and Lithium (6Li3) - practically uniformly distributed, in a state of very low entropy, at the origin of the order observed today. This makes B. Greene [GR] say that:
"...the present order is a cosmological relic."
- A few hours ATB, the production of helium and heavier elements has ceased.
- 300.000 years ATB. T = few 103K, the electromagnetic forces are sufficiently important to overcome the energy of agitation of electrons and nuclei and allow the formation of electrically neutral atoms. The expansion of the Universe will continue for more than 700,000 years, in an almost uniform manner, and the temperature will continue to decrease isotropically.
- 380.000 years ATB. The radiation can propagate freely in the universe (which lights up), it will dilute in space, whose temperature continues to decrease. The universe ceasing to be opaque our most powerful telescopes will be able to receive the visible radiation emitted from this date. The structures (galaxies, clusters of galaxies) we now observe were yet in their germ.
- 1.109 (1 billion) years ATB, the temperature is 10K. In this homogeneous space existed some inhomogeneities that quantum mechanics justifies from the inhomogeneities prevailing in the initial subatomic world (before the Bang). These inhomogeneities, extending during the expansion form in various points of space nebulae of gas turning on themselves which, under the effect of the attractive force of gravitation, will condense, and form galaxies made up of stars around which are formed planets an
Astrophysicist Caleb Scharf claimed [S&V]:
"The Milky Way harbors a black hole that is just active enough to moderate the formation of 2nd generation stars, but not active enough to smother it completely. A happy medium without which life could probably not have developed."
The team of astrophysicists led by Chuck J. Hailey (Columbia University-NY) identified [Hai] & [Ko] a dozen black holes (the size of a star), smaller than Sagittarius A*, orbiting around it within a radius of three light years. Given that these are the brightest they have observed, they predict the existence of 300 to 1,000 others. A. Generozov's team, from the same university, has proposed from this work a model predicting a range between 10,000 and 40,000! The total mass of our galaxy would cu
- At 7 billion years (ATB) the speed of expansion of the universe stops decreasing and starts to increase. The universe is substantially homogeneous, the stars and planets "dissolve" in the whole. Under the effect of the gravitational force, the galaxies group themselves in swarms of galaxies.
- 8.2 to 8.7.109 (8.7 billion) years ATB that is to say 5.0 billion years ago, our galaxy the "Milky Way," came to maturity.
- 9.2 109 years: Following the collapse of a nebula of gas and dust from the debris of supernovas a star - among the 200 billion that the Milky Way contains - the protosun (flat disc in rotation) is formed under the effect of the gravitational force. When it begins to shine it is surrounded by a "protoplanetary" disk of small bodies rotating around it. Shocks, and mergers, will follow one another for a few tens of millions of years and, under the influence of the gravitational force, always it,
The remaining: 0.1%, of the mass of the Solar System is distributed among its planets, their 175 moons, and debris, forming around the Sun, the Solar System. Starting from the Sun we have respectively: Mercury, Venus, the Earth (located at 149.6 million km from the Sun = 1 AU), Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune (at 30 AU), It is interesting to note that the planets are perfectly aligned, that their rotations around the Sun are done for 6 of them in an anti-clockwise direction called "di
- the giant planets: Jupiter (70% of the 0.1%) at 5 AU from the Sun, Saturn (20% of the 0.1%) at 9.5 AU. The two are gaseous, made up mainly of hydrogen and helium
Uranus (4% of the 0.1%) at 19 AU and Neptune (5% of the 0.1%) at 30 AU, are called "ice planets" and made up essentially of water, methane, ammonia...
- The rocky or telluric planets, the closest to the Sun are respectively: Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars which will appear 50 million years later and will share the remaining 1% or 1/1000 of the mass of our solar system. They result from collisions and mergers of massive protoplanetary bodies. The fusion of two of these bodies gives birth to one of these planets which, under the combined effects of heat, gravitational force, and rotation will take an almost spherical shape. The debris of matter
It's noteworthy that our Moon stabilizes the Earth's axis of rotation itself, preventing chaotic variations in temperature and pressure. It is, in fact, one of the two gravitational forces, the other being that of the Sun, which, combined with the Coriolis force (inertial force linked to the rotation of the Earth on itself), are at the origin of the tides. These latter contribute (according to NASA geodynamicist Bruce Gordon Bills) to the circulation of heat from tropical waters to the poles.
At the very beginning of its formation, the Earth was very hot and without an atmosphere, intense seismic and volcanic activity reigned. The gases contained in the rock evaporated and, as the Earth cooled, some of the gases condensed in the atmosphere forming a large cloudy layer that filtered U-V rays and allowed the appearance of life that could not be human as long as the cloudy layer did not contain oxygen. The appearance of human life is a fact that appears for the moment as unique in our S
Remark. The distinction between gaseous and telluric is due to their distance from the Sun. The more one moves away from it, the more the temperature decreases. Below the "line of the ices: T = -120°C" that is to say approximately 700.106km of the Sun = 4,7 AU), the light elements: Hydrogen (H2), Helium (He), ... evaporate and remain in the gaseous state around their planet, within which persist mainly the metals, the rocks from where their name of telluric planets. Beyond the "ice line": H2, He
If the first exoplanets (planets outside the Solar System) were discovered about 30 years ago, hundreds of them are currently being discovered every year. Xinyu Dai and Eduardo Guerra (Oklahoma University) have detected the existence of exoplanets in a galaxy located 3.8 billion light-years away, located between the black hole and us (see CERNCOURIER Vol. 58 N° 3 April 2018 p.21). The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) jointly realized by NASA, ESA, and CSA (Canadian Space Agency) that an "Ariane
- 10.109 (10 billion) years ATB or 3.8.109 (10 billion) years ago, the Milky Way merges with Gaia Enceladus a smaller galaxy (1/4 of its mass).
Let's now take the countdown. There are:
- 3.8. 109 years. Jupiter and Saturn modify their orbits, inducing a destabilization of the solar system: Neptune and Uranus move away from the Sun, and a rain of asteroids falls on all the other planets. It will be necessary to wait another 600 million years for the solar system to settle down and start to stabilize so that the orbits of the planets initially circular become elliptic. The Solar System was then half as large as it is today and was surrounded by a thick belt of "planetesimals" (a
All the conditions were met for elements with atomic mass greater than 7 to form inside the Sun.
Merlin COLE, Dept of Particle Physics, Univ. of Geneva reports [CE1707] that Sarah Sadavoy and Steven Stahler, her director of thesis, and professor at (the University of California, Berkeley, CA) have shown that the sun, belonging to a second or third-generation of stars, had at its birth a twin which disappeared for an unknown reason, at a date that is not known.
- 3,7.109 years: The Step of the Life or passage from the molecule to the cell. Scientists believe that the first bacteria, as well as the DNA responsible for their reproduction, appeared. But where did these organisms come from? The hypotheses of Panspermia which have been revived, by prominent scientists but, without clear evidence are evocated in Chapter V.3.
For Dan Vasilescu [Vu2] ". to place at the origin the aminoacyl adenylate, which is, at the same time a nucleic acid and a protein in miniature, is an attractive hypothesis." In his "Molecular and Thermodynamic Approach to the Origin of Life" he says that some questions "must be answered
namely:
- Do primitive biological objects exist today that could be at the inert-living border?
- Is contemporary science able to describe the functioning of the biological object?"
While waiting for experimental proofs, we can reflect on the proposal of Jesuit paleontologist Teilhard de Chardin for whom, within the framework of the permanent evolution of the universe, the appearance of Life results from the maturation of a unique germination point in the history of the universe, comparable to the appearance of atoms 10 billion years earlier (cf. [Te2] p. 89):
"Without a long maturation, no profound change can occur in Nature. On the other hand, given such a period, it is inevitable that something new will occur."
Prokaryotes, single-cell organisms without a nucleus, such as bacteria, are produced. These microscopic and innumerable cells are, as he says [Te2]: natural grains of Life as the atom is the natural grain of inorganic Matter.
Remark. On August 5, 2012, the "Mars Science Laboratory" landed on Mars. It has been launched on the 26th of November 2011. On its board "Curiosity," the largest, and most sophisticated rover ever sent to Mars. It was designed to answer a crucial question: did Mars ever have the necessary environmental conditions to be habitable? The 6/08/22 the astrophysicists say "Yes, it was 3.6.109 years ago." Curiosity scientific tools found minerals and evidence. Since then, the situation has deteriorated.
- 3.109 years: the appearance of the blue algae which will produce oxygen by photosynthesis. Essential element.
- 2,1.109 years: the appearance of the eukaryotes: unicellular and multicellular organisms having a nucleus.
- 700.106 years (106 = 1 million): formation of soft-bodied beings, without shell or skeleton (worms, jellyfish, ...). The forms of life of low entropy are present.
- 445.106 years (the Ordovician): The first mass extinction was brutal and short. There were no living beings on Earth because oxygen was rare. 70% of marine life was destroyed. Followed by the appearance on Earth of the first plants (moss, lichens), scorpions, and mites, followed 20.106 years later by fish, invertebrates (no backbone), and insects. The cause is a supernova, releasing very intense radiation.
- 365.106 years (the Devonian): The second longer mass extinction, about 3 million years. The vegetation on the Earth was then luxuriant, the humidity and the heat that reigned there favored the presence of insects. 75% of the marine species disappeared. The cause is Global warming, leading to augmentation in volcanic eruptions, including a major volcanic explosion under Siberia.
- 250.106 years (Permian): The third mass extinction, the most important: 95% of animal species disappeared, and the continents reunited. Cause: The impact of meteorites leading to an important volcanic explosion thus the emission of CO2 and Sulphur, responsible for acid rain destroying all the fauna.
- 230.106 years: appearance of crocodiles, dinosaurs, and birds,
- 225.106 years: appearance of mammals, vertebrate animals with lungs, feeding their babies with milk produced by the mammary glands of females. They are mostly viviparous (gestation of newborns is done inside the mother).
- 200.106 years (Triassic-Jurassic), fourth mass extinction: the fauna is destroyed, and only some reptiles, mammals, and dinosaurs remain. The cause is controversial.
- 65.106 years (end of the Cretaceous, beginning of the Tertiary), fifth mass extinction: 70% of animal species disappeared, including the dinosaurs. The cause is an intense volcanic activity that would have lasted 1.5 million years, and the impact of a huge meteorite (15 km in diameter) on Yucatan.
- 60/55.106 years before our era [Hn1], there were Primates on the whole of Earth. The organization chart (fig.3 - p.158) shows the phylogeny from the Primates to the Homos Sapiens families from which modern man emerged, as demonstrated by recent work carried out by paleo geneticists. Some minority currents may contest this representation, but it is currently the most recognized one. The dates depend upon the scientific discoveries, some of which may be modified. Chronologically we know that:
- 55.106 years ago they divided into Strepsirrhinians with a raised nose and Haplorrhines characterized by a flat nose, which gave rise:
- 45.106 years ago, the Tarsiiformes in North America, Europe, and Asia, which formed a single continental block at the time (today they are found only on a few islands in Southeast Asia)
and another branch constituted by the Simiiformes or Anthropoids, our distant ancestors in Africa, who:
- 34.106 years before our era, gave way in the "old world" to the Catarrhinians, anthropoids without tails, with noses pointing downwards, and then, 9 million years later, in the "new world," to the Platyrrhines (wide noses), their long-tailed whorl.
According to Professor Jean-Jacques Hublin, (cf. [Hn1]), the first anthropoids to appear in the New World may have been carried on plant rafts, crushed trees, etc., because the gap between Africa and South America was smaller than nowadays.
/
Figure 3. Evolution of Primates.
Always, according to Hublin [Hn2], it is at the end of the Oligocene
approximately:
- 23.106 years before our era, that happened the division of the Catarrhines into: Cercopithecoidea, long-tailed monkeys: baboons, macaques, ... and: Hominidae, a name given by Teilhard de Chardin, meaning "looks like a man." They are also called "Great Apes." There are 3 species:
a) Hylobatid or Gibbons, 15 to 20.106 years before our era. Small monkeys with long arms that facilitate brachiation (swinging from one branch to another at high speed (80 km/h)). They were arboreal, monogamous..., and found mainly in Asia, South-East India, and Indonesia. They can be divided into 4 species according to their number of chromosomes (38, 44, 50, or 52).
b) Pongidae 17 to 14.106 years ago, including the Orangutans. This subgroup is controversial, some place it in the Hominidae subgroup.
c) Hominids 10 to 7.106 years before our era, which are divided into 3 groups:
- Gorillines (Gorillas),
- Panines (Chimpanzees), close to man. 1.106 years ago, they gave rise to two sub-groups: the socalled "common" chimpanzees and the "pygmy" chimpanzees or Bonobos,
- and the Hominins, a genus Homo comprising several fossil groups that disappeared 40.103 years before our era, absorbed by Homo Sapiens or Modern Man, who came from the Far East but had African ancestry. According to J.-J. Hublin [Hn4] Homo Sapiens migrated, following environmental changes.
The oldest known fossil of the hominin genus is "Toumaï" who lived 7.106 years ago. His skull was discovered in 2001 by Michel Brunet's team in Djourab (Chadian Sahara). Later, other bones belonging to it were found.
Orrorin, a million years younger, was discovered by Brigitte Senut, Martin Pickford, et al. in 2000 in the Tugen Hills region of Kenya. It has both human and simian features.
But, it is Australopithecus that is the precursor of the genus Homo. It is a bipedal hunter, making tools, standing upright, and knowing how to climb trees. According to J.J. Hublin, it may have appeared 6.106 years ago, but the oldest fossils discovered to date do not go beyond 5 million years. J.J. Hublin distinguishes two African australopithecines (figs. 4 & 5):
a) A Robust Australopithecus, about 1.60 m tall, weighing between 50 and 70 kg, with a cranial cavity of 500 cm3. It appeared in southern and then eastern Africa. Examples: Olduvai (Tanzania), Zinjanthrope discovered in 1959... P. Boisei (fig. 5) and P. Robustus were part of the Paranthropus family, which is still under debate.
Fig. 6. Homo habilis
Fig. 5. Australopithèque boisei.
Fig. 4. Australopithèque afarensis, Lucy.
3,2 My. Hadar, Ethiopie
1,5 My Gorges Olduavi, Tanzanie
1,7 My Olduvai Tanzanie
b) Gracile Australopithecus, from which Homo Sapiens descended, in East Africa (1m10 - 1m30, 30 - 40 kg, skull 400 to 550 cm3). Vegetarian at first, then hunter of small animals and occasional scavenger. Lucy, discovered in 1974 in Ethiopia, is an example. They became extinct 1 million years ago.
In 1995 a team led by Ron Clark discovered in Sibelberg Cave (Sterkfontein) near Johannesburg, South Africa, fossilized members of "Little Foot" belonging to the "Australopithecus Prometheus" lineage identified in 2015, distinct from Africanus.
Today, all specialists agree that Homo habilis (fig. 6), which appeared in Eastern and Southern Africa 2.4.106 years ago, with a skull larger than 600 cm3 (due to its food, including meat rich in calories), is the first link in our chain, despite the discovery of Homo rudolfensis in 1972 near Lake Turkana between Kenya and Ethiopia. Although they lived at the same time the latter differs from Homo habilis in having a larger cranial volume (650 - 750 cm3). Homo ergaster succeeded Homo Habilis 1.9
Fig. 9. Homme de "Cro-Magnon"27,680 years. Eysies-de Tayac, Fr.
Fig. 8. Neanderthalensis200-50 ky Vallée Neander, Dusseldorf
Fig. 7. Homo erectus500 ky Sangiran (Java)
In 1907 "Homo Heidelberg" was discovered near the German town of the same name. J.J. Hublin [Hn3] and others claim that he had an African origin although living in Europe from 800 to 250,000 years before our era, making, according to some - including one of the pioneers of paleogenomics (evolutionary genetics), the Christian S. Pääbo (ref 442, p.131), 2022 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine - the ancestor of Neanderthal (fig. 9), Nesher Ramla, and Denisova. He had a skull between 1,000 and 1,
- - 400,000 years before our era, the "Neanderthal Man" appeared in the Middle East and in Europe (fig. 8). The first fossil discovered in Europe was in the Neander Valley, near Düsseldorf, in the Rhineland, Germany. It became extinct about 40,000 years before our era. In terms of DNA, the similarity with modern man - initially called 'Cro-Magnon man' (fig. 10), then "Homo Sapiens" (Modern man) - is striking. Neanderthals have 23 pairs of chromosomes (like us), whereas great apes have 24.
Since the work of S. Pääbo, a Christian, it is well established that modern humans (Homo Sapiens) have 99.5% identical genomes to Neanderthal. Yet, individuals can have 1 to 4% Neanderthal DNA.
Now, we know [SP] that 6 species of hominins coexisted (cf. fig. 11), and mated, for a time, with the lineage that appeared 300 thousand years ago to end up with Homo sapiens (modern man), which is known to have been more prolific than them, absorbing definitively the other 6, by the theory of evolution. Some Y.E.C. see it as a confirmation of the genesis, which is not the case of S. Pääbo for whom religion and science are two different realms.
/
Figure 10. Coexistence of the 7 Homos Sapiens genera. (From [SP]).
The six "cousins" genera of Homo sapiens: Neanderthal, Nesher Ramla, Naledi, Denisova, Floriensis, and Luzonensi are not, according to S. Pääbo,[SP] ancestors of Homo Sapiens
nevertheless, a transfer of genes took place from these now extinct hominins to Homo sapiens after the migration out of Africa, about 70,000 years ago. This affects the way our immune system reacts to infections.
Professor Alysson Muori's neurobiology team also presented evidence in February 2021 that we share 99.5% of genes and 1- 4% of DNA with Neanderthals and demonstrated that by introducing the Neanderthal variant of the NOVA1 gene into the brain tissue of developing Homo Sapiens, their neuronal connections are altered. For A. Muori, Neanderthals and Denisovans have one version of the NOVA1 gene while Homo Sapiens has another that allowed them to survive and develop their brains.
- 50,000 years before our era, after several incursions into Europe, Homo Sapiens, the modern man, spread all over the planet. The team led by Professor J.J. Hublin reported, in 2020 [Hn5], the discovery of 43,000-year-old fossils in the Bacho Kiro cave in Bulgaria. Not only, they adapted them to the environment, by exploiting it more efficiently, but they also knew how to create more extensive networks, going beyond the family and even the neighborhood.
After this state of affairs, which has evolved considerably thanks to the work of Svante Pääbo's team, let's take a step back to see how ideas have evolved about Homo sapiens, modern man.
According to the Jesuit paleontologist Teilhard de Chardin: with Homo Sapiens "it is a definitively liberated Thought which makes explosion... appears Art, naturalistic art makes us enter of full foot in the conscience of the disappeared beings" (cf. [Te2] p. 218). Likewise, if we want to understand how from the great apes endowed with Intelligence, we arrived at the Modern Man, who alone is endowed with Consciousness of himself, it is necessary to look for the reason in the evolutionary perfect
"Self-awareness is a fundamental character of the human species. In evolution, this character represents a novelty
the biological species from which humanity is descended possess only rudiments or even a total absence of self-awareness. Awareness, however, has brought with it sinister companions, fear, anxiety, and the realization of one's death. The consciousness of one's death is a handicap for man."
The idea that this consciousness could disappear with the body displeases E. Schrödinger, a Christian, for whom each body has its consciousness, accepting however the Hindu concept of Brahman according to which: each consciousness is a manifestation of a universal consciousness or Soul spread in the Universe, assimilated to God [Sc2]. According to him ([Sc2] p. 89) the idea of the plurality is proper to the Western religions. For the philosopher Karl Popper:
"The appearance of any consciousness, capable of self-reflection is in truth one of the greatest miracles."
This is what distinguishes the human person from superior primates, such as the chimpanzee, endowed with consciousness but not with self-consciousness.
Renowned Christian biologist and geneticist Charles Birch introduces a captivating perspective on human knowledge. He posits that our understanding comprises two facets: the externally observable realm, scrutinized by science, and the internal landscape of consciousness, a profound realm that has evolved since time immemorial. This internal domain encompasses a sophisticated interplay of memories from the past and a conscious anticipation of future events.
Immersed in the inspiring writings of Alfred Whitehead a prominent mathematician and one of the greatest metaphysicists of the 20th century, the father of the "process thought." Birch rejects the dualistic viewpoints of figures like Sir John Eccles (ref.164, p.76), the 1963 Nobel in Physiology or Medicine, and Theodosian Dobzanski. Instead, he advocates for a more all-encompassing role for consciousness in the universe, transcending the boundaries of living organisms. In contrast to the material
Birch's conceptualization of the world diverges from conventional physical substances, favoring the term "entities," or "things." Rejecting the overly materialistic notion of the "body," he delves into the realms of quantum physics and duality (cf. chapter II), coining the term "events" to describe these fundamental building blocks. Drawing inspiration from Schrödinger's musing on life (ref.309, p.91) involving quantum principles,[Sc2] Birch associates consciousness not with specific material fo
After having demonstrated that only the branch of the chordates (cf. Tree of Life, Fig. 11) & could lead to Man, Teilhard de Chardin demonstrates that from "layer to layer" the brain grew. He notes that in mammals "the brain is more voluminous and more folded than in any other group of vertebrates" (cf. the interpretation of A. Muori on the previous page). At the end of the Pliocene (- 2.58 My), the mammalian nappe is steady, which presages a change of state that he calls a "step" because evolut
"...it is only with blows of chances that the Life proceeds
but with blows of chances recognized and seized, - that is to say psychically selected,"
There is, according to him, somewhere in the Biosphere, a point of singularity that is being prepared. If among the animals of the Pliocene many seem to arrive at their term, the Primates on the contrary, having forms similar to the Man, constitute "a set of fans or whorls interlocked" more advised than the others
they were able "to rise by successive spurts until the borders of the Intelligence." Among these, he retains the Catarrhinians (cf. p. 159). Thought appears with the consciousness of
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Fig. 11. Tree of life ([Te2] p. 146)
When did this happen? Difficult to say according to him, because:
"When, in all domains, a new thing begins to dawn around us, we do not distinguish it - for the good reason that we would have to see in the future, it's blossoming to notice it at its beginnings. And when this same thing has grown, we turn around to find the germ and the first sketches of it, it is these first stages in their turn which are hidden, destroyed, or forgotten" ([Te2] p.129).
While Teilhard de Chardin affirms that Self-awareness is the prerogative of Man, making him capable of abstraction, logic, making choices, and innovating, which distinguishes him from mammals, Sir John Eccles, Nobel Prize of Physiology, deist, demonstrates it. Adhering to Sir Karl Popper's "3 Universe theory" they oppose the materialist theories, which the latter calls "promising materialist theories" (asserting that all our actions depend solely on the brain), with the theory of "dualist intera
Rejecting the "genetic uniqueness" - the materialist idea according to which our Self is the result of the infinity of connections existing between the tens of millions of cells of our brain - and the influence of the environment which he considers secondary, the neuroscientist demonstrates, by interpreting the results of experimental works, that each Soul "is a new Divine creation which is attached to the fetus between conception and birth." Not being entirely separated from the body, and influ
- Today, as we gaze into the vast expanse of the universe, we are captivated by its continuous expansion, a mesmerizing dance of cosmic proportions. It's awe-inspiring to think that the universe's temperature, a mere 2.7K, was prophetically foreseen back in 1930 by visionaries like G. Lemaitre (ref.342, p.102) and G. Gamow (ref.349, p.105). In 1965 A. Penzias and I. Wilson validated this theory through groundbreaking experiments (ref.364, p.108).
While the cosmos might seem uniform from a distance, the captivating images captured in 1992 (cf. p.125) by G. Smoot and J. Mather aboard the satellite COBE revealed intriguing patterns and fluctuations. Thanks to the European Space Agency (ESA), since 2013 we've been blessed with a thermal mapping of the heavens, painting an extraordinary tapestry of celestial wonders (p.133).
Behold the fascinating story of cosmic evolution, an astonishing journey from an infinitesimally small and dense ball of energy to the complexification of matter, a process that, ultimately paved the way for the emergence of life and the rise of even more intricate beings, culminating in the existence of humankind.
The Big Bang model, born from the elegant principles of General Relativity, is according to A. McGrath (ref.739, p.271):
"a major scientific advance which seems to reinforce what Christians have always been saying: God created" [CEA].
But be careful it proves nothing, it presents us with a compelling narrative: a universe created by God at a precise moment. The celestial mechanics, guided by a few fundamental constants, showcase a profound intricacy that cannot be mere chance. Numerous experiments have lent credibility to this remarkable theory, yet, humbly, it remains open to further exploration. Big Bang doesn't explain everything but it raises some unanswered questions that invigorate the minds of scientists, sparking an i
- 1. The enigma of the initial singularity, a realm of infinite energy density and space-time deformation, as proposed by the theory of general relativity (cf. chap. 2, Penrose and Hawking's proposals years 1970 & 1975), remains an enduring source of wonder and inspiration, spurring us to unravel the majestic secrets that lie at the very heart of our universe.
- 2. The end of our universe, if there is an end. The Hinduists think that Sri Krsna, creator at a given moment of the universe, will annihilate it when he decides to do so because His supreme Will is in the background of all cosmic events [KD- p.5].
Cosmologists predict it in about ten billion years. According to S. Hawking [HA2-p.121] the evolution of the universe as proposed by the Theory of General Relativity begins with the hypothesis of a singularity and should end either by a:
- Big Crunch. The force of attraction taking over, the expansion of galaxies ceases, producing a contraction of the universe. We end up with a singularity characteristic of the collapse of our Universe, and therefore of its end. What makes him, state: "The universe having begun without man it will end without man."
- Big Rip. The expansion prevails, the galaxies continue to move away from each other, which requires a hypothetical "phantom energy," producing a tearing of all the structures of the Universe
while inside each galaxy the contraction, due to the decrease of the "fuel" of the stars, leads to a collapse of these last ones and the creation of super black holes which will leave the place to radiation.
- 3. The expansion at the time of the Bang. How could it happen when the force of gravitation - attractive - was preponderant? The Cosmological Inflation theory (chap. IV.1-p.177) provides an answer.
- 4. The accelerating expansion of the universe observed by Perlmutter and Coll. refs. 443-445, p.132) in 1998. Gravitation, having only acted attractively since the beginning, how can we explain it? With the hypothetical Cold Dark Matter as some cosmologists suggest?
* Intriguing reflections.
1) Unveiling the subatomic realm. As we delve further into our journey, the realm of quantum physics emerges as a pivotal guide, with the Principle of Indeterminacy captivating our curiosity. Within this realm, the luminous legacy of Newtonian physics undergoes a third remarkable extension: the recognition of indeterminism in unstable systems according to Prigogine (ref. 387-p.115). It stands alongside the iconic pillars of General Relativity and quantum mechanics, collectively weaving a tapestr
2) The Mystique of Entropy. Before the explosive dawn of the Big Bang, a perplexing enigma emerged: entropy. Following the choreography of statistical physics as orchestrated by Ludwig Boltzmann, the universe's initial state should have been one of exuberant entropy, a chaotic symphony of disorder. Yet, in the delicate dance of probabilities, a faint whisper emerges: the possibility of a brief interlude of low entropy, a symphony of order, though infinitesimally rare, isn't extinguished entirely
3) A glimpse into the Cosmic Hourglass. As we cast our eyes upon the epochs of history, the annals of Earth's story reveal five profound mass extinctions, an irrefutable testament to nature's relentless dance. Gazing into the future, the silhouette of a sixth extinction takes shape on the horizon. Armed with the tools of linear regression we chart a course into this enigma. The graph's contours whisper secrets (fig. 12). If the fourth extinction claims its place in this mosaïc of existence, we h
/
Fig. 12. Representation of mass extinctions as a function of time.
4) Exploring uncharted horizons. In the forthcoming chapter, our voyage through the cosmos continues, a tapestry woven with threads of intrigue and innovation. The Big Bang theory, though illustrious, shares the cosmic stage with other captivating theories that beckon us to embrace uncertainty, to explore the frontiers where Relativistic Physics and Quantum Physics coalesce into a harmonious melody. Possibilities burgeon: the universe's temporal vista isn't confined to mere infinity or isolated
"The true man of science cannot force his way into the secrets of creation without perceiving the finger of God" (cf. [Bo] p.95),
a sentiment echoed in 1981 by the wise pontiff, Pope Jean Paul II, reminding that the pursuit of understanding needs not to eclipse the awe of the divine creation:
"... not to look for what is at the origin of the Big Bang because it is the work of God."
As we embark on this voyage, the luminous beacon of faith remains undiminished, ever poised to illuminate the cosmos' unexplored corners. The quest for answers harmonizes with the hope for revelations, guided by an unwavering belief in the symbiosis of knowledge and spirituality.
I leave it to Ch. Darwin to conclude this chapter:
"There is grandeur in this view of life (that he expresses in [Dar]), with its several powers, having been originally breathed by the Creator into a few forms or one
and that, whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the laws of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being evolved" (cf. [Dn] p. 123).
Would an atheist have used the word "Creator"?
Note. As the mathematical physicist Paul Davies a Christian, - who has developed several important contributions to theories concerning black holes, the beginning of the universe, the nature of time, and others - said during an interview with Phillip MacCarthy, Herald correspondent in 1995, when he received the prestigious Templeton Prize:
"If, as late as the 1960s the Big Bang theory was a mysterious and largely untested concept, today we have strong evidence from observational astronomy that the entire universe came into existence all at once about 15 billion years ago."
Stepping outside the realms of space and time takes us beyond the confines of science. Nevertheless, I'll briefly discuss some symbolic and metaphoric concepts, open to diverse interpretations but not without intrigue, proposed by the French mystic Martines de Pasqually. I don't doubt his sincerity when he identifies as a Roman Christian, independent of any church, though I don't personally endorse all his ideas. Nevertheless, some of them can be a basis to reflection.
Martines is renowned for his role in founding, among other endeavors, in 1767, the "Order of Knights Masons Elect Cohens of the Universe," a mystical and esoteric movement. In 1775, he published his midrash, a homily loosely based on the Bible, titled: "Treatise on the Reintegration of Beings into their Original Estate, Virtues, and Powers both Spiritual and Divine" [MP]. This work was the result of extensive research, reflection, and asceticism, originally intended for the "Réaux-Croix" (holder
According to Martines, before the Big Bang, God had within His Divinity or Dominion (the Divine Immensity) an inexhaustible source of spiritual beings who could not act as they pleased. Instead, God emanated them for His glory according to His will, within a well-defined framework of immutable laws, precepts, and commandments. These spiritual beings, androgynous and eternal, possessed near complete knowledge of God: His Will, and His Actions. They were endowed with Free Will and lived in harmony
However, some angels, considering themselves equal to God, exceeded the boundaries set for them. The betrayal of these rebellious spirits led to the material creation of "houses of correction," the Hell managed by Satan, where God exiled them while, like Adam after his prevarication, granting them and his human descendants Free Will and immutable rights He had initially conferred on them.
Note. Martines de Pasqually's visionary concept of spiritual beings, fashioned by God before Adam's prevarication, resonates intriguingly with certain Eastern philosophies that posit God's allocation of a predetermined number of souls at the moment of our birth or conception. However, the resonance in Christ extends even further, finding a remarkable echo in the teaching of St. Paul the Apostle, as eloquently expressed in his Epistle to the Ephesians:
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ .. For he chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His presence..." (1:3-6).
This profound statement by St. Paul elucidates the timeless divine plan, akin to the notion of existing spiritual beings in Pasqually's vision.
Chapter 4. Beyond the Bang: Unveiling the Cosmic Tapestry
4.1. The Cosmic Inflationary Expansion.555F
4.1.1. Description
4.1.2. Contributions.
4.1.3. Flat Infinite Space.568F
4.2. Multiverse or Multiple Universes.
4.2.1. The fascinating Branary Universe.
4.2.2. Cyclic universes.
4.2.2.1.
4.2.2.2.
4.2.2.3.
4.3. CCC theory (Conformal Cyclic Cosmology) [Pen]
The world is an infinite sphere whose center is everywhere,the circumference nowhere.
B. Pascal
In this new chapter, we journey beyond the confines of the Big Bang Theory, exploring horizons that stretch the fabric of our cosmos' understanding. This path takes us in the domain of cosmic inflation, the multiverse hypothesis, and the intriguing concept of conformal cyclic cosmology. Building upon the foundations laid by the Big Bang Theory, we delve into these theories, each offering unique insights into the universe's expansive history and potential. Through their lenses we seek to enrich o
As we have seen so far, the attractive force of gravitation, and more particularly the gravitational constant G (one of the 7 universal constants) introduced by Isaac Newton, has played a leading role in the history of the evolution of the Universe. It has nevertheless posed a problem for the scientists who support the Big Bang theory. If currently, many questions remain unanswered, the inflationary model provides us new perspectives on certain points. It explains in particular, how the brutal e
Let's go back to 1917 (p.86), when A. Einstein, a supporter of a stationary universe, despite the opposition of some scientists, including A. Friedmann, reformulated the expression of G, the universal constant of gravitation proposed by I. Newton, and introduces in his equations the cosmological constant, generating a repulsive force balancing the attractive gravitational force. With the experimental proof brought by E. Hubble in 1929 that the universe is expanding, this constant was forgotten b
- at a given time (that of the Bang), of a supercooled Higgs' field (comparable to Einstein's cosmological constant but with an intensity 10100 times greater!), called "inflaton" having very high excitation energy and producing a negative pressure sufficient to generate a colossal repulsive gravitational force causing, during 10-35s (time at the end of which the energy of the inflaton will be minimal) the inflationary expansion of the universe at a very high increasing speed. During these 10-35s
* The fact that v & c is not contrary to the theory of relativity because the speed limit only concerns the motion in space and not the motion due to the expansion of space itself.
- after 10-35s the energy of the inflaton having sufficiently decreased the explosion ended, and the repulsive push ceased. The remaining energy was used to create particles of matter and ordinary radiation which filled, almost uniformly, all the space in expansion. We join then the theory of the Big Bang: the space continues its expansion by cooling. Some particles located in the regions of greater density, gather under the effect of gravity, creating structures: stars, galaxies, planets ..., t
Cosmic inflation has breathed new life into the Big Bang theory, captivating the minds of researchers such as Andrei Linde, Andreas Albrecht, Paul Steinhardt, and many others. Their contributions have intertwined this model with the Principle of Indeterminacy (ref.316-p.93), applying it not only to particles but also to fields, particularly the "inflaton." In this fascinating realm, new interpretations have emerged, shedding light not only on the macroscopic world of stars and galaxies but also
a) The puzzle of inhomogeneities and the formation of structures like galaxies, in a nearly uniform universe. This inflationary hypothesis justifies the observed spatial, energy, and temperature, inhomogeneities by assuming that the expansion halted at different points in space. Quantum Physics, leaning on the Principle of Indeterminacy, further justifies the presence of these inhomogeneities in the initial microscopic state. As the extraordinary inflation begins, it carries these inhomogeneitie
The American Space Observatory WMAP (Wilkinson Microwave Anisotropy Probe), launched in 2001, and the European satellite Planck, launched in 2009 under the aegis of the ESA (European Space Agency) not only confirmed these predictions but also significantly advanced our understanding.
b) The conundrum of the immense initial energy required. The Big Bang theory suggests an astronomical amount of energy, surpassing human imagination. On the other hand, the inflationary model demonstrates mathematically that the energy density of the inflaton remained steady during the first 10-35 seconds of inflation, while the total energy increased exponentially. Assuming a conservative scenario where each dimension of the universe multiplies by a factor of 1030 during inflation, the volume a
c) The mystery surrounding the arrow of time's origin. It hinges on the intriguing hypothesis that the inflaton giving birth to our universe was in a highly energetic chaotic state with very high entropy, as predicted by L. Boltzmann. A some point, it transitioned into a state of low entropy, a rare occurrence. This set the universe's initial gravitational entropy as low as possible. Subsequently, with the emergence of life due to solar activity, entropy began to grow following irreversible matt
It's worth noting that in the fourth century St. Augustine, though not a scientist, posited [Ag2] that:
"...time and the earth had been created simultaneously."
Despite the remarkable agreement between the mapping of the sky's temperature (revealing subtle numerical anisotropies, cf. p.135) provided by the ESA in 2013 and the theory, cosmologists remain intrigued. The theory, rooted in the mystery of low entropy, hasn't completely satiated their curiosity.
With the work of F. Zucky, V. Rubin, and others (cf. chap. 2) enhancing our knowledge of the universe's total mass, the idea of a flat universe has captivated minds. A variant of Guth's inflationary model has emerged:
According to this theory, space was already infinite from the outset, as multiplying or dividing infinity by any number always results in infinity. At the moment of the "explosion," energy density and temperature reached colossal values, but across the entire expanse of space. Multiple Big Bangs occurred at various points in space. Post-explosion, space expanded without increasing in size, given its infinite nature. Hubble's experiments, however, affirm the expansion observed: distances between
We dive into an intriguing cosmological concept that stretches the boundaries of our cosmos' understanding. The "Foam" model, birthed by the brilliant mind of the theoretical physicist A. Linde, proposes a fascinating notion: the "inflaton" at the origin of our universe may not have been alone and others, which don't have the same fundamental constants as ours and obey different laws, may have been created. In these conditions, Our universe could be just one of many, in which no life comparable
Imagine a tapestry of universes, each with its distinct rules and possibilities, where life as we know it might not exist. This idea harks back to ancient philosophies, echoing Anaximander (6th century BC) or Leibniz, for whom: "By the infinite multitude of simple substances, there are as many different universes, which are however only the perspectives of one, according to the different points of view of each monad."
Closer to us, drawing from the thoughts of notable thinkers like the Protestant Theologian Alvin Plantinga or the Anglican Theologian John Polkinghorne, [Po] 2002 Templeton Prize, a renowned theoretical physicist, we begin to see our universe as intricately connected to the future, blurring the lines between the temporal and the eternal. This perspective allows for a harmonious blend of beliefs: a direct journey to eternal life or an anticipation of the Parousia, intertwined with an intermediate
Reflecting on the words shared between Christ and the "good thief" (who is crucified like him but judges Christ's suffering undeserved):
"Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise," [Lk:23-43]
we glimpse a broader understanding, a promise of not just redemption for one soul, but all the souls who follow a righteous path. In this vast expanse of possibilities, the essence of God's plan reveals itself in mysterious and awe-inspiring ways (cf. § 5.5.c).
It is a marvel of M Theory, a fusion of five-string theory variants masterfully unified by E. Witten, (ref.404, p.119) presenting an awe-inspiring panorama. This theory not only harmonizes all matter particles and messengers into a singular string but also offers answers beyond the reach of the Standard Model (ref.382, p.113).
In this wonderful realm, we envisage a branar world ([Gr] pp.449-491), that could potentially encompass not only our universe but also p-dimensional marvels known as "p-branes." These spatial dimensions, extend beyond the familiar four of Einstein's space-time [ref.268, p.81]), dwell at the scale of the Planck length (1.616.10-35 m) eluding our direct perception.
Intriguingly, within the string model the Electromagnetic, the Weak, and the Strong Nuclear forces' messengers are trapped within our 3+1-dimensional space-time, veiling the mysteries that lie beyond. The gravitational force, however, allows gravitons to cross over the other seven spatial dimensions, establishing connections with distant universes. It's a force that potentially empowers us to influence or be influenced by these hidden dimensions.
Yet, a formidable challenge awaits resolution. The theories requiring spaces with ten spatial dimensions suggest a gradual decrease in gravitational force, endangering the stability of our solar system. S. Hawking speculated the existence of regions where this holds, potentially void of life in forms we recognize.
The branar theory illuminates a path towards the "cyclic model," (below) aligning with the Hindu tradition of an eternal succession of cycles under the watchful eyes of Shiva, Brahma, and Vishnu. As a captivating tidbit, consider the humble jellyfish "Turritopsis nutricula" in the Caribbean Sea, measuring just a few mm. This marvel possesses the extraordinary potential for immortality, embarking on new life cycles after reaching reproductive maturity, embodying the cycles of life mirrored in the
In the 1930s Richard Tolman proposed the cyclic cosmological model. According to this, our universe would be one among others having preceded it. In expansion at present, it should, at a certain moment pass in the compression mode and set out again in a mode in expansion, and so on... without beginning or end. The reason for its abandonment is that according to the second principle of thermodynamics the system, being closed, the entropy S must increase continuously, lengthening the duration of e
P. Steinhardt et al. proposed the "Big Splat" model. According to them, we live in a flat 3-brane universe which, with a periodicity of some 106 to 109 years, collides with another 3-branes causing a bang initiating a new cosmological cycle. There would be another 3-brane universe next to us, very close (at a fraction of a millimeter) whose gravitational force is so weak (no longer following Newton's law) that we have no way of seeing it, and the same in the opposite direction. We then find cond
Everett's theory. Based on Quantum Mechanics, he introduces the notion of a "universal wave function" ? of the universe. Like any wave function (WF), representing the quantum state of a particle or a system, it is equal to the linear combination of the various eigenfunctions ?i associated with each allowed quantum state. The paradox with Quantum Mechanics is that, although the Schrödinger equation describes perfectly, in a deterministic way, the temporal evolution of the WF, the norm of the calc
The Atheist theoretical physicist David Deutsch, a specialist in quantum computing, supports Everett's theory by taking up mathematically the concept of the Omega point suggested by the Cosmologist Franck Tipler, a Theist (ref. 695, p.248).
Published in 2005 by Sir R. Penrose, confirmed in 2010 from WMAP data, and in 2013 by Sir R. Penrose and Vahe G. Gurzadyan
this idea did not generate much enthusiasm among the scientific community. Nevertheless, he will publish on 2/03/2020 an article [An] together with the mathematician Daniel An, the Christian theoretical physicist Krzysztof Meissner et al in memory of S. Hawking in which they experimentally confirm this theory. According to this, the universe is uniform before the Bang becau
This theory will support Th. Monod's opinion:
"What does it matter if man disappears from the globe. ..... There will always be relays in nature ....
And the evolution can draw a circle, which will close again on the new origins, that is to say prehistoric" [Md].
Biologist, geologist, archeologist, scientist,. Th. Monod, one of the greatest world specialists on the Sahara in the 20th century, a Protestant and humanist who fought vehemently to defend Nature and pacifism,. - wrongly defined by some as a "Christian anarchist" - defines himself as a "Christian apprentice" because according to him:
"The word Christian is so full of meaning and responsibility that one does not dare to call oneself a Christian, but one can say that one tries to advance in that direction, always on the side of the mountain, looking at the summit from far away."
It should be noted that current scientific knowledge does not support a Big Crunch, which requires a greater amount of matter that is known for positive gravity to take over the expansion.
The cyclic theory is compatible with the Buddhist theory which does not believe in the necessity of a Creator. For some Buddhists, the sensible world is illusory, hence the term "Mâyâ" (= magic), one of the three nodes
the other two being "Ego" or self-consciousness, and "Karma": the destiny of every living being is determined by the sum of all his past actions in his previous lives. Nodes, which each one must get rid of to stop the cycle of death and rebirth. This can be summarized by saying t
At the end of this brief overview of some of the existing theories - whose relevance is questionable because they are far ahead of our technology and therefore difficult unless a miracle occurs, to confirm experimentally - we understand that science is far from answering all our questions. But it is characteristic of science to generate one or several new questions each time it brings an answer to a problem. Nevertheless, there are some, such as gravitational waves, which could be verified. The
No one can answer this question with certainty because God's design is inscrutable
nevertheless, I leave it to S. Hawking to conclude. At the interface between the twentieth and twenty-first centuries, relying on the scientific knowledge of the moment, he adapted the strong anthropic principle, which his colleague Brandon Carter had stated in 1973 (ref.648, p.229), and wrote ([Ha1]-p.151):
"Either several different universes exist, or several different regions coexist within a single universe: each of them would have its initial configuration and perhaps even its laws. In most of these universes, the conditions necessary for the development of complex organisms would not be fulfilled and only a small number of universes like ours would allow the development of intelligent beings...."
Continuing his reasoning he demonstrates that it is not different from the weak anthropic principle:
"If the universe is very large, even infinite, spatially and/or temporally, the conditions necessary for the development of intelligent life will be found only in limited regions of space-time. If intelligent beings exist somewhere, they should not be surprised that the corner of the universe they inhabit meets the conditions necessary for their existence. A bit like a rich person living in a rich neighborhood, who would not know what poverty looks like."
This idea of several worlds is not new for scientists. Two centuries earlier, the greatest of them all, Sir Isaac Newton (refs. 185&204, pp.59&61) an Anglican, wrote in his treatise on optics (cf. [Ne1]-p.146):
"As space is infinitely divisible, and matter is not necessarily in all parts of space (which we justify chap. 3)
God can diversify the laws of Nature and make different worlds in different parts of the Universe."
These captivating strands of thought form an alluring constellation of ideas that continue to beckon humanity's most daring explorers. As we venture ever deeper into the cosmos believers can hope that there may be at least one other universe governed by laws different from ours that await us. Having been created in the image of God, it seems obvious to me that we will not be reincarnated with the same carnal envelope, it would not make sense, it would be terrible for the handicapped, the cripple
Chapter 5. Scientists speak out
5.1. Should the text of Genesis be taken literally?
5.1.1 The Creation of the Universe.
5.1.2. Man, the Image of God?
5.2. Is the universe the result of chance or a divine plan? Insights from specialists.
5.3. Is life on Earth the result of chance?
5.4. Does the theory of evolution (1859) contradict Genesis?
5.5. Does scientific rationality exclude faith?
5.6. Is this world the best of all worlds?
5.7. Why did God allow Evil?
5.8. Is death an end in itself?
"The question is not whether God exists or not.
But rather: who is He, and what is He playing at?"
Hubert Reeves [Re1]
In the vast tapestry of our existence, questions arise about our origins, the nature of reality, and the existence of a divine power that has tantalized human intellect for millennia. As we peered (chapters 2-4) into the depths of the universe, we were confronted with a mesmerizing symphony of particles, energies, and laws, a carefully orchestrated ballet that brought the cosmos to life. Today, we stand at the threshold of understanding the universe in ways our ancestors could only dream of. Thi
Throughout history, the greatest minds have grappled with these questions. Thinkers like Isaac Newton, Gottfried Leibniz, Max Planck, and Edwin Schrodinger,. pioneers of science and philosophy, not only expanded our understanding of the universe but also held a profound belief in a divine creator. Like Pythagoras, Plato, and others they saw the elegance of mathematics and the orderliness of the cosmos as a testament to a higher intelligence.
Hubert Reeves (ref.4, p.1), a modern astrophysicist, and Arno Penzias (ref.364, p.108) a Nobel in Physics,. echo this sentiment, stating that for many contemporary scientists, the existence of God is no longer a question. It's a certainty, a profound acknowledgment of a purposeful creation. In the quest to unravel the mysteries of the cosmos, belief in a higher power is not seen as irrational, but rather an avenue to deeper understanding. Yet, akin to the philosophical ideals of René Descartes,
"The Bible contains a hidden meaning, apart from the literal meaning. It is discovered by lending each letter an esoteric and divine meaning."
I. Newton [Br]
"Have we any right to assume that the Creatorworks by intellectual powers like those of man?"
Ch. Darwin [Dar 91]
Any reasonable person has understood that Genesis shouldn't be taken literally, the God's word is timeless and addresses all peoples of different cultures. But let's leave it to the scholars.
In ancient times, when sacred texts like the Pentateuch were presented to the Hebrews, the Vedânta to the Hindus, and the New Testament to the Christians, allegorical narratives, parables, and imagery were commonly employed. This was because it was impractical to convey complex concepts such as the creation of the Earth and natural phenomena to the largely uneducated and illiterate people of the time. Thus, figures like St. Paul, found it was necessary to tailor their language to their audience.
Even in the modern era, the tangible world we experience seems vastly different from the one described by physicists and cosmologists, who delve into its mystery using abstract mathematical tools (cf. chap. 2). Consequently, scientists often are reduced to creating visual representations to demystify complexes ideas and make them understandable to the general public. Similarly, to prevent deterring both young and older readers unfamiliar with the Bible, it is crucial to heed the advice of Christ
"Genesis should not be read as a scientific text, a truth, but should, on the contrary, be considered like a founding myth where it is the moral that matters" [Pe].
Other theologian scientists, such as B. Warfield, echo this sentiment, asserting that the Bible is not a compendium of scientific facts, but a source of spiritual and moral guidance. Using allegories, metaphors, anthropomorphisms (the female designating matter, the male form), and hyperboles, can sometimes complicate interpretation, leading readers astray. This issue is particularly pertinent today, as young individuals, steeped in rationalism and newly introduced to philosophy, may find a liter
This reflects a shortcoming in contemporary religious education, but it begs the question: where does the responsibility lie? The observations I share are not news:
- St. Augustine (4th century, A.D.), one of the Fathers and Doctors of the Church, is a good example of this because, at first, his reading at the first degree turned him away from the Christian faith, although he had received a good education. Once he had assimilated the Neoplatonic method he understood the Bible's allegoric meaning, and returned to its study, devoting the rest of his life to making his reading intelligible.
- For Moses Maimonides (12th century A.D.), the second Moses, founder of Jewish rational theology, professing an allegorical reading of the Bible, it was necessary to use:
"... homonymous words, so that the vulgar men could take them in a certain sense, according to the measure of their intelligence and the weakness of their conception, and that the perfect man who received instruction could take them in the other sense,"
as well as metaphors and amphibological expressions. What, in common language, is named the application of hermeneutics. In the Book of the Lost [Ma1] Maimonides explains that: it does not matter whether the common man understands the true meaning or not, the ignorant will not find implausible what is impossible. The perfect and distinguished man (for him this was the rabbi) will understand that there are two meanings: an external meaning, which would give him a bad opinion of the author, and an
The great Dominican theologian St. Thomas Aquinas (ref.127, p.36), will take one century later, a similar position to that of M. Maimonides, adopting the Aristotelian philosophy which was abandoned for several centuries. Regrettably, it was not until 1893, and Pope Leo XIII, that the theory of the four senses of reading the Holy Scriptures, proposed by Origen in the third century (ref.70-p.22), was once again adopted by the Catholic Church [Le]:
"... the literal meaning itself conceals other meanings which serve either to illuminate the dogmas or to give rules for life,"
"... One who teaches the Scriptures will also be careful not to neglect the allegorical or anagogical meaning attached by the Holy Scriptures to certain words."
Facing an assault from Ludovico delle Colombe, a staunch advocate of a literal word-by-word interpretation of the Scriptures, who accused Galileo Galilei of manipulating the text of Genesis to align with theories that deviated from scriptural teachings, Galileo replied by stating:
"... I admit that it is not possible that the Sacred Writings can deceive or be mistaken... nevertheless, some of its interpreters or presenters can sometimes be mistaken, in different ways ... mainly when they want to keep their true meaning to the words, which can lead to serious and blasphemous heresies. Leading to attributing to God: feet, hands, ... human feelings ... ignorance of the future ... many of the propositions of the Scriptures are written in such a way as to fit the ignorance of
E. Schrödinger, speaking [Sc] of the fundamental vision of the Vedânta, concludes (p. 40):
"...reasoning allows us to arrive at least to this, that to grasp the substance of the phenomenon by reasoning is in all likelihood impossible, since reasoning itself belongs to the phenomenon, and is entirely included in it
we may ask ourselves whether we should give up using an imaginary, allegorical view of the situation, simply because its relevance cannot be rigorously established."
A. Einstein, too, warned us [Ei1 p. 171]:
"...sense perceptions offer only indirect results about this world or about "physical reality"...Then only the speculative way can help us understand the world. But we must always be ready to transform these ideas...."
During an interview, the writer and journalist Edmond Blatten [Bl] asked the well-known scientist Théodore Monod, Protestant: "It is not necessary to take the Bible, the Gospel to the letter?" Th. Monod answered:
"Of course not! We must put these texts in their chronological framework. These people knew some things, but they also knew very little ....."
Closer to home Freeman Dyson, a Christian scientist said in an interview [Dy]:
"Technology is a gift from God and it is perhaps after the gift of life the best gift from God. ......"
Awaring the difficulty for most of us to understand quantum mechanics he added:
"None of our contemporaries, gifted with reason, using everyday devices derived from the knowledge of quantum mechanics, can doubt its validity, nor its language, even if they do not understand it."
Sir Nevill F. Mott, an Anglican, 1977 co-Nobel Prize in Physics - with Philip W. Anderson and John H. van Vleck "for their fundamental theoretical investigations of the electronic structure of magnetic and disordered systems," went further. According to him, every practitioner has the right to pray in the church without accepting all its rites:
"It is possible to worship and yet interpret or even reject some of what it is said" [Mot1],
This aphorism reflects the contemplation of a talented scientist who embraced religion late in life and stands out from the average Christian while respecting his ideas. In the book he edited in collaboration with coauthors [Mot2], talented scientists, and religious too, he explains that the Supernatural Christian God in whom he believes does not break the laws of nature which he had created, to perform "miracles," but stays by those who believe in him and helps them while respecting the laws of
John Polkinghorne, a contemporary scientist, and Anglican priest, wrote [Col2]:
"The Bible cannot be treated as if it were uniformly inspired and authoritative ... its human writings contain both eternal truths and also writings about historical and cultural facts."
He does not share all N.F. Mott's ideas.
"God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it because on that day He rested from all the work of creation that He had accomplished." [Ge 2: 3]
Let's note that many Greek philosophers, such as Aristotle, Plato, ... and, then later, others like Averroes, having adopted the Aristotelian doctrine, did not believe in the creation - from scratch - of the universe by God, the Eternal, as taught by the Abrahamic religions, but in its formation by God, the Eternal, from the shapeless matter, also eternal, which was at his disposal and which he modeled as best as he could. The difference is important because, at that time, the formation did not
For Plato and his admirer Philo of Alexandria, for example, the sensible world is the image of the real world which is Idea [Th] (ref.65-p.21).
Shortly before his death (67-68) in a Roman prison, St. Peter, the "Prince of Apostles," 1st bishop of Rome, wrote in his second epistle (3:8) addressed to the Christians of Asia Minor:
"... with the Lord, one day is like a thousand years, and a thousand years are like a day."
He had well understood and explained that for God, who is timeless (because He is the Creator of time itself) time does not exist, which should allow us to understand the true meaning of the above epitaph. Later: Origen, the "Father of Christian exegetes," stated at the beginning of the third century A.D:
"What intelligent person would consider it a sensible statement that the first three days, evening and morning, existed without sun, moon, and stars? .... No one doubts that these are related figuratively in Scripture and some mystical meaning may be indicated by them, through a semblance of historical narrative."
Since history is a discipline, events are classified chronologically, but this was not the case at the time, they were placed in order of importance
this is, it seems to me, what St. Augustine (4th century A.D.), Doctor and Father of the Church, who was not a scientist, understood:
"... the creation itself was accomplished in an instant and the work of the six days is only the picture of the development of the riches of the universe, by an evolution that may have lasted for many centuries and continues before our eyes."
We find in this quotation not only a "prediction" of the Big Bang theory (chap. 3) but also that of the evolution theory (§ 5.3). His theological approach:
"It must therefore be admitted that the world at the moment of creation received with its being a causal virtue or power of evolution in which all future beings were contained, not formally, but in germ as the acorn contains the oak tree,"
although interesting, remains in the domain of metaphysics, but is not contradicted by Teilhard de Chardin. On the other hand, interpreting the sentence of Genesis (Ge: 1-16):
"God made two great lights [The Sun and the Moon] ... on the 4th day"
which obviously cannot be taken, because the notion of a day that we have adopted is that of a rotation of the Earth on itself, and before "the lights" were created, it made no sense to speak of day, the great rabbi Moses Maimonides gets around the difficulty. According to him, the lights were created on the first day but suspended on the fourth day.
For the proponents of an "ancient earth," the Earth was indeed created 4.5 billion years ago, but the 6 days of Genesis must be assimilated into eras or geological periods. Based on the Theory of Relativity and taking into account the speed of expansion of the universe, the physicist Gerald Schroeder, an orthodox Jewish, deduced that a cosmic day is worth approximately 1012 terrestrial days (time is relative), which, except for the uncertainty about the origin of the Bang, justifies, according t
The 1966 Fields Prize, Alexander Grothendieck, the greatest mathematician of the 20th century, Atheist until the age of 16th, became a Deist following a course on evolution, given by Mr. Friedel, his professor of Natural History. In 1991, after his withdrawal from the mathematical community, he devoted himself to politics and religions: Buddhism, then Catholicism. He was influenced by the mystic catholic Marthe Robin who, from 1930 until she died in 1981, ate only the consecrated host. Let's not
"As for the seven days of Creation, there is no doubt that these are the "days" when He drew out of nothingness the eternal laws (spiritual, physical, biological) that govern the Cosmos and the Universe - like a Master Painter who carefully prepares his canvas and frame for a painting he is about to brush."
Everyone is free to think what he or she wants because the notion of time is complex, which is why many agree that God, being timeless, does not participate in time. Indeed, Maimonides says ([Ma1 Chap.1 p.199]):
"Time is an accident that competes with movement, when, in the latter, one considers the idea of anteriority and posterity."
It refers moreover to Aristotle for whom, time not being movement, nor change must necessarily be: "something of movement." It is recognized by what is before and after an intermediate point, which is the present. The explanation that we find in Genesis (1:14), And God said:
"Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days, and years...."
This definition of time is at the origin of many calendars (ref.66-p.21) more or less satisfactory for earthlings but which would be different on other planets or exoplanets harboring Life. The probability that the rotation speed of another planet, on itself, is identical to that of the Earth is infinitely small. A change of paradigm would be necessary
the adoption of the atomic clock, based on the immutability of the frequency of an atomic transition of 133Cs could be a solution (1 second corr
The Lutheran astronomer Sir William Herschel, founder of stellar astronomy - of whom Baron Joseph Fourier, Catholic, perpetual secretary of the Academy of Sciences, said on 5/06/1824 [Fo] during a public session of the said Academy:
"William Herschel, a member of this Academy, is one of those extraordinary men who, destined to honor their homeland and their century....... opened new roads in a sublime science
he saw stars until then ignored, and pushed back all the limits of the spectacle of the skies... he devoted all his life to immortal works, and during forty years the brightness of his discoveries resounded in all Europe
"
Herschel thought that:
"The more the field of science expands, the more numerous become the powerful and irrefutable arguments proving the existence of an eternal Creator with unlimited and infinite power. Geologists, mathematicians, astronomers, and naturalists have all collaborated to build the edifice of science, which is, in truth, the foundation of the Supreme Greatness of God the only one."
J. Joule (ref.224-p.68), a great experimenter in Physics, and a sincere Anglican recognized, without ambiguity, that God is the Creator:
"After the knowledge of and obedience to the will of God, the next aim must be to know something of His attributes of wisdom, power, and goodness as evidenced by His handiwork." [Lam]
Below, I reported quotations from 4 contemporary Nobel Prizes (3 in Physics and 1 in Chemistry):
- The Christian radio astronomer A. Hewish (ref.371-p.111), 1974 Nobel Prize said:
"God certainly seems to be a rational Creator. That entire terrestrial world is made from electrons, protons, and neutrons and that a vacuum is filled with virtual particles demands incredible rationality."
Let's remember that virtual particle pairs appear according to the principle of uncertainty, during a time too short to be detected directly. We enter the realm of theoretical physicists.
- His student, Quaker Jocelyn Bell Burnell (ref.370, p.110), the radio astronomer who discovered the first pulsars and deserved to share this Prize said in 2000:
"Any faith, any church.gets its authority from several roots. One is the holy writings, .. The second is the Church's history . . And the third one is what is called "Continuing Revelation." God speaking to contemporary people, and Quakerism puts great emphasis on that third one. you are liberated from having to believe word-for-word what the book of Genesis says. You take responsibility on your shoulders for developing an understanding of God and God's will for this world and God's will for you
To summarize, she confesses that it requires a lot of intuition, reflection, questioning, and self-confidence. This self-confidence that she has acquired over the years by seeing that her ideas in science often turned out to be right. This contextualization of the Scriptures is not specific to Quakers, cf. I. Newton, Anglican, and others among Catholics, but I gave her the floor because she is a very high-level scientist who speaks from the heart.
- For the theoretical physicist Abdus Salam (ref.394, p.117), 1979 Nobel Prize in Physics, an Ahmadist:
"The Holy Quran enjoins us to reflect on the truths of the laws of nature created by Allah
however, that our generation has been privileged to glimpse a part of His design is a generosity and a grace for which I give thanks with a humble heart."
- The physicist Arno Penzias, 1978 Nobel Prize (ref.364-108), a conservative Jew who also subscribes to God's creation of the Universe, had aptly answered the 12/03/1972 to Malcolm W. Bröwne for the New York Times:
"How could a lambda individual take sides in this dispute between giants? On the one hand, the universe was created out of nothing, while on the other hand, the eternity of matter is proclaimed. Okay, let's consider the dogma of the eternity of matter. It comes from the intuitive feeling of people (including the majority of physicists) who do not want to accept the obvious observations that the universe was created, although the creation of the universe is supported by all the data that astronom
Adding:
"... the most accurate data we have is exactly what I could have predicted from the 5 books of Moses, the Psalms, and the Bible."
"All reality, to a greater or lesser extent, reveals God's purpose. There is a certain relationship between the design and the order of the world in all aspects of human experience ...... This world is most consistent with the purpose of creation."
- The 1996 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Richard E. Smalley (ref.424, p.126), a Christian sharing his love for the Earth, said in 1960, during the 79th Annual Scholarship convocation at Tuskegee University (cf. Wikipedia Biography):
"Genesis was right, and there was creation, and that Creator is still involved. We are the only species that can destroy the Earth or take care of it and nurture all that live on this very special planet. I'm urging you to look into these things. For whatever reason, this planet was built specifically for us. Working on this planet is an absolute moral code. Let's go out and do what we were put on Earth to do."
We understand that he adhered to the evolution theory. In the late 1990s, he advocated for "clean energy," the need for an alternative to fossil fuels, on the dangers of global warming, ..
I will conclude this paragraph with one of the most illustrious Christian scientists: Isaac Newton, an Anglican, who ends his treatise "Optics" [Ne1], an entirely scientific work, with a series of questions concerning some experiments that challenge him. It is interesting to note that the last one (XXXI) is dedicated to God:
"All this considered, it seems to me very probable that God formed in the beginning matter of solid, heavy, hard, impenetrable, mobile particles, of such sizes, figures, and other properties ..., so hard that they never wear out or break, nothing being able (according to the ordinary course of Nature) to divide what was primitively by God himself."
"... it is through these principles [two or three general principles of motion] that matter was made, at the time of creation, of particles... variously combined by the will of an intelligent Being
for it is to him who created these particles that it belongs to put them in order. If he did it, it is not philosophical to look for another origin to the world, or to claim that the simple laws of Nature could have drawn it from chaos...."
"It seems ... these particles are moved by certain active principles, such as that of gravity, of fermentation, ... I consider these principles, not only as occult qualities, which would result from the specific form of things
but as laws of Nature, by which the things themselves are formed."
After these few quotations from exegetes, scientists, and often both, why should we put the one who has faith - on trial - even if he cannot rationally explain all the acts of God?
"... let us make man according to our image and likeness, ..." [Ge 1: 26]
"God, in his permanence, takes on different faces for different humanities"[Lr2].
Louis Leprince-Ringuet
The average person, conceiving God and His work from what he sees and understands, wrongly attributes to Him all the epithets relating to corporeality, forgetting that the attributes of God and ours are so different.
Also, how can we understand the epigraph of this paragraph attributed to God? Especially when St. John the Evangelist says (I 4:24): "God is spirit, ...," which at first sight is not our case. But the Apostle Paul in his 1st Epistle to the Thessalonians (5:23) gives us a clue when he pronounces a benediction of peace "... let your whole being, spirit, soul, and body, be kept blameless until our Lord Jesus Christ comes ...." He distinguishes in them, and therefore in us, three parts. Many of u
"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities - His eternal power and divine nature - have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse."
Xenophanes (ref.41-p.13), the theologian par excellence among the pre-Socratics, rejected all anthropomorphism of the representations of the divinities of his time. And did not hesitate to declare immoral the gods of Homer.
Later, Cicero (ref.80-p.24), will say:
"...... God must have a form, but still the most beautiful of all, ...,"
without defining it. It is a difficult question. Nevertheless, God does not have a bodily form identical to that of Man, notwithstanding the great Rabbi Abraham ben David de Posquières.
Moses Maimonides explains that we are in the presence of a homonymy: the Hebrew word "Celem" which has been translated, can be interpreted as "bodily form" - which according to him is an error and leads him to treat as heretics those who take this expression literally - and "natural form" which, on the other hand, is not. "Natural form" must do with our intelligence, differentiating us from animals. In fact, according to Maimonides, he endowed man with Reason (the ability to distinguish truth fr
The word "resemblance," a translation of the Hebrew "demut," can refer to the physical image as well as to the image of an idea (for example, we say "You are as beautiful as a star," which does not mean that one is physically comparable to a star but that he has his brilliance, his beauty, etc.).
In the "Guide to the Lost" ([Ma1] chapter LX), Maimonides proposes an apophatic approach:
"To get closer to the knowledge of God and His perception it is necessary to attribute all negative attributes to Him and to demonstrate that they cannot be attributed to Him."
What mathematicians call "reasoning by the absurd." This method is fruitful in mathematics.
Saint Thomas Aquinas, a great Dominican theologian, in the tradition of Maimonides, while having his philosophy, explained it by what is called "the analogy of being." This notion is rather difficult to explain, but some people summarize it by assimilating the word analogy to a relative resemblance between different realities, "because of a certain relationship that He [God] has with the things from which our intelligence draws its concepts."
This explanation is not in contradiction with "Le grand Robert de la langue française" [Ro] for which, until the middle of the 18th century, the words "idea" and "image" were used indistinctly because certain Hebrew and Greek words do not have their equivalent in French and can be interpreted in different ways, hence, some understandable variants in the translations.
The multiform scientist Ch. Huygens, a Calvinist, wrote [Mor] (in his time):
"The pagans and barbarians attributed to God a body similar to the human body, the philosophers attribute to Him a soul similar to the human soul and affections similar to ours, only different in perfection. They give Him a way of thinking, wanting, hearing, and loving. What else could they do? To admit that it far surpasses man to have an idea of God."
God's reason and power, are completely different from ours, it seems to me vain trying to understand His attributes.
The "Great Mr. Newton," a fervent Anglican and follower of hermeneutics, rightly convinced that the prophetic texts, especially "Daniel" and "Revelation," were written in coded language, gave them great importance, trying to decipher them and advising, in "Interpretation of the Prophecies" [Br], a method to achieve this. In this, he joined the Kabbalah. He allowed himself - in his master scientific work: "Principia Mathematica" [Ne2 p. 177] - to make some remarks inciting his readers to undertak
"... He (God) has no body nor corporeal form, so he cannot be seen, nor touched, nor heard, & he must not be worshipped in any sensible form. We have no idea of his substance .... We know him only by his properties & attributes, ... we admire him because of his perfections, ... He is present everywhere, not only virtually, but substantially, for one cannot act where one is not. Everything is moved and contained in him .... just as a blind man has no idea of colors, so we have no idea of how the
He is very clear on this subject when he writes at the end of his mathematical description of the universe:
"It is said allegorically that God sees, hears, speaks, rejoices, is angry ... because everything that is said about God is taken from some comparison with human things
but these comparisons, although they are very imperfect, nevertheless give some faint idea of him" [Ne2 p.178].
According to the Lutheran polymath G. Leibniz (ref.182-p.53) the originator of the concept of the preestablished harmony between soul and body:
"... every substance [he speaks here of the soul, entelechy or active principle] is like a whole world and like a mirror of God or the whole universe..." [Lz2 - 147].
He clarifies his thought:
"The only spirits are made in His [God's] image and almost of His race."
Let's return to Martinès de Pasqually's philosophy (Appendix 3, p.174). At its heart lays a profound emphasis on spiritual enlightenment, and divine communion. According to his perspective, before Adam's transgression, the spiritual beings emanating from God were androgynous, immortal, and adorned with light garments, much like God. Endowed with "free will," they inhabited the divine circumference known as the "Divination," distinct from the supercelestial immensity that included both the celest
But, when Adam, believing himself equal to God in every way, and influenced by the rebellious angels, transgressed the limits assigned by God
and sought to create spiritual beings as well, these beings assumed a material form! God expelled Adam from the Garden of Eden. Adam became the first mortal human, residing on Earth among animals. Merciful, God left Free Will to him and his descendants who were forced to work to survive. He nevertheless granted them the opportunity to redeem themselves to
This concept of being equal to God finds parallels in the Bible, such as in Matthew 16:21, Where Jesus foretells his suffering, death, and resurrection to his disciples. Peter taking Jesus aside said: "Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you." This prompts Jesus' response: "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me, you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns." Nevertheless, this did not prevent Jesus from appointing Peter as the first Chri
For the 1927 Nobel Prize in Literature, Henri Bergson, a Jewish with Catholic tendencies, since the middle of the 18th century the word "image":
"... is opposed to reality or things that exist independently of the mind that thinks them."
Here it must be taken as an allegory, metaphor, or comparison.
The 20th century witnessed a profound transformation in the landscape of science, marked by the advent of advanced mathematical tools, and a re-evaluation of fundamental concepts, such as substance, matter, energy, and simultaneity, ... These foundational ideas, which trace their origins to thinkers like the Pythagoreans, underwent a metamorphosis in meaning and interpretation. In the realm of cosmology, as concepts evolved and abstract ideas took root, it became evident that describing subatomi
Erwin Schrödinger, a figure deeply routed in Christian beliefs and with a keen interest in Hinduism, profoundly observed the distinction between reality and perception, a philosophical concept echoed by many:
"Many philosophers have stated that a distinction must be made between a man's perception of a tree and the tree itself" in itself "... a good deal of consciousness is in this sense."
For Hinduism, reality transcends the material world, belonging to the realm of the spiritual, accessible only to the enlightened:
"The Absolute Truth belongs to the creative spiritual world and not to the Material Universe" [Ka p- 6],
It's a reality that casts a mere shadow in the material world, and only the "Great Souls" can glimpse its true form. E. Schrödinger, employing a crystal metaphor with multifaceted perspectives, illustrates these multiple views of reality. There's the ineffable image of God, beyond human comprehension, and there are the images one can derive from interpreting ancient texts like Hindu scriptures or biblical prophecies (as Newton encourages us to do).
In the intricate tapestry of these perspectives, Schrödinger weaves the concept of Atman and Brahman, drawing parallels between Hindu and Christian spiritual beliefs. Brahman, the Supreme cosmic entity, embodies the essence of all energies and knowledge
an omnipresent, omniscient force. Atman, on the other hand, is the individual soul or consciousness residing within each living being, a fragment of Brahman. It's an eternal essence confined within mortal bodies, a glimpse of the greater whole.
According to Viraj Kulkarni [Ku], at the end of his lectures, E. Schrodinger often wrote the following equation:
Atman = Brahman,
jokingly calling it: the "second Schrödinger's equation." He also approved (cf. [Sc2]-p. 87) the poetic expressions through which they conveyed these profound truths:
"The one supreme divinity
Being in all beings And living when they die, Who sees it is a seer.
For he who has found everywhere
The supreme God,
That man will no longer harm himself."
Niels Bohr (ref.297-p.89), the father of "atomystic," as Wolfgang Pauli (ref.310-p.92), a Catholic, respectfully called him in private, whose Copenhagen school was the rallying point of atomistic physicists, wrote [He]:
"Quantum theory thus constitutes an excellent example proving that one can have understood a certain state of affairs in all its clarity and that simultaneously one nevertheless knows that only images and parables can evoke it... we can nevertheless, with the help of these images, come closer in a certain sense to the reality of things."
In 1922, during a walk on the sidelines of the Göttingen Congress, Niels Bohr expressed to Christian Werner Heisenberg (ref.312-p.93), a student of Arnold Sommerfeld (ref.299-p.89), his doubts about the atom planetary system as he had proposed it. Questioned by the latter on the images that he proposed, he answered:
"... these images (atoms) have been guessed from experimental facts ... we can only use language here in the manner of poets, who also do not seek to represent facts precisely, but only to create images in the minds of their audience, and to establish connections on the level of ideas."
This led Werner Heisenberg to say to his friend Wolfgang Pauli, who, working a lot at night, rested during the day when there was no communication:
"Bohr has acquired an intuitive idea of the structure of atoms, it is a picture that he tries to make understandable to other physicists by appealing to the electronic orbits inside the atom ... without perhaps believing in it."
Pauli replied:
"... Bohr's images must be correct, but how can we understand them, and what laws do they hide?"
The same W. Heisenberg, accustomed to manipulating abstraction, speaking of "God the Creator," used the imaginary expression: "the central order" or the "One" of ancient terminology. What he justified, saying:
"... in atomic theory to formulate in an abstract mathematical language a unified order extending over vast domains
... we see ... that when we want to describe in natural language the consequences of this order, we are reduced to use parables ... which contain paradoxes and apparent contradictions" ([He] Chap. XVII).
During the same conference, he explained to W. Paul Dirac:
"...the central order of things or phenomena, whose existence is not in doubt, ..." as "one communicates eventually, with the soul of another human being."
Answering one of his questions about the bijective relationship between God and himself, he said:
"I think that all these correlations can be better thought now since we have understood the quantum theory."
In effect, quantum theory, particularly the principle of complementarity, has fully changed our vision of material objects. It teaches us that our view is dependent on how we observe them. Here we have the germ of the ideas currently developed by certain theoretical physicists such as F. Tipler (ref. 695-p.247) for example.
Louis Leprince-Ringuet, an eminent Catholic Physicist, elected to the American Philosophical Society, told during his reception speech in the French "Académie des Sciences":
"To summarize, the two aspects: the religious and the scientific, we can say "that Image" is not a carbon copy, but the fact that God gave man some of His attributes that distinguish him from animals, and make his specificity. It can even be admitted that Adam did not have all the qualities of God and could have had defects, although here again, it is possible to discuss the meaning to be attributed to Adam."
Closer to home, Pope Francis wrote ([Fr] - p.177):
"... the son of God integrated into his person a part of the material universe,"
which for Christians is easily understood because God, the Creator, is present in all things.
I cannot imagine that this infinitely small man - placed at the center of this infinitely small Earth compared to the Milky Way, which is only a tiny part of the billions of galaxies that make up our universe, which some people think is only one among many - can have a clear vision of the infinite God, Creator of all this. Hubert Reeves seemed to have a similar view to mine on this point:
"One of the lessons of contemporary science is that the universe is infinitely more imaginative and inventive than we are."
It's hard to fathom how an infinitely tiny being, positioned at the center of a minuscule Earth within the vastness of the Milky Way - itself just a fraction of the countless galaxies constituting our universe - could grasp a clear understanding of the infinite God, the Creator of it all. This sentiment echoes that of Hubert Reeves, who shared a similar perspective:
"One of the lessons of contemporary science is that the universe is infinitely more imaginative and inventive than we are."
Regarding God, setting aside the intricacies of the Trinity, I view Him as dual. He took on human form through Jesus Christ (the Logos, the Word) and consistently revealed His presence in an immaterial guise as the Holy Spirit. The Greek translation of the Holy Spirit as breath, wind, or God's active force, hints at the possibility of assuming unknown forms or waves. This allows communication at speeds surpassing those of the observable electromagnetic spectrum while transmitting energy, akin to
"Who would be so foolhardy as to assert that we know and perceive all forces, all waves, and all means of communication?"
Similarly, the duality observed in entities like the electron (wave or corpuscle) depending on experimental conditions, highlights our limited sensory perception of reality. Theoretical physicists bypass this limitation by employing mathematics, a realm of abstraction that may uncover the laws of nature, though Gödel's theorem reminds us of its inherent incompleteness.
In my perspective, describing God is ineffable. We should not seek a corporeal resemblance, for God and Man differ in their very nature. However, through essence (the intrinsic characteristics of beings or things), man mirrors God, endowed with an immortal soul. Yet, man, marred by imperfections, can only imperfectly reflect God's image. As we distance ourselves from this ideal, as noted in the teachings of Plotinus and the Upanishads (ref.6-p.2) our image further deteriorates. Notably, Isaac Ne
"God is one & the same God everywhere & always. He is present everywhere, not only virtually, but substantially, for one cannot act where one is not."
Let's conclude this reflection with Antoine de Saint-Exupéry's wisdom:
"One can only see well with the heart, the essential is invisible to our eyes."
"What is chance with regard to men, is design with regard to God."
Bossuet
"This Being governs all things, not as the soul of the world, but as Lord over all... For God is a relative word and has respect to servants, and Deity is the Dominion of God not over his own body as those who fancy God to bethe soul of the world, but over servants.... but a being, however perfect,without dominion, cannot be said to be Lord God."
I. Newton
In the grand tapestry of existence, the question looms large: is the creation of the universe a product of mere chance, or does it align with a divine plan?
The hypothesis of "chance" at the origin of our universe, put forward by atheists, is not new but it is necessary to agree on the meaning we attribute to this name. 2.500 years ago, Leucippus and Democritus said:
"... necessity and chance are not opposed to each other, but they are both opposed to the action of an intelligence or a providence" [Pu].
An opinion shared closer to us by Jacques Brunschwig, a 20th-century philosopher:
"... chance seems to be only the name we give to the cause when it is unknown or unrecognizable."
This definition of chance is that of the atheists. Facing a phenomenon inexplicable rationally, seeming to result from a combination of unexpected circumstances, they do not want to hear the non-scientific explanations of believing scientists. This is their right, but are they right? I don't think so, because there are many scientific facts that even the greatest scientists cannot explain, and nevertheless, the same people admit it without any proof. We have seen in Chapter 3 that the cause of t
In the philosophical lineage of Anaxagoras and Socrates, Plato [Th] contends that the Soul transcends the physical realm. According to him, the soul possesses the remarkable ability to comprehend both the ideal world, characterized by stability, and the sensible world, marked by perpetual motion. For Plato, the cosmic order is not a result of chance, it is the:
"handiwork of a divine Craftsman (dêmiourgos) the Royal Soul . imposing mathematical order on preexistent chaos to generate the ordered cosmos."
Timaeus, a Pythagorean philosopher presents [Pla], on scientific knowledge bases of the time, Plato's vision of the formation of the universe based on the Necessity to reach his goals. Consequently, our universe would be:
"the product of rational, purposive, and beneficial agency."
Aristotle established that the eternal world and all the beings that populate it are not the results of chance. When he speaks of necessity we need to see it as emanating from a superior intelligence: God, acting in full consciousness, is at the origin of movement and time.
Later, Avicenna, a Muslim, and then Rabbi Moses Maimonides, believing in a world created by God, would endeavor to demonstrate that God wanted this world freely and did not act by necessity:
"God made all things by willing this universe
"
Among the distinguished scientists who did not believe in chance, we selected the Anglican sir Isaac Newton who speaking of gravity established that:
"... gravity explains the movement of the planets but cannot explain who set the planets in motion. God governs all things and knows all that is or is to be done." [Ne1]
At the same time, his famed rival, Gottfried W. Leibniz, a Lutheran polymath stated:
"... God does nothing at random ... the effect must answer to its cause."[Lz2]
Chapter 2 (like the others), is intended to be factual
nevertheless, believers will be able to see that if God created our universe, it is based on fundamental laws and constants, allowing Man to apprehend them, what G. Leibniz calls the "ordinary wills." He also established "extraordinary wills," that no created mind, however, enlightened he may be, can foresee by reasoning, because their understanding, distinct from the general order, surpasses his capacities. They are the cause of what is ca
The Jesuit mathematician Roger Boscovich, sharing the opinion of I. Newton and G. Leibniz, stated:
"... the world could not be the result of chance... by a fortunate meeting of an imposing number of determined conditions, each of which would have arrived at reality among an infinite number of possibilities. It could not exist by itself, by its force... It was created, that is to say, sorted out by an intelligent and free choice from the infinity of possibilities...."
He also stated, alluding to the conclusions so obvious to him that anyone studying the universe can make:
"Non-pious astronomers must be crazy."
André-Marie Ampère, a polymathe. For those who were not enthusiastic about physics in their final year, I will point out that he laid the foundation for the mathematical formulation of classical electromagnetism.
His Ampère's Circuit Law describes the relationship between electric current and magnetic fields
he also introduced the concept of Ampere, a unit of electric current. It is well known that J.C. Maxwell admired his work and gave him "Newton of Electricity" to highlight Ampère's significant contributions to the field of electromagnetism, similar to how Sir Isaac Newton made groundbreaking contributions to classical mechanics. We can also think that it is because he sought a quantitative law of in
"The true scientist Happy, the one who during his learned vigils,
Of this vast universe contemplating the wonders,
Before so much beauty, before so much greatness,
Bows and recognizes a divine creator.
I do not share the mad inconsistency
Of the scientist who, of a God disputes the existence,
Who closes his ear to the announcement of the heavens, And refuses to see what shines in his eyes.
To know God, to love him, to pay him pure homage,
This is the true knowledge and study of the wise."
Albert Einstein, a Jewish pantheist with a Spinozian tendency ("cosmotheist" according to R. Millikan):
"A contemporary has said, not without reason, that in our age, generally devoted to materialism, serious scholars are the only men who are deeply religious. The scientist is imbued with a sense of the causality of all that happens... His religiosity lies in ecstatic astonishment at the harmony of the laws of nature, in which is revealed a reason so superior that all the ingenious thoughts of men and their arrangement are, in comparison, but a quite useless reflection."
"This conviction, linked to a deep feeling of a superior reason, revealing itself in the world of experience, translates for me the idea of God... I affirm that the cosmic religious feeling is the most powerful and noble motive of scientific research" [Ei1].
According to Louis de Broglie, Catholic, 1929 Nobel Prize in Physics:
"The apparent indeterminism of microphysics must be attributed to experimental conditions."
For the 1966 Nobel Prize in Physics Alfred Kastler, humanist, Evangelical Protestant:
"The idea that the world, the material universe, created itself seems to me absurd
I do not conceive of the world without a creator, hence a God. For a physicist, a single atom is so complicated, so rich in intelligence, that the materialist universe makes no sense."
Théodore Monod naturalist, geologist,.. Protestant stated:
"Life is a considerable mystery . I find it difficult to imagine that chance alone can be sufficient to explain the world" [Mdc].
During an interview in September 1971 on American television [Wi] it was asked to Wernher Von Braun, Lutheran, rocket scientist at NASA: "Can you tell me, you specialist in interplanetary physics, what is your thought about God? In your opinion, does God preside over this world of sidereal infinity, this cosmos, or is it appropriate to declare the sky empty?."
He answered: "For me, I don't have to prove God to myself, I can say that I see him, that I experience his presence in some way, for the only reason that it would seem inconceivable to me to think that one could make scientific calculations and forecasts so precise and so complex as those we have had to make, if this cosmic universe were not subject to precise and constant laws which, alone, can allow them. As far as I know, there have never been laws without a legislator... God is for me this s
Let's note that he was talking about worlds and not universes.
For the 1933 Nobel Prize in Physics E. Schrödinger, Christian, one of the fathers of quantum physics (Chapter. 2):
"...the cogwheel in question (the world of life) is not of crude human manufacture but constitutes the most delicate masterpiece ever made according to the principles of the Lord's quantum mechanics." [Sc2]
Hubert Reeves, answering Patrick Poivre d'Arvor, presenter of French TV (cf. interview with Claude Lelouch [Le]):
"When I am at a concert, and I hear Mozart, Beethoven, I cannot believe that this is the expression of chance." (...) "There is something... what it is, I don't know. ... I have this idea that there is something that means something."
For this observer of the sky and the stars:
"...the beauty of the great works, the harmony of the universe that surrounds us, make us sense in the depths of ourselves this mysterious sense of the divine that, as Pythagoras said, great mathematician and philosopher of antiquity, allows us to recognize that Nature is wise."
Also, can we believe that Stephen Hawking, an agnostic, thought that the universe is the fruit of chance when he wrote:
"If the gravitational attraction of a star like the Sun varied with distance more or less than the inverse square of the distance, the orbits of the planets would no longer be ellipses but spirals hurtling towards or away from the Sun"?
The order of Nature shook the agnostic astrophysicist Robert Jastrow [Ja1]:
"Although an agnostic I must admit that nature has a beginning and do not see how she could have created it on her own. I must admit that a supernatural force, which we can call God, outside space and time, has done this."
As did theoretical physicist and Anglican priest John Polkinghorne who wrote [Po] in 1996:
"...the priceless features of the world, its order, its beauty, its ethical imperative, its worshipful experience, reflect the personal traits of the Creator who is rational, joyful, good and holy."
In drawing the curtain of this chapter, let's revisit its essence through the perspectives of two distinguished Nobel Laureates. Anatole France, a freethinking recipient of the 1921 Nobel Prize in Literature, once mused:
"In life, one must take into account the element of chance. Chance is ultimately God"
On the other hand, we encounter Sir Roger Penrose (ref.368, p.109), a Jewish agnostic who clinched the 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics. Despite his agnostic stance (I think that he does not recognize himself in any religion, and I would classify him as a Deist) he expressed in the film "A History of Time" that:
"he believes that the universe has a reason for being, that Man is not the result of Chance
and that there is something very profound in the reason for the universe"
These laureates while acknowledging the existence of a creative force use different lenses. Anatole France sees it as "chance" equivalent to "luck," while Sir Penrose leans toward "probability." How can we reconcile these seemingly disparate viewpoints? In the context of the knowledge amassed over centuries, let's propose that God has established eternal laws of physics, enabling truly spontaneous events, a notion supported by Darwin's evolutionary insights (§ II.9 & V.4) and justified by the pr
"The more modern cosmology has progressed, the more it has discovered that the universe has been regulated in an extremely precise way for the appearance of life and consciousness, that the existence of life is inscribed in the properties of each atom, of each star and galaxy of the universe, and of each of the laws that govern the universe ...
From the beginning, the universe contains in germ the conditions required for the emergence of a living and conscious being."
Trinh Xuan Thuan[Tn]
Let's remember that the 1st terrestrial life form (prokaryotes) goes back 3,85.109 years, that it was followed by 5 mass extinctions, the last one 65 million years ago, and that the appearance of the 1st hominids dates only from 7 to 10 million years ago, that is to say, a long time after the creation of the universe.
It seems clear that the answer to question 5.3 is yes for those who don't believe in God Creator of the universe and that the likelihood of believers saying no is high. While various beliefs and hypotheses exist regarding the origin of life, it's interesting to note a few contrasting points and also the evolution with the time of some scientist's views.
It is the case for Paul Dirac, 1933 Nobel Prize in Physics. In his youth, Paul Dirac was an atheist and did not consider the existence of God necessary, as evidenced by a discussion he had in Solvay (a meeting place for leading scientists) in 1927 with Werner Heisenberg Christian, and Wolfgang Pauli Catholic. At the end of P. Dirac's tirade, W. Pauli, said:
"Well, our friend Dirac has a religion and his creed is: there is no God and Dirac is his prophet."
But, in 1963 P. Dirac changed his opinion and wrote in the magazine "Scientific American":
"It seems to be one of the fundamental characteristics of nature that the fundamental physical laws are described as a mathematical theory of great beauty and power, ... why is nature built along these lines? We just have to accept it. We could eventually describe the situation by saying that God is a mathematician of the highest order and that he used very advanced mathematics to construct the universe. ......."
In a 1971 conference, he drove the point home a little further:
"... The chances of life emerging when we have the right physical conditions are 10-100... I feel that under these conditions it would be necessary to assume the existence of a god to trigger life. .... If the physical laws are such. It would be unreasonable to assume that life would have begun only by blind chance, then there must be a god...."
Nevertheless, among the believers, there is also a debate around the contingency of man. Because, if you have non-scientists and scientists too, who can answer "What would have been the use of the universe if not for the appearance of life"? you encounter also believers like R. Boscovich, who think that God had the choice and he decided to create Man free of his choices with as a consequence: "the evils," with which we feel burdened - often rightly - but that we must assume because we are respon
In Genesis (2:7), it's mentioned that:
"Yahweh-God fashioned man from dust taken from the ground,"
a concept that prompted the poet Ovid to express in his Metamorphoses [Ov] the idea that:
"A being [Man] was still missing, more marked with the divine seal, a more qualified repository of a Penetrating intelligence, and one who could exercise dominion over the rest of the creation" [Ov].
According to Ovid, man's creation is a pivotal moment
he further pondered whether:
"... that man was born, either that the creator god, author of a better world, had formed him from the divine seed, or that the earth in its newness, recently freed from the deep layers of the ether, had preserved some germ of its brother the sky, and that this earth, the son of Japhet, by mixing it with the rain waters, had shaped it in the image of the gods, moderators of all things."
This thought has intrigued various thinkers throughout history. This concept was embraced by the Muslim physician, Professor Ismaa Sadaf Farooqi, who took a literal interpretation of the scriptures:
"He (Allah) initiated the creation of your father Adam from dust, then he created his offspring from semen or worthless water" Quran [40:67], and decided that:
"There is a time set for every people: they cannot hasten it, nor, when it comes, will they be able to delay it for a single moment" Quran [34:7].
The enigma of biogenesis reverberates through the realms of both science and philosophy, shaping our quest for the origins of life
an exploration that is, fundamentally, a search for understanding ourselves.
While some captivating theories, like Cairns-Smith's proposition of life emerging from clay crystals with the ability to capture organic molecules in the early 1980s, have piqued interest, they remain on the fringes of scientific consensus, as Biophysicist D. Vasilescu [Vu2] emphasizes. Consequently, we won't delve further into these less mainstream ideas. On the contrary, the more ancient concept of panspermia (ref.504, p.154) championed by Anaxagoras of Clazomenes, "the physicist par excellenc
As we progress through exploration, we will turn to the perspectives of prominent scientists who defend this theory. For now, let's embark on a journey into the insights of distinguished biologists.
Alexander Oparin, an Orthodox Christian biochemist, amplifies this sentiment by debunking in 1920 the idea of chance playing a significant role:
"... to allude to the stroke of luck that, among trillions [1012] and quadrillions [1024] of combinations, was able to form by chance precisely that indispensable sequence required for the synthesis of proteins is exactly as irrational as when one previously alluded to the "chance" formation of proteins (enzymes). The structure of these proteins is not only very complicated, but it is also extremely well adapted to the accomplishment of the defined catalytic functions that play an important role
Oparin's perspective underscores the irrationality of attributing life's intricacies solely to chance.
In his 1921 book, "The Direction of Human Evolution," [Cn] Edwin Conklin, a prominent biologist known for his studies in embryology, genetics, and evolution, and a Methodist, expresses his views on religion and philosophy:
"I have no quarrel with any Religion or with any philosophy which does not deny or belittle the facts of science or human experience. I believe that there is a great deal more in religion that can be proved by science or logic, but I also believe that there is nothing in true religion that is contrary to science or common sense. Religion deals with values, ideals, sentiments, and aspirations
science deals with facts. Religion is concerned with what ought to be
science is with what is. Religion
He demonstrates that religion and science are not antagonists but complementary aspects of human nature. A proponent of evolution through natural selection, he paints a vivid metaphor:
"The probability that life is the result of an accident is comparable to the probability that a dictionary is the result of the explosion of a printing press" [Cn].
Highlighting the staggering improbability of life, arising by chance, he leads to a perspective that steers toward the notion of a divine plan.
The 1932 Nobel Prize of Physic, Werner Heisenberg [He] Christian, one of the fathers of Quantum Physics, wrote in 1965:
"Perhaps the chance that plays such an important role in Darwin's theory is, precisely because it obeys the laws of quantum mechanics, something more subtle than we might think."
In effect, since we know that the fundamental physical laws can be expressed statistically we are not limited to a determinist conception
as the Uncertainty Principle (proposed by W. Heisenberg) teaches us (ref.312-p.93). Furthermore, we must stop limiting God's actions by referring to our human possibilities which are infinitesimal compared to His. Let us not forget that God is outside of space-time, that He could at the time of the Bang, and still now, have a vision of the future, allowing Hi
"Nature, blind nature, is driven by chance, by the laws of probability which revolve around what one would call "the second law of thermodynamics".. "Nature through random chance seeks disorder. Life, on the contrary, works against that, it organizes, makes things orderly."
But we must remember that, for the believers, this second law was initially established by God.
Anthony Flew, once a prominent Atheist philosopher underwent, in 2004 (he was then 81 years old) a profound transformation. Acknowledging the intricate complexity revealed by biologists' research on DNA:
"The research of biologists on DNA has shown, by the almost inconceivable complexity of the arrangements necessary to produce [life], that an intelligence must necessarily be involved,"
Flew revealed "with regret," much to the dismay of his readers, that he had shifted toward Aristotelian deism:
"Since people, have certainly been influenced by me, I want to try to correct the enormous damage I must have caused."
Pierre Grassé, a devout Catholic zoologist, interviewed by R. Decout, rejects the notion of chance as a driving force in evolution. He aligns with the belief that the word "chance" was introduced by materialists, to supplant the idea of a divine creator. His perspective challenges the role of randomness in the genesis of complex biological structures like the eye.
Jacques-Yves Cousteau, a pioneer of modern oceanography, Catholic, stated:
"I have reached, at the end of my road, to a certainty: the living universe is not the result of chance
there is an obvious unity in all forms of life...."
Amid these perspectives, Jacques Monod's views stand prominently. If I can agree with him when he claims that natural evolution is based on the interplay between chance (what does he exactly mean when he uses this word?) and necessity, bringing about adaptive evolutionary change, I cannot, when he asserts (1970) the universe's indifferent nature and mankind's emergence by chance:
"The old alliance is broken
man finally knows that he is alone in the indifferent immensity of the Universe, from which he emerged by chance. Neither his destiny nor his duty is written anywhere. It is up to him to choose between the Kingdom and the darkness" [Md].
He backed up his words:
"Finally, it must be added, and this point is of very great importance, that the mechanism of transcription is strictly irreversible. It is neither observed nor conceivable, that information is ever transferred in the opposite direction, that is, from protein to DNA. This notion is based on a set of observations that are so complete and certain today, and its consequences in evolution, in particular, are so important that it must be considered as one of the fundamental principles of modern biolo
Although co-laureate with François Jacob and André Lwoff of the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine "for their discoveries concerning the genetic control of the enzymatic and viral syntheses," the evolving field of biology, including discoveries like reverse transcriptase in 1970, challenges the absolute certainty of his assertions. It's intriguing to consider how J. Monod might have responded to subsequent scientific findings and Nobel Prize-winning research that shed new light on the co
Iliya Prigogine, the laureate of the 1977 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, and a professed atheist, presents a unique perspective on humanity's place in the cosmos. He discusses the evolving alliance between humanity and nature:
"Our science is no longer this classical knowledge
we can decipher the narrative of a new alliance. Far from excluding him from the world it describes, science finds as a problem the belonging of man to this world" [Pr].
In 1986, I. Prigogine clarified his thoughts on "this alliance" in the company of the philosopher Isabelle Strengers [PS]:
"... our presence in the world is natural and our work of creation prolongs that of nature. Man was not expected in the cosmos, but a new alliance between nature and us becomes possible,"
portraying man as a co-creator in this grand narrative, potentially offering new avenues for exploration.
This remark is interesting because for some Christians, one of the reasons God gave us "Free Will" is to allow us to continue his work of creation, something he could have done himself. I wonder what he must think when he sees what we do with our Earth and space.
Christian Duve, a laureate (with Albert Claude and George Emil Palad) of the 1974 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine "for their discoveries concerning the structural and functional organization of the cell" with strong Catholic beliefs - of whom Father Christian Ringlet, vice-rector of the Catholic University of Louvain, said of him in his eulogy: "this great humanist with a great spirituality" - has a different view from that of Jacques Monod:
"I have opted for a meaningful and not meaningless universe. Not because I want it to be so, but because that is how I interpret the scientific data we have."
The well-known Astrophysicist Hubert Reeves, taking up the idea of a school of thought from the beginning of the 20th century according to which we would be "the children of chance," wrote:
"This point of view seems a bit simplistic today. The achievements of contemporary sciences, in particular astronomy, invite us to rethink the problem. The notion of evolution, initially introduced by biology, now invades all scientific discourse. For fifteen billion years, the matter has been evolving towards ever higher states of organization, complexity, and performance. From the primordial chaos, it has generated successively: nucleons, atoms, molecules, cells, and living organisms. Everythi
His perspective highlights the delicate balance between randomness and design in the cosmos. [Re]
Alexander Grothendieck, (ref.593, p.196) a renowned mathematician, 1966 Fields Prize (regarded as one of the highest honors in Mathematics. It is attributed every four years to a mathematician under 40 years of age), and a Catholic sympathizer, with deistic inclinations comments on J. Monod's essay [Md]:
"The book Chance and Necessity by Jacques Monod, if not a complete dogma of scientism, is certainly a particularly striking illustration."
Adding that it is a striking representation of scientism:
". for someone aware of the simple raw facts, and in particular for the biologist... to invoke the "endless" chance that would have created such a cascade of wonders, all coming to contribute to a concerted harmony of such an unheard-of breadth and depth, is there a blindness that for me, from that moment on, came close on madness." Cf [Gk-p.81]
In this exploration, we have traversed a broad spectrum of beliefs and perspectives, offering a glimpse into an intricate debate surrounding the universe's genesis. From chance to divine design, the discourse among specialists continues to shape our understanding of existence and our place within this vast enigmatic cosmos.
Jérôme Lejeune was a committed Catholic. In 1964 he was awarded the chair of genetics at the Sorbonne (he had refused the one at Columbia University in 1961), thus becoming the youngest French university professor. Co-discoverer in 1958 of the chromosomal anomaly responsible for trisomy 21 (presence of three chromosomes 21 instead of two) winner of prestigious scientific awards: Kennedy Prize in 1962, William Allan in 1969, Leopold Griffuel in 1992, ... Following his faith, he deliberately renou
During the 2009 summer session of Does God Exist? Christian A. Hewish, 1974 Nobel Prize for Physics (ref.371, p.111) answered the question at the head of this paragraph:
"I believe in God. It makes no sense for me to assume that the Universe and our existence are just a cosmic accident, that life emerged due to random physical processes, in an environment that simply happened to have the right properties."
In the field of ethology and environmental conservation, Dr. Jane Goodall stands out as a distinguished figure. Her incredible journey began with a profound love for animals and nature, associated with a deeprooted curiosity. Contrary to the notion of life on Earth being the product of chance, Dr Goodall argues that it is, in fact, the result of a kind of "anti-chance" phenomenon [Go]. She elaborated on this perspective in an article titled "Goodall Thoughts on the Fire of Notre Dame" published
"That moment, a suddenly captured moment of eternity, was perhaps the closest I have ever come to experiencing ecstasy, the ecstasy of the mystic. How could I believe it was the chance gyrations of bits of primitive dust, that had led up to that moment in time: the cathedral soaring to the sky
the collective inspiration and faith of those who caused it to be built
the advent of Bach himself
the brain, his brain, that translated truth into music
and the mind that could, as mine did then, comp
Dr. Goodall's remarkable career took flight in 1957 in Kenya when she crossed paths with Louis S.B. Leakey, a prominent paleoanthropologist and archeologist, who was also a Christian and a member of the Church of England. Despite her young age, she was just 19 years old, and although she had formal college training, Leakey recognized her untapped potential. In 1958, he advised her to travel to London and study with Drs William Ch. Hills and John R. Napier, leading authorities in the field of pri
With patience and gradual effort, she established trust with the chimpanzee groups by observing their movements, mimicking their behaviors, and offering them bananas. This led to her being accepted as a friend, and she formed relationships of mutual trust that have lasted six decades. She could observe social behaviors, emotional moments, and even ritual activities, such as the burial of chimpanzees and elephants. Living in such proximity, she noticed similarities in their behavior with that of
"the nonverbal body language is the same for chimpanzees as it is for us. They use the same gestures and postures in the same context."
Dr. Goodall's groundbreaking research on chimpanzee society and their natural habitats significantly transformed our understanding of these creatures. Her work, spanning six decades, has left an indelible mark on the world, inspiring countless individuals and prompting us to reevaluate our role in the interconnected tapestry of life on Earth. She was awarded the 2021 Templeton Prize.
Sir Roger Penrose (ref.368, p.109) 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics, during an interview with the BBC, declared himself an atheist in the sense that he does not adhere to any religion, but said in the film "A History of Time," based on the book by S. Hawking, with whom he worked, that he:
"... believes that the universe has a reason to exist, that Man is not the fruit of chance, and that there is something very deep, in the Reason for the universe."
Trinh Xuan Thuan, Buddhist. Astrophysicist, a follower of the: "Complexity Principle," substitutes it to the "Strong Anthropic Principle" proposed by Brandon Carter because, according to him:
"...the universe is set for the emergence of any life and consciousness whether terrestrial or extraterrestrial,"[Tn] and consequently, the goal of fundamental laws governing the universe is Life, in any form whatsoever. Like many scientists, he justifies his assertion: "I do not believe in randomness in the universe" by relying on probability calculations. Taking as a hypothesis that if the value of only one of the fundamental constants was modified by a factor equal to 10-19, the chances for l
For the Christian geneticist Francis Collins who, also, has a solid background in quantum physics:
"... there is intrinsically no conflict between the idea of a creator God and what science has revealed" [Co1 p.81].
Adding that the hypothesis of God allows us to answer the questions about the pre-Big Bang. Starting from the "Principle of Moral Law" or "Law of Good Conduct" (cf. Kant ref.2, p.xi) admitted by theists and from the hypothesis that God exists, he develops a simple argumentation, leading him to conclude that not only God is eternal, but that the Universe He conceived and created is perfectly adapted to the sentient creatures that, because of natural selection, we are.
Note. At the beginning of this paragraph, I have occulted the interesting biological paradigm of panspermia, which connects life on Earth with the wider cosmos because it is still a speculative idea and lacks substantial empirical evidence. Nevertheless, panspermia is supported by prominent scientists because it holds the potential to address pivotal questions, such as:
- Why Earth's life is not the first choice? It opens the door to extraterrestrial life,
- Where did Earth's life originate? Was it on the seabed of oceans, on the ocean floor, near volcanic events, on the Earth's surface, or within the Earth's subsurface
a hypothesis supported by circumstantial evidence, but lacking certainty. Hypotheses associated with the numerous meteorite impacts that Earth has suffered since the Bang (cf. Chap. II).
So, I can't overlook the fact that Swante Arrhenius, the visionary scientist (ref. 411, p.122), published an article in 1903, the year he was awarded the Nobel Prize, in which he defended the hypothesis that certain microscopic forms of life could have arrived on our planet and others under the impulse of radiation emitted by the Sun or various stars, a process known as "radio panspermia." Given the high probability that these microorganisms would be destroyed by the same radiation, it received
Even the atheist Francis Crick, 1962 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, with J. Watson "for the discovery of the structure of DNA" acknowledged the seemingly miraculous nature of life's origin. In his own words, he mused:
"The origin of life currently, seems to be a miracle because so many conditions must be met to bring it about."
Crick's contemplation delved into the intricate complexity of life's genesis, hinting at a profound understanding of the universe. Amidst the myriad of speculations, one theory stands out: the captivating notion of direct panspermia. In 1973, Crick, in collaboration with the chemist Leslie Orgel - who had made important experiments on life origin - proposed the presence of a "cosmic genetic code" embedded in the fundamental laws of physics, aptly named the "Direct panspermia" theory. According t
Yet, as with any hypothesis, direct panspermia raises as many questions as it answers. Who were these scientifically advanced aliens, able to craft and launch life across the cosmos? The enigma deepens, compelling us to question the very nature and origin of the cosmic architects.
In the vast landscape of scientific thought, direct panspermia finds allies among other visionaries, such as S. Hawking (ref.369, p.110), the renowned theoretical physicist. Hawking envisioned the possibility of microorganisms traversing the cosmos, jumping from planet to planet, via meteorites. Similarly, the astrophysicist Paul Davies, a Christian (ref.554, p.173), 1995 Laureate of the prestigious Templeton Prize, expressed during the ceremony a profound sense of wonder:
"The contrived nature of physical existence is just too fantastic for me to take on board as simply "given." It points forcefully to a deeper underlying meaning to existence."
The Panspermia hypothesis, finds support not just in the musings of brilliant minds but also in the words of Harvard geneticist George Church, for example. During a conference in December 2018, G. Church hinted at our imminent capability to mimic the actions of those hypothetical extraterrestrial beings.
While panspermia remains speculative and awaits experimental verification, it harmoniously coexists with our beliefs. Far from contradicting our understanding, it provides a unique lens through which scientists may unravel the mysteries surrounding the origin and evolution of life on Earth. Moreover, it opens profound avenues for contemplating our place in the cosmos and the tantalizing possibility of encountering extraterrestrial life
echoing S. Hawking's cautionary words: "If aliens landed on
As we journey through the uncharted territories of scientific exploration, the allure of direct panspermia persists, an enticing hypothesis that beckons us to reconsider our cosmic origins and the potential tapestry of life woven across the vast expense of the universe.
"We see a world in a continuously capable process, through its oneinherent property and natural character, of producing new livingforms, matter is now seen to be self-organizing."
A. Peacocke [Po]
"The World appears as a mass in the process of transformation...Evolution of Matter
Resulting in an increasing complexity until Life can appear.
Life is, and can only be, a magnitude of evolutionary nature or dimensions."
P. Teilhard de Chardin [Te2].
In the year 1850, Ch. Darwin, a former devout Catholic unveiled his magnum opus "The Origin of Species"[Dn]. This groundbreaking work, a result of exhaustive research, introduced the revolutionary "theory of evolution." According to Darwin, evolution, understood as the gradual modification of species over time, reveals the inherent genetic differences within populations: be they humans, animals, or plants. These differences equip individuals with unique abilities to adapt to their environment.
"Natural Selection acts exclusively for the preservation and accumulation of diversities, which are favorable to the organic and inorganic conditions to which each creature is exposed throughout the different periods of life. The ultimate result is that each creature tends to become more and more capable of responding to these conditions."
It's important to note that Ch. Darwin stated, both in his introduction and on page 115:
"I am convinced that natural selection has been the main but not the exclusive means of modification."
Beyond Darwin's assertion lies an intriguing perspective.
Catholic botanist J-M. Pelt (ref.583, p.191), an advocate of evolution, posits alternative selection mechanisms such as mimicry, suggesting a complexity that extends beyond the survival of the "fittest":
"... I am confronted with breathtaking phenomena of mimicry, when an orchid disguises itself as an insect, takes on the insect's scent, arranges its hairs like those of the insect's female to attract the male, who finds himself irresistibly attracted, ... copulates and embarks on the pollen to deposit it on another orchid, which is thus fertilized. To suppose that this lure appeared by the play of chance even cleverly baptized "coevolution" questions me" (cf. Pp. 156 & 157 of [Pe2]).
Darwin himself, while emphasizing the gradual nature of natural selection and the extinction of species, also alludes to a "plan of creation," and acknowledges the existence of "laws imposed on the matter by the Creator." He concludes:
"There is grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having been originally breathed by the Creator into a few forms or one."
This nuanced stance challenges the notion that evolution and faith are irreconcilable. Far from denying the Creator, Darwin's worldview aligns with a belief in a guiding force. This suggests a Deistic inclinational, though some interpretations hint at occasional Theistic tendencies.
Theological echoes of evolution stretch back centuries, as exemplified by St Augustine's indirect prediction in the fourth century (§V.1.1, p.195). Even John Calvin, a prominent Protestant reformer, entertained evolutionary ideas, reflecting a historical undercurrent where faith and evolution found potential harmony.
However, Darwin's discoveries ignited divergences reminiscent of Galileo's era. Critics emerged, overlooking the fact that many religious scientists see science and religion as partners in the pursuit of the truth. Their approach, championed by figures like Maimonides, Galileo, Pascal, Newton, and Einstein, emphasizes an allegorical reinterpretation when scientific discoveries seemingly contradict scriptures. Darwin, a dedicated Theist and evolutionist, aimed not to challenge the divine narrativ
"It seems to me absurd to doubt that a man can be an ardent theist and an evolutionist."
Despite these reconciling perspectives, as soon as 1865, at the initiative of an influential London philanthropists' team - including among others Anthony A. Cooper the 7th Earl of Shaftesbury, an Evangelist Anglican - founded the Victoria Institute or Philosophical Society of Great Britain to defend "revealed truth" against scientific challenges. In effect, the cosmological content of the Bible was challenged not only by Darwin's theory
but also, by new natural science treatises and new ideas
At the same time, as a reaction to the Darwin theory and the geological influence of an ancient Earth, has appeared the Young Earth Creationism Movement (YECM), supporting a "young earth" created in the 4th millennium B.C. in 6 days of 24 hours (which makes no sense) following the flood of which Noah was the main protagonist. Firstly influenced by the writings of the Seventh-Day Adventist George McCready Price, this movement gained influence with the adhesion of two evangelical Christians, the h
It's noteworthy that in 1865, Gregor Mendel, the founder of modern genetics, read a paper to the Natural History Society of Brno, that he published in German in 1866: "Experiments in Plant Hybridization" [Me] laying down the theoretical foundations of genetics and heredity, known as Mendel's "laws of heredity." As a result of a decade of methodical experiments on the hybridization of two types of peas G and Y. He demonstrated that Y, which he called the "dominant allele," appeared 3 times more t
In the meantime, the leading Botanist Asa Gray faithful Presbyterian whom Darwin quotes on several occasions in "The Origin of Species," because Gray did not hesitate to communicate information to him (compiled in a book called "The Darwiniana"). Gray was also a devout Christian and supporter of a Theistic Evolution (under the Creator's rules). In Darwinania he wrote (cf. SMF, ref. A. Gray):
"Agreeing that plants and animals were produced by Omnipotent fiat does not exclude the idea of order and what we call secondary causes. The record of the fiat - "Let the land produce vegetation: seedbearing plants and trees[Ge1:11] . let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, .. the wild animals,.after his kind...[Ge1:24]" - seems even to imply them."
The Rev. Dr William H. Dallinger, an Anglican Methodist proto-zoologist, for his part, experimentally verified the theory of evolution on unicellular organisms and was an early supporter of Darwinism. Likewise, the Christian paleontologist Charles D. Walcott who made a fundamental contribution to the study of trilobites, as an assistant of James Hall.
In 1901, the Anabaptist Evangelist botanist, Hugo Marie de Vries, seduced by the ideas of Ch. Darwin, made a groundbreaking announcement, species change by sudden and discontinuous variations, variations that he named "mutations." These mutations, without intermediate form between two species, as if they resulted from a spontaneous cut in the genome, are due for the 1933 Nobel Prize for Physics E. Schrödinger (ref.309, p.91), a Christian:
"... to quantum jumps in the gene molecule."
This led Schrödinger in 1944 to call this theory "the quantum theory of biology" (cf. [Sc2] p. 34).
Benjamin Warfield, a conservative Protestant bishop, in favor of a Young Earth (less than 20,000 years old), who studied Mathematics and Physics at Princeton, saw no contradiction between Genesis and the natural laws governing evolution, operating under God's control who uses the process of evolution to create the diversity of life on Earth:
"I am free to say that, for myself, I can discover no irreconcilable antagonism between the general statement of Scripture that God created all things, and their subsequent development according to natural laws, and any scientific facts in the realm of nature, whether about the unity or the diversity of species" [Wa1].
"We must not, then, as Christians, assume an attitude of antagonistic toward the truths of reason, or the truths of philosophy, or the truths of science, or the truths of history, or the truths of criticism...... we must be careful to keep ourselves open to every ray of light. None should be more zealous in them than we, none should be quicker to discern truth in every field, ..." [Wa2].
Teilhard de Chardin, a visionary champion of evolutionary theory, boldly asserted the shared ancestry of Man and Great Apes as documented in references (Chapter III). An advocate of orthogenesis, Teilhard delved into the profound concept of Noogenesis, embraced by psychologists, and psychiatrists. His anthropological perspective on evolution unfolded, portraying a journey culminating in the emergence of Man. In Teilhard's perspective:
"the change of biological state leading to the awakening of the Thought [the Reflection] affects the Life itself in its organic totality... it marks a transformation affecting the state of the whole planet."
"Man [the] rising arrow of the biological synthesis. The Man constituting to him only, the last-born, the freshest, the most complicated of the Nappes of the Life."
His ultimate destination, the point Omega underscores Teilhard's belief in an evolving consciousness.
Teilhard's narrative endows Man with Reflection and freedom, placing him "in charge" of Evolution and entrusting him with the responsibility for the collective Life of Humanity. Within the grand scale of the Universe, we are merely in the infancy of Humanity, and Teilhard urges his Ultra-Human to guide this journey toward adulthood, fostering a collective human consciousness in the Noosphere, the Earth's thinking envelope, and the dwelling place of Christ at the point Omega.
It's noteworthy (see [Sc]-p.43) that W. Schrödinger aligns with Teilhard, adhering to the Vedânta idea that one is "a whole within the whole." Teilhard concludes ([Te2] p. 279) that:
"... Evolution is an ascent to Consciousness "which" must culminate in a supreme Consciousness."
He:
"... supposes everywhere the presence of a personal and creative God, who provokes and directs the Evolution of the World, ... Christ is the axis and the end of the whole event of the world, the mysterious Omega point towards which all the ascending forces converge, so that the whole creation appears to him according to the Incarnate Word."
As a biologist, Teilhard observes that the arrow of time points towards complexity, emphasizing the evolution from monocellular to multicellular organisms:
"Life is, and can only be, a magnitude of nature or evolutionary dimensions ... It is getting increasingly sophisticated."
He introduces the "biological law of complexity" supporting the idea that:
"...The nervous system is constantly developing and concentrating ... the differentiation of the nervous substance stands out, ..., as a significant transformation. It proves that there is a meaning to evolution," A view difficult to dispute.
In his geological inquiries based on the Paleolithic, Teilhard questions:
"... can we dispute that the continents go on granitizing? ..." (cf. [Te2] Pp. 159 -).
An inquiry, with an obvious answer that aligns inexorably with the march of evolution.
Teilhard's multifaceted approach underscores his unwavering support for evolution, evident in his coherent perspective that Life presupposes Pre-life:
"Original Matter is something more than the particulate swarming so wonderfully analyzed by modern Physics. .... In a coherent perspective of the World, Life supposes inevitably, and as far as the eye can see before it, of the Pre-life" ([Te2] p. 56):
Teilhard's holistic view opens us to new perspectives, such as:
"is an Inside of the things, a Consciousness (p.157), a Spontaneity. ... the existence of a conscious internal face that necessarily doubles, everywhere, the material external face, only considered usually by the science."
A perspective shared with the British Biologist John B.S. Haldane, an atheist. This conscious internal face, often overlooked by conventional science, aligns with Haldane's anticipation of finding traces of thought or life throughout the universe:
"We find no obvious trace of thought or life in the Matter. But if the modern perspectives of Science are correct, we must expect to find them eventually, at least in rudimentary form, throughout the universe" ([Hal]-p.153).
We found this idea with the pan-experientialist Ch. Birch (ref.541, p.165) and his mentor A. Whitehead (ref.542, p. 166) author of the "Process though" (ref. 543, p.168).
Teilhard's intellectual prowess, recognized by his membership of the French Académie des Sciences (1951), not only embraces evolution but, seamlessly integrates it into Catholicism. Despite facing intellectual opposition, Teilhard aligns his thoughts on Matter with Leibniz's notion of monads (p.53), drawing parallels that resonate with the explorations in "Spirit and Matter" by E. Schrödinger ([Sc2] part 2).
In this rich tapestry of thought, the parallels between Teilhard's ideas and those of the polymath G. Leibniz, and the insights of E. Schrödinger with the Protestant Physician and Psychiatrist Carl G. Jung, for whom the soul is the reservoir of Science, associating [Ju] God the Father with the Self, create a compelling narrative that intertwines the source of energy in the psyche (a self-regulating system), Jesus with an emergent structure of the consciousness that he assimilates to the Ego, and
In the contemporary era, the endorsement of Theistic Evolution by religious authorities, such as Cardinal Henri Sonier de Lubac (ref.73, p.22) a Jesuit, Catholic theologian who worked hard to bring the various religions closer together, and stated [Lu] in 1944:
"The law of evolution does not tend to evacuate theology any more than it does Science, but to "purify" both, by differentiating them,"
comforted in 1950, through the encyclical "Humani Generis" by Pope Pius XII, and subsequent statements by Pope John Paul II, on 22/10/1996
who, in front of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, recognized the existence of various theories of evolution compatible with the Catholic dogma.
The Catholic biologist and entomologist Rémy Chauvin, who specialized in the study of insects, particularly bees and ants, had unconventional and controversial views. He argued for example, that evolution is not a random and blind process, but rather a creative and purposeful one, guided by a "cosmic intelligence" transcending the material world (cf. F. Crick and L. Orgel authors of "Directed Panspermia" §V.3). A view different from "theistic evolution" but compatible.
As it appears in the epigraph of §V.3 the Anglican theologian Arthur Peacocke advocated for a view of evolution compatible with Christian faith. He maintained that God had created the world through a process of self-organization and natural selection according to His initial laws of nature. If he did not believe in miraculous interventions he supposed that God, having created the man in His image, had a special relationship with him. Although an ordained Anglican priest, he identified himself as
In 1997, the paleontologist Stephen J. Gould coined the acronym NOMA in his essay titled: "Non-Overlapping MagisteriA," an acronym, endorsed in 2007 by the Catholic biologist Pereda Francisco Alaya, a defender of the theory of evolution. Alaya believes that purely materialistic interpretations are the work of naive people.
On 16/02/2004, the Christian geneticist and Academician Jacques Ruffié, was interviewed by Alia David for the special issue of La Recherche: "Religion and Science. The genetic code fruit of chance?" On the question: "Does accepting the theory of evolution deny God and the creative act?" he answered:
"No. In my opinion, which is the opinion of a scientist and not of a believer, if there is an intervention of God, it is not in the appearance of man, but in the appearance of the genetic code which is the most mysterious and decisive moment in the history of evolution. I think that the day when the genetic code appeared, everything was set. Was it by chance? Can we imagine writing a book, even with a billion years ahead of us, by pulling the letters out of a bag with our eyes closed?"
According to Biologist Francisco Varela, a Buddhist, we are far from having understood everything about evolution. There are [Va]: "several paths of change, all of which are viable if there is an uninterrupted line of organisms. It is not a question of survival of the fittest, it is a question of survival of adaptation." This is what, he and his teacher Humberto Maturana, a Theist Biologist, call "natural derivation" [Mt]
But, even with the support of institutions like the American National Academy of Sciences (NAS), the conflict has seen a resurgence at the end of the 20th century. A conflict, that has been fueled not only by the voices of agnostics such as Jean Rostand, materialists, and anticlericals, whose religion was a "combat atheism" that relied on what they understood of this theory to deny the existence of God. Discordant voices within the highest echelons of the Roman Curia were evident. Thus, Cardinal
Founded in the mid-1990s, the IDM originated from a philosophical idea proposed by lawyer Phillip Johnsson. Over time, charismatic religious scientists like the Catholic Biochemist Michael Behe propelled it into a powerful movement in the USA. While IDM acknowledges the undeniable aspects of Darwin's theory of evolution, it emphasizes that certain complex biological systems remain unexplained. IDM suggests an "Intelligent Design" or creator, carefully avoiding the term "God." Notably, ID is pres
Key figures within IDM, such as an Evangelical theologian and mathematician William Dembski, and Protestant Chemist Henri Schaefer a self-proclaimed "Jesus supporter," approach the concept with a nuanced perspective. Dembski, adopting a rational stance, acknowledges the potential fragility of ID as a scientific theory, if alternative explanations for intricate systems emerge. It's noteworthy that recent research from the Department of Biology at Oxford, led by Professor T.A. Richards [RG], chall
A broadened view of ID is that of the Catholic theologist and biologist Denis Lamoureux who, after a parenthesis in the YECM, returned to his religion of origin. He proposes an intriguing perspective, suggesting that Intelligent Design can be viewed as an acknowledgment of nature's beauty, complexity, and functionality. Instead of a formal scientific theory, it becomes a religious sentiment, recognizing the presence of an "Intelligent Designer" without blurring the lines between scientific inqui
Some scientists within IDM, such as cosmologists Franck Tipler, a specialist in quantum mechanics, and the Protestant John Barrow, present a "quantum perspective" involving an Omega point (different from Teilhard de Chardin's one) and a paradisiacal universe. These views, distinct from traditional Christian beliefs, showcase the diversity of thought within IDM.
Facing them are high-level scientists, geneticists, biochemists, believers of all confessions, and even atheists like Richard Dawkins, "The Darwin's Rottweiler." Dr in zoology, Dawkins stands as a staunch defender of evolution and a vocal critic of Creationism and ID. Dawkins' engagement in debates and controversies reflects the ongoing discourse between scientific inquiry and religious perspectives. Among the defenders of the "Theistic Evolution of Life," we find mainly biologists. In effect, i
"Science is but a collective effort of the human mind to read the mind of God from question marks out of which we and the world around us seem to be made."
Having developed original concepts on the origin and cause of the universe he could answer a usual question: Does the universe have a cause?:
"Does the universe need to have a cause? It is clear that causal explanations are a vital part of the scientific method. Various processes in the universe can be displayed as a succession of states, in such a way that the preceding state is a cause of the succeeding one. If we look deeper at such processes we see that there is always a dynamic law prescribing how one state should generate another. However dynamical laws are expressed in the form of mathematical laws. By doing so we are back in t
One can find in the pivotal work of Collins, responsible for the international public team that participated in the sequencing of the human genome, reasons to become a supporter of Theistic Evolution. It reveals to us[Col] that at the DNA level, 99.9% of humans are identical, confirming that we all belong to the same species. Geneticists agree that we descend from a group of 10,000 genera that lived 100 to 150 years ago in East Africa, confirming the fossils discovered by geologists. This means
Combining their theistic conceptions and their adherence to scientific discoveries, such as the theories of the
Big Bang, evolution, and natural selection but planned by God, Giberson, and Collins argue [Gi] more insistently that:
"...God's creative work can be done through the laws of nature, and not merely by breaking or suspending those laws." .. "We suggest that once life arose, the process of evolution and natural selection permitted the development of biological diversity and complexity, and humans are part of this process." "Moreover, once evolution got underway, no supernatural intervention was required" (cf. [Gi] p. 115).
In his essay: "Is Evolution a Chance Process?" [Ar], the Baptist apologist Denis Alexander, a prominent biologist, well-known for his criticism of creationists and I.D. supporters, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, argues the case that:
"The evolutionary process is far from being a theory of "chance" from biological, mathematical, or indeed, philosophical and theological perspectives."
He backs up his claims with advances in biochemistry, to which he has broadly contributed. If chance plays a role in the occurrence of random mutations - as quantum mechanics do in various fields - natural selection is not a random process it plays a key mechanism. It acts as a filter in the evolution process and, depends on environmental conditions, genetic resources, and others. Natural selection favors mutations that provide advantages for survival and reproduction in a given environment.
It is important to note that the synthesis of Darwin's theory with the knowledge of the evolution of the Universe (cf. chap. III) offers an interesting paradigm for some theistic scientists such as the mathematician Brian Swimme, an evolutionary theist, who introduced him to the work of Teilhard de Chardin. In effect, adopting the idea that everything in the universe has a physical and a spiritual component he does not see evolution only as a mechanistic and random process but, attributes to it
"We must accept that there is an intelligence driving the process (of evolution), that the Universe and life on Earth are inspired and informed by an unknown Creator, a Supreme Being, a Great Spiritual Power."
To clarify her viewpoint, I'll report that in an interview with Moss Stephen for the Guardian on 13/01/2010, she explained:
"I was raised as a Christian and I see no contradiction between evolution and belief in God."
These statements encapsulate Dr. Goodall's perspective on the relationship between science, evolution, and spirituality. Her work and beliefs serve as a source of inspiration for many individuals and encourage us to explore the intricate connections between science and faith.
The debate we are reporting concerns Man and Life in general, but any person adhering to the Big Bang theory (§III.2, pp.145-151) cannot but admit that the creation of the universe is evolution: the appearance of elementary particles which gave birth to the hydrogen atom H (the simplest known), which allowed the formation of helium atoms (He)...geological evolutions still operating: the disappearance of islands, the erosion of cliffs under the effect of anthropic factors, and continental drifts
Let's note, however, that with the progress made in the field of Genetics, Man risks disrupting natural evolution by generating environmental modifications to the detriment of Nature, Animals, and Man which authorizes the Lutheran theologian Philip Hefner to say that humanity is "self-creating," joining the idea of P. Teilhard de Chardin foreseeing an ultra-human taking in his hands the destiny of Humanity. Let's hope that, if this were to happen, these super-humans would be endowed with Wisdom.
In the realm of clashes between evolutionary theory and Genesis, our exploration has journeyed through the conflicting ideologies of YEC, ID movements,.. and the answers of prominent Theistic scientists mainly biologists or geologists. Yet, this debate extends beyond life sciences
it draws insights from eminent specialists in diverse scientific disciplines. Allow me to introduce two distinguished voices from the cosmos:
- Vera Rubin (ref.388, p.115) Jewish Astrophysicist. In a 1989 interview, Rubin mused on the marvel of existence, stating:
"The laws of physics being what they are, the galaxies, the stars, and the planets came to exist, and the supernovas came to exist, and humanity came to exist, and the evolution is remarkable. I think it is remarkable."
- Richard Smalley (ref.424, p.126), Christian Nobel Laureate in Physics in 1996, a staunch supporter of theistic evolution. Smalley expressed in 2004, at the twilight of his life:
"Although I suspect I will never fully understand, I now think ... God did create the universe about 13.7 billion years ago, and of necessity has involved Himself with His creation ever since."
Adding to this chorus of perspectives are two eminent scientists embracing evolution as an asset for religion:
- Theodosius Dobzhansky (ref.539, p.165) Russian Orthodox geneticist. Dobzhansky argued in 1973 that evolution is a scientific fact, reconciling it with religion by stating:
"... nothing in theology makes sense except in the light of evolution"[Do], Assertion confirmed by Charles Combulazier, a Catholic priest and Doctor of Sciences:
"Evolution is the only argument to prove the existence of God."
- A. Penzias, 1978 Nobel Prize in Physics, an Orthodox Jewish (ref.364, p.108). Penzias confirmed his support for evolution, connecting it with biblical concepts. On March 12, 1978, he stated:
"The best data we have are exactly what I would have predicted, had I had nothing to go on but the five books of Moses, the Psalms, the Bible as a whole."
His nuanced views echo in 1995 and 2008, highlighting the delicate balance of the universe as consistent with a purpose underlying creation. In 1995, to the question: "Do you think God revealed Himself at Sinai?" he smartly answered:
"Or, perhaps God is always revealing Himself. ... Again I think of Psalm 19: "The heavens declare the glory of God, and the firmament shows his handiwork." "All reality, to a greater or lesser extent, reveals God's purpose. There is a certain relationship between the purpose and order of the world in all aspects of human experience ...... This world is most consistent with the purpose of creation."
In 2008, when interrogated on the relationship between science and genesis, Penzias answered:
"Astronomy brings us to a singular event. A universe, that was created out of nothing, a universe endowed with the very delicate balance to produce exactly the conditions required for life, and a universe that has a purpose underlying it."
These diverse perspectives weave a rich tapestry, transcending the confines of traditional debate. Further expanding our panorama, let's embrace the words of Antoni Gaudí, the architectural maestro of the 19th century, who declared "God's Servant" by the Catholic Church saw creation not as a human invention but as a continuous discovery:
"The creation continues incessantly through the media of man, but man does not create....... he discovers."
In this symphony of voices, science and faith harmonize, each note contributing to the intricate melody of our understanding.
It is the Heart that feels God and not the reason: this is what faith is.
B. Pascal Pensées
"Understand, to believe, my word
believe, to understand, the word of God."
St. Augustine Sermon 43
"Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind" [Ei3].
A. Einstein
The answer to this question is no
it is not because we cannot demonstrate something, that cannot exist. We have seen this with the presocratics, the scholastics, the physicists, the mathematicians, the cosmologists, and the biologists we have mentioned, many of whom have left their mark on the scientific field. Similarly, Vatican II (1962-65) recalled the importance of scientific research and invited theologians to take note of its results, without ignoring philosophy. In 1999, Cardinal Ratzing
Although the perception of the universe that we have today is very different from the more limited perception of the Greek philosophers - who, although pagans, believed in a god superior to the others, which some contemporary philosophers call "pre-Socratic theology" - nothing in the current discoveries can deny the existence of God. I'll remind, chronologically, that:
- Thales (ref.35, p.12), the initiator of the Ionian rationalist philosophy, would have said according to what Aetius has postulated:
"...that God is the Intellect of the world.... That through the elemental humidity, a divine force moves it."
The term humidity refers to his conception of the universe (cf. p.19). His god is not one of theists but the one who is above the numerous gods which are, according to him, spread in nature.
- If Cicero recalled that:
"Anaximenes establishes that the air is god, that it is generated, that it is immense, infinite and always in movement...," he did not adhere at all to this idea because for him:
"... water is the Principle of things and god is the Intellect that shapes all things from water."
- For Al-Kindi Sunni, it was not sufficient to believe in the Ancients' thoughts or books, it was necessary to understand and thus "follow the path of science."
- -- Avicenna, a Persian Muslim, the third Master after Aristotle and Al-Fârâbî, according to his disciples who called him: "prince of scholars," praised God:
"Blessed be God the best of creators and praise to God Lord of the universe."
- St Anselm of Canterbury, qualified with the nickname of "Magnificent Doctor" by Pope Clement XI in 1720 who declared him Doctor of the Church. Philosopher, Theologian, and Benedictine monk, he was one of the major writers of the Medieval West, trying to reconcile faith in God and reason inherited from the Greek thinkers. He was credited as the founder of scholastic theology. For him:
".the priority of faith is not opposed to the research proper to reason. [that].is not designated to express a judgment on the content of the faith
it would be unable to do so because it is not suitable for that. but must allow the whole understanding of the content of the faith. Its task is rather to find meaning, to discover reasons that allow everyone to reach a certain understanding of the content of the faith" (cf. [JP] - p. 59).
A concept that he summarizes as follows:
"I do not seek to understand to believe, but I believe to understand. For this also I believe - that unless I believe, I shall not understand."
This statement is to be compared with that of St Augustine (epigraph §V.5, p.254).
- Guillaume de Conches ([Pu] p.129), a Catholic theologian. According to him, the Bible has no competence in the scientific domain. Nevertheless he:
"... recognizes that it is God's action that is at the origin of the world... affirms ... that this action is exercised through the laws of nature."
- Moses Maimonides, a Jewish rabbi, "the second Moses," wrote:
"As for the things of Astronomy and Physics, there will be, I think, no doubt that they are things necessary to understand the relation of the universe to the government of God."
- St. Thomas Aquinas, Dominican friar and priest, Father, and Doctor of the Church, "Apostle of the Truth" according to Pope Paul VI, placed in the foreground the harmony existing between faith and reason:
"Faith and reason can never contradict each other because they have the same origin. God who is the only truth" (cf. [Th] pp. 331-336).
Master of thought and in the art of practicing theology, he was not afraid to confront faith with reason.
According to him, faith can rely on reason and trust. This, among other things, led Pope Paul VI to write on 29/09/1974 (the 700th anniversary of St Thomas Aquinas' death) in the Apostolic Letter "Lumen Ecclesiae":
"...Thomas had in the highest degree the courage of truth, the freedom of spirit, allowing to face new problems" ... to reconcile the secular character of the world and the radical character of the Gospel, thus escaping that unnatural tendency which denies the world and its values, without failing to meet the supreme and inflexible demands of the supernatural order."
Now, we will discuss different perspectives that - since the empiricism advent, during the 16th century - scientists had regarding the relationship between their beliefs in God and their scientific work. These viewpoints can range from those who see no connection between science and religion, to those who believe in an interconnected relationship, and others who find that their faith positively influences their scientific pursuits. Also, it is noteworthy that this classification is not easy, bec
a) Some scientists don't claim any connection between Science and Religion. In their view, scientific understanding is based on evidence, observation, and empirical methods, while religious beliefs are based on faith, tradition, and personal experiences. It is the case for example for Galileo Galilei Catholic scientist (rfs.144&146, p.41) writing to Christine de Lorraine, his patron:
"The Holy Spirit intends to teach us how one goes to heaven, not how the heaven goes."
He has a nuanced position, but I include him here, due to the perceived separation implied by his work and beliefs. Don't forget that he faced challenges from the Church, which could imply a perceived separation between his scientific pursuits and religious beliefs.
More incisive is R. Feynman (ref.361, p.108), a freethinker of Jewish education, laureate of the 1965 Nobel Prize in Physics:
"Religion is a culture of faith, science is a culture of doubt."
The renowned Jewish astronomer, and astrophysicist Vera Rubin (ref.388, p.115) known for her groundbreaking work on dark matter, who often speaks of the relationship between science and religion, declared during an interview:
"In my life, science and religion are separate. I am Jewish and religion is for me a moral code and historical manna. I try to do my scientific work morally, and, ideally, I believe science should be seen as something that helps us understand our role in the universe."
While Catholic biologists Jean-Marie Pelt (ref.583, p.191), and Francisco Alaya (ref.682, p.243), as well as many other scientists, refuse to mix their faith and their work as researchers, Pelt demonstrates in "Dieu de l'Univers" why:
"Science and Faith are two different domains, the former allows him (the biologist or the botanist) to understand nature and his faith answers the ultimate questions" [Pe].
The same J-M Pelt also stated ([Pe2] p. 164):
"Science can allow us to approach the divine through contemplation and wonder at the way the world is wired."
The renowned Jewish psychiatrist Kenneth Kendler is opposed to any association between science and religion because he believes that they have different foundations, just like are, knowledge and wisdom, he nevertheless recognizes their complementarity.
For the orthodox Jewish scientist Yeshayahu Leibowitz belief, honesty, and immorality have nothing to do with genetics or education, they are personal decisions: "The spiritual force is your will." In the same spirit, he answered in June 1992 to Joshua Haberman who interviewed him:
"...there is no connection between science and religion."
In 2009, on the occasion of her 100th birthday Rita Levi Montalcini, Agnostic, raised Sephardic Jewish, co-winner with Stanley Cohen of the 1986 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine "for their discoveries of growth factors," said to the writer Paolo Giordano who interviewed her:
"The human mind indeed possesses I know not what is divine, where the first seeds of useful thoughts were sown...,"
"I am agnostic, but I am fascinated by the mystery of existence. I think that science and spirituality are complementary."
For the astrophysicist Hubert Reeves (ref.4, p.1), it was necessary to:
"Distinguish between the reasonable and the rational. The first one includes intuition and effectiveness, and the second one implies only a logical process" [Re1].
Interviewed on 13/08/2013, by Patrick Poivre d'Arvor:
PPDA. "Is religion compatible with science?"
H.R. "Absolutely. I have friends who are excellent scientists while being believers. There is no conflict. Especially since I don't believe that science will ever be able to prove the existence or not of God."
It's noteworthy that he declared to be neither Atheist nor Agnostic.
To highlight the complexity of this classification and emphasize that it is not rigid, Pope John Paul II's statement, grounded on the book of Wisdom and Proverbs [JP], offers valuable insight. He stated:
"...that there is a profound and indissoluble unity between the knowledge of reason and that of faith (p.28) ......There can therefore be no competitiveness between reason and faith: one integrates with the other, and each has its field of action (p. 29)."
This quote underscores the idea that while there may be distinct domains of science and religion, they are not mutually exclusive or in competition. Instead, they can coexist and complement each other, demonstrating the interconnected nature of the science-religion relationship.
b) Scientists who make interconnected relationships. Some scientists claim clearly that they see science and religion as interconnected and complementary. They might believe that both science and religion offer different ways of understanding the world, and these perspectives can coexist harmoniously. For them, science can explain the "how" of the phenomena, while religion addresses the "why" or deeper purpose.
Lord Francis Bacon (ref.151, p.43) scientist, statesman, and philosopher said (Essay16, titled "Of Atheism"):
"A little philosophy inclines the man's mind to atheism, but depth in philosophy brings the men's minds about to religion."
In this essay, Bacon argues that atheism is irrational and contrary to both nature and reason. According to him, the contemplative atheist is rare, and most people who deny God do so out of self-interest or ignorance. I think that this last argument cannot be applied to scientists.
Baron Augustin Cauchy, one of the most prolific mathematicians of his time defending the Jesuit schools said in 1838:
"Catholic, I cannot remain indifferent to the interests of religion
geometer, I cannot remain indifferent to the interests of Science."
It is another proof that one can be a brilliant scientist and a practicing Catholic without mixing the two. He also stated:
"I am a Christian, I believe in the divinity of Christ, like all the great astronomers, all the great mathematicians of the past" [Al].
In the annals of science, the illustrious Michael Faraday (ref.235-p.71) stands as a remarkable figure, known for his pioneering work in the world of experimental science. Faraday, a deeply religious man, maintained silence about God in his lectures throughout his career, with one notable exception in the year 1848. This momentous occasion took place during a series of captivating conferences on "The History of Fire," specifically in the sixth conference titled "The Chemical History of a Candle.
"... I have just surprised you by uttering the name of God here. If this has not happened to me before, it is because I am a representative of experimental science in these classes. But the notion and respect of God come to my mind by ways as sure as those which lead us to truths of the physical order."
On another occasion [Gs] he expressed his deep-seated belief:
"Since one God created the world, all of nature must be interconnected into one whole."
Faraday's eloquent declaration echoed his firm conviction that science and faith were not adversaries, but rather two pathways leading to the revelation of God's wisdom and power.
In 1870, during one of his readings at the request of the Victorian Institute, the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics, Sir George Stokes (ref.226-p.68) a passionate Evangelist, engaged "the religious scientists to follow scientific discovery fearlessly." In 1883, the "Father of Microbiology," L. Pasteur, a devout Catholic, became a full member of the French Academy of Sciences. He had to pronounce, as is customary, the eulogy of his predecessor, the late Emile Littré, whose human qualities and ze
"Beyond this starry vault, what is there? New starry skies. So be it! And beyond that? The human mind, driven by an invincible force, will never cease to ask: What is beyond? Does he want to stop either in time or in space? As the point where he stops is only a finite quantity, greater only than all those which preceded it, hardly does he begin to envisage it, that the implacable question returns and always, without him being able to silence the cry of his curiosity. It is useless to answer beyo
The Anglican Lord Rayleigh (ref.267, p.80), 1904 Nobel Prize in Physics, expressed, during his acceptance speech his views on the relationship between science and religion, and his admiration for Christ:
"I have never thought the materialist view possible, and I look to a power beyond what we see, and to a life in which we may at least hope to take part. What is more, I think that Christ and indeed other spiritually gifted men see further than I do, and I wish to follow them as far as I can" [BP].
An intriguing perspective comes from one of the most influential philosophers of the 20th century: the mathematician, biologist, and philosopher Alfred North Whitehead (ref.542, p.166). He posited that science and religion share a common origin, rooted in the essential principles of harmony and order required for the world's existence.
The concept of harmony takes on different meanings for polymaths like Gottfried W. Leibniz (ref.182, p.53) and A. N. Whitehead. For Leibniz, as elucidated in reference 182, the "pre-established harmony" idea implies that every substance or monad, whether of matter or mind, acts solely upon itself and interacts with others according to a divine preordained plan. This involves a perfect harmonization, rejecting the conventional concept of causality.
In contrast, Whitehead's philosophy, complex and holistic, resists easy comprehension in its entirety, allowing for various interpretations. At its core, his "process thought," proposes that both living entities (such as humans, animals, and nature) and non-living elements (found across the universe) are not static substances but rather "events" in constant flux. These events are interconnected, mutually influential, and in a perpetual state of evolution through a process of creativity and actua
Whitehead departed from conventional monotheistic notions of God, steering clear of depicting a commanding deity akin to Caesar imposing His will. He said ambiguously:
"God is not before all creation, but with all creation."
In essence, Whitehead posited that God operates not through coercion but through persuasion, comprehending all existence with perfect knowledge and boundless love. He envisioned God evolving alongside humanity and the universe, orchestrating a harmonious progression toward higher expressions of creativity and awareness, a concept reminiscent of Teilhard de Chardin's Omega Point. Although Whitehead grappled with the allure of Catholicism, he intentionally distanced himself from any specific relig
"It is as true to say that the World is immanent in God, as that God is immanent in the World."
This emphasizes the profound interconnectedness of God with His creation, positioning Whitehead's beliefs between theism and creationism.
This vision of a God characterized by harmony, peacemaking, persuasion, mercy, and a presence amid humanity for their alleviation contrasted sharply with initially Charles L. Birch's more Puritanical perspective (ref.541, p.165). This contrast prompted Birch to rediscover a faith that had "evaporated," leading him to dedicate his life to the service of humanity, encompassing nature, and animals (cf. §V.3.). In his 1990 acceptance address to the Templeton Prize jury Birch emphasized the compatibi
"Those who say that science and religion do not mix understand neither."
This statement reflects his conviction that these seemingly disparate realms are not mutually exclusive but, rather, coexist and inform one another.
The prominent scientist Erwin Conklin (ref.633-p.220) was also a religious person, believing that science and religion were compatible. Methodist, he respected other faiths and traditions. He claimed:
"I have no quarrel with any religion or with any philosophy which does not deny or belittle the facts of science or of human experience"[Cn].
Robert Millikan a Christian apologist and recipient of the 1923 Nobel Prize in Physics "for his work on the elementary charge of electricity and on the photoelectric effect," stated unequivocally:
"I can categorically state that unbelief has no scientific basis. I believe there is no contradiction between faith and science."
Sir A. Eddington a Christian (ref.290, p.87), one of the 20th century's foremost astronomers had a more aggressive opinion:
"No inventor of atheism was a man of science. All of them were only very mediocre philosophers."
The Baptist Arthur H. Compton (ref.326, p.98), 1927 Nobel Prize in Physics, had a more nuanced opinion:
"Science cannot quarrel with a religion which postulates a God to whom men are as His children."
In 1950, Sir Ernest Chain (ref.336-p.100) devout Jewish, and a Nobel Prize Laureate wrote a letter to A. Einstein, a pantheist and a Nobel Prize too. In his letter, he not only criticized Einstein's endorsement of establishing a Jewish State in Palestine but also expressed his perspectives on the interplay between Science, searching for the truth, and religion's quest for the meaning of life. He expressed his feelings:
".. Science and religion are not only compatible, but complementary, and both are essential to the full development of the human personality.."
During a speech he gave at the Royal Society of London in 1961, the Anglican Sir W. Laurence Bragg, 1915 Nobel Prize in Chemistry (ref.296-p.89) said:
"From religion comes man's purpose
from science, his power to achieve it. Sometimes people ask if religion and science are not opposed to one another. They are: in the sense that the thumb and fingers of my hand are opposed to one another. It is an opposition through which anything can be grasped" [Sm].
The theoretical physicist Olivier Costa de Beauregard, director of Research at the CNRS, a Catholic, defended in 1979, during the Cordoba Colloquium "Science and Consciousness - The 2 readings of the Universe," the thesis according to which parapsychological phenomena exist and do not contradict the laws of physics.
For the 1977 Nobel Prize in physics, Sir Nevill F. Mott, (ref.589, p.194) an Anglican who discovered the faith at 50, there is no problem [Pd]: Faith and Science can coexist, wrote in 1986 [Mot2]:
"I believe in God, who can respond to prayers, to whom we can give trust, and without whom life on this earth would be without meaning (a tale told by an idiot). I believe that God has revealed Himself to us in many ways and through many men and women and that for us here in the West the clearest revelation is through Jesus and those that have followed him."
Although one cannot classify the Soviet dissident Nathan Sharansky - a secular Jewish by birth, initially a Marxist atheist by conviction - in the category of scientists, no one can deny his rationality, his logic, which allowed him to become, at 15 years old, the Donetz, UA chess champion, the winner in 1996 of Garry Kasparov, then world chess champion (from 1985 to 2000) visiting Israel. Also, I extracted from his interview in November 1991 with Joshua Haberman [Hab], a few messages for atheis
"I developed my relationship with religion, my Judaism, in prison."
While he was incarcerated for the "crime" of defending the Refuzniks when he was exhausted, he received the news that his father had died. To "accompany him in spirit" he decided to start reading the book of Psalms that his wife had sent him in prison and later said that from that moment:
"...God came to my aid. .... This spiritual world gave me the strength and the desire to survive."
And in the conclusion of his confession, he delivered this message of hope:
"I had the chance to compare two ways of life, the life without God, a materialistic life, and the life that you feel will allow you to be what you should be. This is how I came to God."
Stanley Jaki, a remarkable figure, who donned the dual roles of a physicist and a Benedictine priest while serving as a distinguished professor of Astrophysics, earned the prestigious Templeton Prize in 1987. He was not merely a scholar (he was one of the first to say that Gödel's theorem (ref.613, p.212) applies to the TOE in Theoretical Physics)
but, a profound philosopher and theologian, recognized for his groundbreaking work at the intersection of science and theology.
The Templeton Prize judges, with great reverence, acknowledged that "he offered the world a reinterpretation of the history of science, which throws a flood of light on the relation of science and culture, and not least the relation of science and faith." His written works meticulously explore the distinctions and harmonies between science and religion. His magnum opus "The Relevance of Physics," earned praise from luminaries like Dr. Peter Hodgson, the head of the Nuclear Physics Theoretical Gr
"If intellectual honesty, usually taken for a fruit of scientific method, is to be had only through Christian love, science, and religion should not seem far removed from one another. Science is as closely related to religion, and especially to Christian religion, as a child is to the womb out of which it came forth and with full vitality."
Let's note that the 1999 Turing Prize (the highest honor in computer science) was awarded to the American computer scientist and engineer Frederick P. Brooks "for his landmark contributions to computer architecture, operating systems, and software engineering." Although "he grew up a churchman" [CD] he had doubt about the trustworthiness of the Scripture and became a true Christian - he is an apological evangelist - when he met at work, Gerry Blaauw, IBM engineer, "a strong Christian" who invite
"Design is a way of expressing our values and our vision. It is a way of honoring God, who made us in His image and, gave us the possibility to create. . Science is not enough to understand design, because design is not a science. It is a creative process, involving both intuition and rationality."
During a conference entitled "Science and Religion: Conflict or Convergence?" held October 12, 2000 Baltimore, the professor Emeritus of Human Genetics and Psychiatry at Virginia Commonwealth University Lindon J. Eaves, an Anglican priest, said:
"There is a great correspondence between the love of God and the love of truth. Thus, the rules and passions, that we use to know the love of God, the scientist embodies, in his passion for truth ....... What keeps the scientist working long hours through the night? It is the hope that there is a truth that will be very beautiful when he discovers it."
Kenneth Miller professor of biology at Brown University, Providence, RI. Catholic, author of "Finding Darwin's God," claims in the introduction:
"Science is not the enemy of religion. It is not a threat to faith. It is not a challenge to believe. Science is, instead, a way of exploring the natural world that can enrich our understanding of God's creation and deepen our appreciation of the divine."
In this book, he explains his main arguments, and challenges creationists and "new atheists." He also shares his journey as a scientist and a Christian, and how he reconciles his scientific knowledge with his religious faith. Sharing Darwin's ideas on the theory of evolution, he intervenes with American high school and university students to defend his point of view against, in particular, the supporters of "Intelligent Design."
Reverend Canon Dr. Arthur Peacocke (ref.651, p.233) was a remarkable individual who seamlessly blended his activities as a physical biochemist and Anglican priest. In addition to his groundbreaking scientific work, he dedicated his lifetime to exploring the intricate relationship between science and theology. His journey into this intersection began in 1973 when his book: "Science and the Christian Experiment," was honored with the prestigious Leconte du Noüy prize. This pivotal moment marked th
The Templeton Prize jury, in their nomination, aptly acknowledged Peacocke's unique achievement, stating that he: "had created a new understanding of the relationship between theology and science...generating a new theology for a scientific age." During his acceptance address lecture, Peacocke, drawing upon his background as a biologist with a deep understanding of the physical biochemistry of DNA, made a thoughtprovoking analogy. He eloquently described:
"The complementary double-strands of the DNA on which our lives and inheritance depend proves to be an appropriate symbol for that double quest which constitutes human life: the searches for intelligibility and meaning."
He concluded his lecture with an inspiring message:
"The sciences have drawn back the curtain for us now to be able to perceive the natural, evolved commonalities of humanity in a new light, in the light of a perception of that Ultimate Reality, God who, giving everything its existence, is both the common agent through nature of our created creativity and will be the destiny of our fulfilled humanity."
The 2002 Templeton Prize honored John Polkinghorne (ref.571, p.184), a remarkable individual whose career trajectory and contributions have uniquely bridged science and technology. Initially serving as a Professor of Mathematical Physics at the University of Cambridge in London, he made significant contributions, during the 1970s, in the field of particle physics. He was notably part of the team that discovered the quark, a fundamental particle entering the composition of protons and neutrons (c
Polkinghorne made a pivotal decision in 1979, resigning to embark on a profound journey of theological exploration. By 1982, he had embraced the vocation of an Anglican priest, effectively uniting his scientific and spiritual passions. This significant shift in his career path demonstrated a remarkable commitment to integrating his rational scientific sensibilities with the profound mysteries of theology. Polkinghorne championed a modern and harmonious approach to understanding the Bible
effect
"I want to take science and religion with great and equal seriousness, I see them as complementary and not as rivals. The most important thing they share is that both, believe there is a truth to be sought and found, a truth whose attainment comes through the pursuit of well-motivated belief. Of course, the two forms of inquiry view reality from different perspectives, science studies the processes of the world, while religion is concerned with the deeper issue of whether there is a divine meani
In 2009, Jesuit astronomer George Coyne, a defender of the Weak Anthropic Principle (ref.648, p.229), received the George Van Biesbroeck Award for being an outstanding living scientist in astronomy
among other honors. This is proof, that it is possible to manage a career as both, a Catholic theologian and a recognized scientist.
In his book "Darwin's God" [Mg2] published in 2015, Alister McGrath, Biophysicist, Anglican priest, and apologist of the Christian religion, challenges Darwin's views on the nature of faith, the origins of religion, and the role of science in human life. In his introduction, he recounts his journey from atheism to Christianity and explains his motivations for writing the book.
"Atheism, I began to realize, rested on less-than-satisfactory evidential bases. The arguments that had once seemed bold, decisive, and conclusive increasingly turned out to be circular, tentative, and uncertain."
He had previously:
"rejected Christianity because it was a position of faith that could not be proved to be right. But I couldn't prove my atheism. I went to Oxford, to study chemistry and discovered that Christianity was a much more interesting and attractive intellectual option than atheism."
According to him:
"The English experience suggested that nobody doubted the existence of God until theologians tried to prove it."
The same 2009 year, Bernard d'Espagnat a non-dogmatic Catholic and distinguished Theoretical Physicist and Philosopher, was awarded the Templeton Prize for "his exploration of the philosophical implications of quantum mechanics." His work has reshaped our understanding of reality and pushed the boundaries of knowable science. For d'Espagnat, quantum physics represented a revolutionary departure from the classical physics worldview, urging us to abandon the preconceived notions that governed our
As a visionary in the quantum physics research community, d'Espagnat introduced the concept of the "Veiled reality," proposing the existence of a deeper level of reality beyond our direct observation and measurement:
"The concepts we use, such as space, time, causality,. are not applicable to ultimate reality,"
"Science aims, to make an account, of reality as it appears to us, accounting for the limitations of our mind, and our sensibilities."
From a young age, he marveled at the world's beauty, associating it with a "Being" he named "God." Throughout his life, d'Espagnat endeavored to bridge the gap between his scientific pursuits and his spirituality. Upon receiving the Templeton Prize he boldly asserted:
"Some will be surprised but I claim that there are forms of higher spirituality that are compatible with what emerges from contemporary physics."
Robert Pollack, Jew, the awarded Biologist who discovered a new form of cancer chemotherapy. Explaining his motivation for exploring the relationship between faith and reason, and how they can both inform our understanding of ourselves and the world, he stated [Pk]:
". the connection between Faith and Reason runs deeper, as deep as any part of the human mind."
In an article [Pk1] published in 2016, he posited:
". scientific hypotheses about the unknowable are, by definition not disprovable, and therefore, are no meaningful" [Pk1],
"It is not worth a moment of anyone's time to seek the proof through the science of any religious belief."
Emphasizing his position, that science and religion are different domains of inquiry, and cannot be reduced to each other.
José Funes, a Catholic priest, a doctor in astronomy, and director of the Vatican observatory from 2006 to 2015, co-authored many scientific papers. Welcoming Pope Francis on July 16, 2013, he said, according to Vatican Radio:
"We go back, in the sense that we also explore the beginning of the universe from the point of view of science, but we also go far away, because we also study the farthest, the most distant galaxies. And this brings up questions that we should ask about the relationship between science and faith. I think this is the mission of the Observatory: go out to the truly most distant boundaries, the boundaries of the universe, that is always a gift of God."
October 9, 2015, the Protestant William C. Campbell, co-laureate with Professor Satoshi Omura of one half of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicin "for their discoveries concerning a novel therapy against infections caused by roundworm parasites" answering an interview (by Darragh Murphy: "Meet Ireland's new Nobel Laureate, William C. Campbell") for The Irish Times, said:
"I believe in God, I pray every single night of my life, but I have a very complicated sense of religion, and I am pretty fuzzy in that segment of my life.. My faith, as that of millions of others, has evolved, if that is the right word, as civilization has evolved. Evolved but not abandoned. Religion and science can coexist. At least, that had better be true. There are certain intangibles."
Their discovery of Avermectin and Artemisinin, drugs and pesticides, had a huge impact against the parasitic roundworm (spread by black flies), which was very active in Africa, and Latin America provoking itching, skin lesions, visual impairment, and blindness. The fact that W. Campbell floated the idea that it would be distributed freely wherever it was needed (Africa, Latin America) was worthy of the humanist that he is. The idea validated by Merck Research Laboratories allowed fighting, effec
Ian H. Hutchinson, a Christian, is a recognized nuclear physicist and a member of the Biologos Foundation, and as such defends religion against what he calls "Militant Atheists." He replies to the scientists who "slyly" equate scientism with science [Hu1] that just as one cannot scientifically demonstrate the love of a father for his children, one cannot scientifically demonstrate the love of God for his creatures, and that one should not try to demonstrate the existence of God experimentally. I
"The resurrection of Jesus is the central miracle of Christianity. It is not a scientific hypothesis, but a historical claim based on eyewitness testimony and circumstantial evidence."
He demonstrates that belief in the Bible - not forgetting that it is full of metaphors and earliest to Science - and especially in Christianity, are perfectly compatible with Science. Science and Theology each have their role in our understanding of God and the World. According to him:
"Miracles are by definition, abnormal and non-reproducible, also they cannot be proved by scientific methods... They are not violations of natural law
but they are the actions of a personal agent, who is not bound by the laws he established for the natural world.....Miracles are possible but rare. They are signs of God's special intervention in history, no arbitrary disruptions of nature." [Hu2]
Member of the All Saint's Church of Belmont (US-MA), an Episcopal Protestant Church, he defends Christianity, as a whole.
Closer to us we find some rationalist believers such as the Christian priest Father Philippe Deterre, member of "la Maison de France," director of Research at the CNRS, an expert in Biology, managing without restriction the two aspects (extract from his biography):
"I find a great analogy between the relentless search of the scientist and the search of the believer in God, or even the spiritual search of the person who has no faith."
c) Faith as an Inspiration in Scientific Work. Some scientists find that their faith and religious beliefs, inspire and influence their scientific work. Their faith may provide them, with a sense, a motivation, or a framework through which they interpret scientific discoveries. They may see their scientific pursuits as a means to understand and appreciate the intricacies of the natural world, which they believe was created by a High Power.
René Descartes (ref.152, p.43) scientist, and Christian philosopher, introduced in "Meditation Third" the concept of "objective reality," the reality or existence that an idea represents, stated:
"...the (idea = image at that time) by which I conceive a God - sovereign, eternal, infinite, immutable, all-knowing, all-powerful, and the Creator of all things that are out of Himself - this, I say, has certainly in its more objective reality, than those ideas by which finite substances are represented."
He emphasized that his idea of God, with his divine attributes, possesses a higher level of objective reality than ideas representing limited and finite things, reflecting his prioritization of the divine and the infinite in the hierarchy of reality within his philosophical framework.
Blaise Pascal's brilliant and inquisitive mind who, using reason, made remarkable discoveries in the field of science, at an early age (ref.170, p.48), was according to Pope Francis "a tireless seeker of truth, and a restless spirit"[]. Living at a time when skepticism about religions was matched only by the scientific discoveries, to which he made a major contribution, he decided in the second part of his short but very fruitful life, to devote himself to theology and search for a Christian ans
"Man must not give up seeking God of whom he has an intuition: I see well that there is in nature a necessary, eternal and infinite Being,"
"The faithful ... see immediately that all that is nothing other than the work of the God whom they adore" [Pa 242-781].
Pascal clearly distinguished between physics and metaphysical speculations, although he judged them both necessary. With him, the man of faith, and the man of reason, walk the only path of truth.
The "Great Mr. Newton" (refs.185&204, Pp.59&61), an Anglican one of the Masters of Physics, wrote in Philosophia Mathematica [Ne2]:
"God governs all things, not as the soul of the world, but as the Lord over all."
The distinguished Lutheran scholar and theologian Gottfried Leibniz (ref.182, p.53), an exceptional polymath, and one of the founders of calculus has, according to Father Thonnard, as his guiding idea, that:
"... there is a universal science of a mathematical type, capable of giving reason a priori to all that exists."
Likewise, the devoted member of the Moravian Church Emil Theodor Kocher, 1909 Nobel Prize in Physiology "for his work on physiology, pathology, and surgery of the thyroid gland" is a good example of a great scientist devoted to science and his faith. He attributed all his successes and failures to God. For him, the rise of materialism, particularly in science was an evil.
The prolific scientific inventor Thomas Edison, a Deist, who mastered the bulb light, in awe of God's work said:
"My great respect and admiration for all engineers and especially for the greatest of them all, God."
Sir Joseph J. Thomson (ref.308, p.91), Anglican, 1906 Nobel Prize in Physics, addressing the British Association:
"Great are the Works of the Lord."
The Lutheran Georg Cantor (ref.174, p.51), the father of the "set theory" (which is a fundamental theory in mathematics), also famous for his work on real numbers and the theory of infinity said:
"I entertain no doubts as to the truths of the transfinite, which I recognized with God's help and which, in their diversity, I have studied for more than twenty years
every year and almost every day brings me further in science."
The concept of transfinite numbers (Aleph and Beth) introduced by Cantor, in the late 19th century, to describe the sizes of infinite sets necessitates a good background in mathematics
also we just remember that Cantor's work on transfinite numbers revolutionized our understanding of the infinite, and laid the foundation for set theory and modern mathematics.
During a speech titled "The Essence of Matter," in 1944, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of the Kaiser Wilhelm Society in Florence, Italy, Max Planck (ref.255, p.78) shared a profound insight that resonates until this day. With an unwavering dedication to the relentless pursuit of the most rigorous scientific endeavors, the meticulous study of matter itself, Planck unveiled a revolutionary truth: matter, as we perceive it, is but, a fleeting illusion. Intriguingly, he posited that the ve
This was among the last public statements of a physicist who had dedicated his lifetime to unraveling the mysteries of the universe. His groundbreaking work in quantum theory (cf. chap.2) - encapsulating the revelation that matter is an expression of energy and vibration- had forever altered our understanding of the cosmos. Yet, Planck ventured further, suggesting that behind this cosmic symphony of energy and matter, an all-encompassing intelligence orchestrates the grand cosmic opera.
These profound thoughts echo in his autobiographical work, "A Scientific Autobiography" [Pl3], where he contemplated the existence of universal constants. For him:
"The existence of these constants is a palpable proof of the existence in nature of something real and independent of every human measurement."
Max Planck was more than a scientist
he was a seeker of truth and a harmonizer of faith and reason. His journey was a relentless quest to bridge the chasm between science and spirituality, ultimately to fathom the profound depths of reality. He encapsulated this vision with eloquence, proclaiming:
"Religion and natural science are fighting a joint battle in an incessant never relaxing crusade against skepticism and dogmatism, again disbelief and again superstition, and the rallying cry in this crusade has always been, and always be: "On to God."
In those words, he illuminated a path toward a richer, more harmonious understanding of the universe and our place within it.
The physical chemist Pierre Duhem (ref.474, p.144), a Catholic, affirmed that between:
"2 judgments which do not have the same terms, which do not concern the same objects, there can be neither agreement nor disagreement."
For him, the Catholic religion favored scientific progress [Du]. This statement can surprise some, but it is important to understand that Duhem's perspective was influenced by the historical context in which he lived, his Catholic faith, and his belief that the Church's acceptance of reason, and the pursuit of knowledge contributed to an environment conducive to scientific exploration. He sincerely thought that the Catholic worldview provided a stable foundation for scientific inquiry by encoura
With the faithful Christian George Washington Carver, nicknamed "The black Leonardo" by the Times (1946), we discover a man who - although living at a time when the rights of blacks were not always respected - was able, thanks to his faith in Jesus, and his pugnacity to overcome the obstacles and gain recognition from the scientific community. He liked to say, that "Jesus was supporting him in his research work." He was a distinguished Christian and an Afro-American agricultural scientist. An en
".. Never since, have I been without this consciousness of the Creator speaking to me through flowers, rocks, animals, plants, and other aspects of His creation."
Let me report an anecdote [Mi] about Sir James Jeans, the famous devout Anglican, Cambridge Astronomer, who, on a rainy Sunday in 1909 was walking, with a bible clutched under his arm and an umbrella closed in his hand when Inayatullah Mashriqi, a student in Cambridge, recognizing him asked to him why he had not opened his umbrella and, 2nd question: "I would like to know what a man of universal fame such as yourself is doing-going to pray in Church ?." J. Jeans answered: "Come and have tea with
"he [Jeans] went off into an inspiring description of the celestial bodies and the astonishing order to which they adhere, .. ...When I behold God's marvelous creation feats, my whole being trembles, in awe at His majesty. When I go to church I bow my head and say "Lord how great you are"... I obtain incredible peace and joy from my prayer."
Khan Mashriqi nicknamed Allama (learned) Mashriqi, a Muslim evolutionist, accepted some of Darwin's ideas, and was the 1st student of any nationality to achieve honors in four different Tripoes (high-level competitions). Deeply impressed, he replied with a verse (35:27-28) of the Koran:
"In the mountains, there are red and white, of diverse hues, and pitchy black
and human beings, and beasts, and cattle, diverse are their hues. From among His servants, only those who know fear Allah."
Sir J. Jeans exclaimed:
"It is those alone who have knowledge who fear God."
Adding: "You can record my testimony that the Quran's an inspired book. Muhammad was illiterate. He could not have learnt this immensely important fact on his own. God must have taught it to him. Incredible! How extraordinary!"
Former Academy of Sciences President, Alber McCombs Winchester, a Baptist who specialized in human heredity, stated:
"Today, after many years of research in the scientific fields, I am happy to say that my faith in God, rather than having been shaken, has been strengthened and has acquired a stronger foundation than ever. Science brings a glimpse of the majesty and omnipotence of the Supreme Being that grows with each discovery" (cf. Wikipedia).
In 1946, in the introduction of his article "A Physicist Faith" [Hs] the Roman Catholic Victor F. Hess (ref.332, p.99) asks the question that is the subject of this paragraph: "Can a good scientist believe in God?," and answers: "I think the answer is: Yes." I have quoted some of his arguments:
- "It is not hard for a scientist to admire the greatness of the creator of nature. From this, it is only a step to adore God,"
- "In all my years of research in physics and geophysics, I have never found one instance in which scientific discovery conflicted with religious Faith."
The Methodist Ernest Walton (ref.344, p.103), co-winner of the 1951 Nobel Prize in Physics posited that:
"Scientists seek the truth, Christians seek the truth and in the end, the truth cannot conflict with the truth"[MB2].
After winning the prize, he gave many lectures in various countries to explain the relationship between Science and Religion and to encourage the development of Science as a:
"path to knowing more about God."
According to the Catholic Physicist Vincent J. McBrierty, who wrote his biography [MB], Walton applied his religious principles in his professional life, because it was for him:
"a way to learn the mind of the Creator and to study His creation. It is our duty to study His work and this must apply in all fields of human thought. A refusal to use our intelligence honestly is an act of contempt for Him who gave us that intelligence.."
In December 1968 Apollo 8 was the first scientific mission to put a manned space capsule in orbit around the Moon. Christian Frank Borman, one of the 3 astronauts with William Anders, and James Lovell, scientists and engineers confirmed, read live on this Christmas Eve, for the televisions of the whole world, a passage of Genesis.
On 16/07/1969 W. Von Braun, Lutheran, designer of the rocket that put into orbit the Apollo 11 mission, which allowed Niels Armstrong, Methodist, even deist, to be the first man to set foot on the Moon, and Buzz Aldrin, Presbyterian, freemason, to be the second, said before the launch:
"We have prepared everything, calculated everything, we now rely on the grace of God."
The bet was tried by the Americans, following the announcement made on 12/09/1962 by John F. Kennedy, then President of the United States of America, in front of the students of the University of Rice in Houston, US-TX, to see a man walking on the Moon was then far from being won. This could justify the fact that - despite his indisputable capacities in rocket technology, the potential of the scientists who participated in this extraordinary adventure, and their knowledge of the laws of the Univ
For the Baptist James B. Irwin, an American Astronaut, who took part in the Apollo XV flight, on July 26, 1971, his exploration of the moon, in "jeep," was more than a scientific enterprise, it was a spiritual experience that gave him back his faith to the point that he decided, to dedicate his life to making God known throughout the world. He tells us ([Ir1] Pp. 18, 21, 119. P. 243.) that during the mission they were very occupied, but that later he realized that the flight had been:
"...a revelation for me. I had previously become skeptical about God's action on me and had lost the feeling of his closeness. On the Moon, the representation of the power of God and His Son Jesus Christ became very clear to me. I felt the presence of God invade me. I felt His spirit, closer to me than it had ever been on earth."
The epigraph of §5.1.2, attributed to the notorious physicist, historian of sciences, and essayist, a Catholic, Louis Leprince-Ringuet (ref.597, p.201): "God, in his permanence, takes on different faces for different humanities," means that God reveals himself to different cultures and times in different ways, but remains the same. He also argues that science does not contradict the existence of God, but rather reveals his wisdom and power. He also emphasized that:
"Our era, more than any other, yearns for the guiding light of the Gospel, ..." [LR].
Biologist Humberto Maturana (ref.685-p.244), initially raised in the Catholic faith, underwent a transformative journey where, despite becoming critical of the Church and its dogmas, he maintained a keen interest in the mystical facets of Christianity. Intriguingly, he also delved into other religions exploration, notably Buddhism and Hinduism. Collaborating closely with, Francesco Varela (ref.684-p.245) his student, who initially shared a Catholic upbringing but, later embraced Buddhism, the du
In 1982, the Deist Sir John Eccles (ref.164, p.46), 1963 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, affirmed:
"The more I study the brain, the less I am a materialist" [Ec].
It should be noted that he was not at all a materialist in the sense that we understand it. For him, materialism is the breeding ground of the consumer society, that is to say, of the search for power and money, degrading the humanistic values of love, and truth, ... and leading to the disintegration of the family unit, making man a slave.
While the Catholic Physicist McBrierty said to us:
"My reflection on my professional life reveals a progression from a strong inherited faith to a perception that this faith has blossomed over time and been strengthened by the influence of many scientists and non-scientists past and present" [MB2].
He believes that his many contacts, with atheists, agnostics, and believers in various religions, have contributed greatly, to strengthening his catholic faith.
Professor of biology Carl Feit, Rabbi, and Talmud scholar, wrote in reference to Maimonides:
". the best way to develop one's love for God and to know him is to study the work he has done with his hands. There are certain graces that a Jewish believer offers every day. Some of these are that the sun rises and sets regularly, that all the stars move in their orbits, and that our physiological functions work properly. With my knowledge of human physiology, I have a very different, and I think more important, appreciation when I express this gratitude every morning."
Jacob Bekenstein (ref.385, p.114), a Jewish, theoretical physicist, known among other things for the Bekenstein-Hawking entropy law, a specialist in the thermodynamics of black holes said (Wikipedia biography):
"I look at the world as a product of God. HE establishes very specific laws, that we have the pleasure to discover through our scientific work."
Arno Penzias (ref.364, p.108) a conservative Jewish, 1978 Nobel Prize in Physics interviewed in Jerusalem in 1991, by Rabbi Joshua O. Haberman said [Hb pp. 176-]:
"Religion is that which we know beyond what we can prove."
If p. 180 of [Hb] he stated:
".science and religion are complementary competencies,"
P. 184, referring to his work, he posited:
"by looking at the order in the world, we can infer purpose, and from the purpose we begin to get some knowledge of the Creator, the Planner of all this."
These citations, added to the ones of §5.1&5.4., are clues for his positioning in this section.
The renowned Christian astronomer Allan Sandage confessed in 1998, during an interview [Sa]:
"As a child, I was an atheist. It was my science that led me to the conclusion that the world is far more complicated than can be explained by science. It is only through the supernatural, that, I understand the mystery of existence."
In the same interview, Professor of Theoretical Physics Mehdi Golshani, a Muslim philosopher, said:
"Natural phenomena are the signs of God in the universe and, studying them, is practically a religious obligation. The Qur'an asks humans to walk the earth and see how He initiated the creation. Research is an act of worship since it reveals the wonders of God's creation."
The sentiment expressed by Golshani resonates with the Quranic emphasis on reflection and observation as a means of recognizing the Creator's wisdom and power. Some verses of the Quran, such as those in Surah Al-Imran (3:190-191):
"Indeed, in the creation of the heavens and the earth and the alternation of the day and night, there are signs for people of reason,"
highlight this importance.
According to the Italian mathematician Carlo Cercignani, known for his contributions to the studies on the kinetic theory of gases and Boltzmann's biography [Ce] published in 1998, this later acknowledged the existence of God while highlighting the limitations of human conceptions of the divine
underscoring the complexity and depth of Boltzmann's philosophical stance:
"It is certainly true that only a madman will deny God's existence, but it is equally the case that all our ideas of God are mere inadequate anthropomorphisms, so that what we thus imagine as God does not exist in the way we imagine it.." [Ce].
In 2005, Charles Hard Townes (ref.355, p.106) the 1964 Nobel Prize in Physics, a progressive Protestant, and a fervent supporter of the rapprochement between science and religion, received the Templeton Prize. Townes was interviewed by Bonnie A. Powell (B.P.), News Center (June 17, 2005). To the question: B.P.: "How do you categorize your religious beliefs?."
Ch. Townes: ".I am a Protestant Christian, I would say a very progressive one . quite open-minded and willing to consider all kinds of new ideas,... At the same time... I feel the presence of God. I feel it in my own life as a spirit that is somehow with me all the time."
B.P.: "You've described your inspiration for the maser as a moment of revelation, more spiritual than what we think of as inspiration. Do you believe that God takes such an active interest in humankind?"
Ch. T.: "It was a new idea, a sudden visualization I had of what might be done to produce electromagnetic waves, so it's somewhat parallel to what we normally call revelation in religion. Whether the inspiration for the maser and the laser was God's gift to me is something one can argue about. The real question should be, where do brand-new human ideas come from anyway? To what extent does God help us? I think he's been helping me all along. I think he helps all of us - that there's a direction
Ch. Townes wrote various articles throughout his life to defend this rapprochement. In particular: "The convergence of Science and Religion" [To], was the subject of the plenary conference he gave on August 02, 2002 at the "ASA Annual Meeting at Pepperdine University" in Malibu, CA during which he said:
"I see religion as an attempt to understand the purpose of our universe and science as an attempt to understand its nature and characteristics."
Further on, he hopes for the:
"possibility of a fusion into a unified understanding of the purpose and nature of the universe."
Although calling himself agnostic, Astrophysicist Robert Jastrow (ref.367, p.109) seems to have wavered towards Deism following the 1975 discovery by Penzias et al. of "fossil radiation" supporting the Big Bang theory. Given his notoriety, he was interviewed on various occasions but I have retained this one from June 26, 2012 (YouTube):
"Although agnostic, I must recognize that nature has a beginning and do not see how it could have created it alone. I must admit, that a supernatural force, that we can call God, outside of space and time, did this [Ja2]."
The 7/2/2013 Antony Hewish (ref.371, p.111), a devout Christian, and a 1974 Nobel Prize in Physics gave a lecture: "My Life in Science and Religion-A Personal Story" at The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion. We have noticed that according to him:
"Science is a great help in understanding religion. The concept of God is mysterious, especially when he chose to reveal himself through a man two thousand years ago. Even the most basic physics is equally mysterious, but that does not mean that physics is not correct."
After supporting his point with a simple example he added:
"Physics helps me get into the right frame of mind to realize that religious mysteries can exist and may be reasonable, without undermining common sense. If matter, even at its most basic level, is more complex than you could ever dream, then we shouldn't be afraid of mystery when it comes from God."
Sir J. Houghton (ref. 409, p.121), a prominent specialist in Environmental Physics, a tenacious advocate for climate action, and a devout Evangelical Christian, not only firmly believes that there is no opposition between science and religion:
"I was baffled that science and faith should be often seen as contradictory, if not in direct opposition with one another.. Science and religion are not at odds. Science is simply too young to understand" [Ho2],. but asserts that religion is intertwined with, and greatly enhances his work:
"And I believe that you know, very much in retrospect, it's not always in prospect, of course, but in retrospect, I can look and see the way God has helped me to do a variety of things and has also .. answered prayer in regards to the way my scientific work has gone, not only my prayers but other people's prayers too."
In recognition of his lifelong commitment to demonstrating how religious faith can invigorate and stimulate rigorous scientific research, Francis Collins was awarded the Templeton Prize (ref.434, p.129) in 2020. Collins, the Director of the NIH since 2009, has been a prominent figure in genetics (refs.433&435, p.129). Throughout his illustrious career, he consistently advocated for the synergy of faith and reason. In 2007, he took a pioneering step. He created the association "Biologos," a bridg
"There is no conflict between being a rigorous scientist and a person who believes in a God who takes a personal interest in each of us. Science's domain is to explore nature. God's domain, is in the spiritual realm, a realm that it is impossible to explore with the tools and language of science. It must be explored with the heart, mind, and soul - and the mind must find a way to connect these two realms" [Col].
During the award reception, he conveyed:
"As a Christian for 43 years, I have found joyful harmony between the scientific and spiritual worldviews, and have never encountered an irreconcilable difference."
I now introduce a distinguished cosmologist, Ellis George, a devout Quaker. As Bernard d'Espagnat (ref. 740, p.272), an accomplished Christian cosmologist, Ellis has made significant contributions to our understanding of the nature of the Universe. While Bernard d'Espagnat, a specialist in quantum mechanics, introduced the concept of "unveiled reality" to express the limitations of our perception due to the quantum nature of our universe, Ellis, straddles the worlds of cosmology and social activ
In 2004, Ellis received the Templeton Prize from the Duke of Edinburg. During the ceremony, he stated:
"Ethics is causally effective and provides the highest level of values that set human goals and choices. Consequently, a crucial issue is the origin of ethics, on the one hand, and the nature of ethics, on the other. I am a moral realist, that is, I believe that we discover the true nature of ethics rather than inventing it. Indeed it is only if ethics is of this nature that it has a truly moral character, that is, it represents a guiding light that we ought to obey."
In an interview with Krista Tippett for "On Being," Ellis explained how he integrates his convictions about cosmology, faith, and ethics. As a Professor of Applied Mathematics and head of the eponym department, involved in the Quaker service fund, of Cap Town, he extended his mathematical knowledge beyond theoretical physics to fields like economics striving to improve, the medium-term quality of life of autochthons in impoverished conditions.
Reflecting on post-apartheid South Africa, Ellis remarked that the events after 1994 "confounded the calculus of reality." Despite the expectation of revenge after the end of apartheid, he witnessed a deviation from the "rationally" anticipated bloodshed, prompting kenotic ethics to be there, waiting to be discovered.
When asked whether ethics is something to be discovered in the universe, Ellis draws a parallel with mathematics, stating that just as mathematicians discovered previously unknown concepts (the existence of irrational numbers like the number p = 3,1416., or the square root of two equal to 1,14. are an example), kenotic ethics is waiting to be discovered. He asserts that while planets, ethics lies outside the scope of science due to the inability of scientific experiments to distinguish between g
In conclusion, both cosmologists, d'Espagnat and Ellis, underscore the limitations of human understanding and the profound nature of the universe. Their insights invite humility in our attempts to comprehend the nature of reality, beyond our immediate perception, a perspective elaborated upon in Chapter II.
Dr. Jane Goodall (ref.646, p.227), the trailblazing primatologist renowned for her groundbreaking work (cf. §5.3&5.4), has been honored with numerous accolades for her remarkable contributions to, both environmental and humanitarian causes. Notably, in 2002, she received prestigious nominations as a "Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire," and was recognized as a "United Nations Messenger of Peace." Her most recent achievement is the 2021 Templeton Prize, a testament to "her remarkab
"In the rainforest, I learned about the interconnection of all species, each with a role to play. I felt a strong spiritual connection with the natural world."
According to Dr. Goodall, a belief resonates within her that it exists a "spiritual power in every living thing." Her contemplative reflections extend to aspirations for the world, as she eloquently states:
"I understand that the deep mysteries of fife are forever beyond scientific knowledge and now we see through a glass darkly
then face to face."
Goodall's pioneering discoveries have indelibly modified humanity's comprehension of our place in an intricately interconnected world. Her tireless advocacy fervently points towards a greater purpose for our species: the stewardship and nurturing of life on this cherished planet.
Dr. Frank Wilczek (ref.381, p.113), a luminary in theoretical physics, and a recipient of the 2004 Nobel Prize, stands as a shining example of a leading scientist who harmoniously bridges the worlds of science and religion. His remarkable contributions to theoretical physics are only rivaled by the profound philosophical insights he offers, making him a true visionary of our time. Through his captivating lectures and enlightening writings, Wilczek unveils a universe characterized by mathematical
"A big part, of (his) later quest, has been trying to regain some of the sense of purpose, and meaning that was lost."
As a result, he identifies as a Pantheist, emphasizing his deep connection with the universe as a source of spiritual inspiration.
This journey, not only highlights the seamless integration of science and faith
but, it also illustrates, how faith can catalyze brilliant minds, driving scientific exploration and discovery. It also underscores that the quest for knowledge can be a profound adventure into both, the natural world marvels and the divine enigmas that underlie it. For a more detailed justification of the classification of notorious scientists who, like, G. Galilei, I. Newton, L. LePrince Ringuet, A. Penzias, and o
In conclusion of this paragraph about the relationship between science and religion I'll say that each scientist's perspective on the relationship between their faith and scientific work is unique and influenced by their personal beliefs, experiences, and interpretations. If we zoom in on scientist priests, we can observe that their lives and works represent a harmonious fusion of scientific exploration and theological insight, making them pivotal figures in bridging the gap between these two re
"Science a chance for religion."
"The most beautiful masterpiece is the one made by God,according to the principles of quantum mechanics."
E. Schrödinger
In contemplating whether our world is the best of all possible worlds, we encounter a range of philosophical perspectives. For Plato, a pagan theist, this world represents beauty and perfection, yet he believed that the intelligible world of Ideas surpasses it in greatness. Plato's god, a mathematician demiurge, does not have unlimited powers, unlike the omnipotent God of Abrahamic religions. The demiurge "modeled," rather than "created" the world, using eternal materials, such as Empedocles' fo
".is as excellent as its nature permits it to be,"
implying that the divine Craftsman constructed this world with utmost goodness and intelligence, filling every gap in the universe.
Gottfried W. Leibniz, two millennia later, shared a similar view. In his letter (1673) to Mr. Arnault [Lz21194], he stated:
"God, having chosen the most perfect of all possible worlds, had been led by his wisdom to allow the evil that was appended to it, but that did not prevent this world, all counted and discounted, from being the best that could be chosen..," because:
"the little evil that is there is required for the height of the immense good that is there."
M. Maimonides, in earlier times, also professed ([Ma1], chap. XX p.172) that:
"God made all things by willing this universe,"
a notion shared by the Jesuit mathematician Roger Boscovitch (ref.619, p.212), who refuted chance and posited that:
"... the world cannot be the product of necessity, it can only be contingent."
"It is not contrary to the goodness and wisdom of God not to choose the best, for the best does not exist. If there were optima, the creation would be necessary, the divine freedom would be suppressed, the creatures would have in their number and in their merit, a true right to the existence."
A question arises: if God is omnipotent, could He have created a different universe? Some philosophers, theologians, and scientists have pondered this possibility. B. Pullman ([Pu] note 3 p. 69) suggests an answer:
"...some (including Einstein) will raise the question of whether God had the possibility of creating a universe other than the one He did, the argument being that the existing universe may be the only one to possess complete logical coherence."
It is worth noting that eminent physicists today seriously consider the existence of other universes as discussed in sections IV.2 and IV.3.
Elie Wiesel, the recipient of the 1986 Nobel Peace Prize and an adherent of Hassidic Judaism, partially addresses this question in "Job ou Dieu dans la tempête" [EW]:
"According to the Talmud, this world in which we live is not the first: God created many others before, but he did not love them and destroyed them."
His interlocutor Rabbi Josy Eisenberg replies:
"Yes, but He stopped at ours: this one pleases Him."
Furthermore, the Talmud Babli Pessa'him (54 a) teaches us that:
"seven things were created before the world was created: the Torah, the Techuvah, the Garden of Eden, Gehenna, The Throne of Glory, the Temple, and the name of the Messiah."
Arno Penzias (ref.364, p.108), a conservative Jewish, 1978 Nobel Prize winner in Physics, and co-discoverer of the Cosmic Microwave Background radiation (CMB) supporting the Big Bang theory, expressed his belief in a good world created by God. He stated:
"He did it elegantly. "Elegantly" means He doesn't have to monkey with it as time goes on."
"I assume that the world, as it was created, is a good world, otherwise the whole thing would be a cruel joke" [Hb],
In his words, he demonstrates his faith as a prominent scientist aligning with scriptural teachings. However, if this world is indeed good, why does it not appear so for everyone?
In contemplating the intricacies of God's harmonious and evolving universe, scientists believers or not, have found marveling at its meticulous design, guided by divine specifications beyond our perception. God entrusted mankind with the management of Earth, a mere fraction of this vast cosmos, granting us the profound gift of Free Will and, in doing so, absolving himself of direct responsibility.
During the reception in 1990 of the prestigious Templeton Prize (ref.434, p.129) the prominent biologist and geneticist Charles Birch (ref.541, p.165), a leading campaigner for an environmentally safe universe, a lay Anglican theologian and philosopher, offered a perspective aligning faith with environmental advocacy. He envisioned:
"a deeper religion no longer envisions God as an omnipotent creator outside a mechanical universe. It has two emphases
namely God's presence in the world, and the presence of the world in God. God is present in the world as the divine eros, drawing everything to him. This is the persuasive God who ever lures the world to fulfillment of its possibilities and never manipulates, leaving the entities of creation with their degree of freedom to respond or not to respond."
Yet, despite this divine trust, what have we made of our earthly heritage? The Earth, entrusted to us to pass on in better condition to future generations, teeters on the brink of imbalance and deterioration. Some view our planet as being in great danger, despite the warnings from scientists spanning decades.
For believers, the Genesis account assigned mankind the mission to foster prosperity. Regrettably, our trajectory seems to be one of self-inflicted decline. Driven by self-interests such as money, power, pleasure, and others, we are collectively hurtling toward a point of no return. The consequences of this reckless path extend beyond our planet, as we contemplate spreading disorder to other celestial bodies while leaving chaos in our wake within the solar system.
According to the protestant scientist Théodore Monod (ref.579, p.185), Christians bear a special responsibility due to Christ's principal commandment, which emphasizes the love for God and our neighbors as ourselves. Monod underscores that this love for God also entails a profound love for nature:
"The contact with nature is the contact with the divine because in nature the divine element is present it is the only one productive and creative" [Md4].
While I concur with Monod's perspective, it's important to note that this sense of responsibility is not exclusive to Christianity. Many other religious traditions share a similar ethos, recognizing humanity's duty toward the environment and acknowledging the divine presence in the natural world. As stewards of the Earth, individuals across various faiths are called upon to honor, protect, and preserve the interconnected web of life. Therefore, the responsibility for fostering harmony with natur
Pioneering scientist environmentalist Birch, engaged in adventurous reflection on questions of science and faith throughout his career with another environmentalist John Cobb, his mentor, who argued that "humanity's most urgent task is to preserve the world on which he leaves and depends," emphasize the urgency of preserving the world we rely on. Birch, as for him, stated:
"In the ecological worldview, love, compassion, and rights extend beyond the human to all that participates in life. Each entity from protons to people has intrinsic value to itself and God because each is a subject. A biocentric ethic calls for a bill of rights for nature. It also has profound implications for an ecologically sustainable global society that is also just."
Prominent quantum physicist and cosmologist John A. Wheeler (ref.280, p.84), a Unitarian having a great interest in the deep philosophical and metaphysical questions that arise from studying quantum physics realm and nature reality, challenges us through his rhetorical question: "Here is a human being so what must the universe be." Often interpreted as a thought-provoking statement, he prompts us to consider the intricate connection between our consciousness and the nature of the universe itself
In the face of an exponentially growing world population (almost 33% since the start of the 3rd millennium), reaching 8,1 billion by the end of 2023, and limited resources, we are compelled to reassess our lifestyles swiftly. This necessitates a collective move towards a responsible, less resource-intensive, and more fraternal society. Regardless of wealth, the current trajectory suggests that no one can envision a future on another planet offering the same pleasures enjoyed today.
The 1955 Nobel Prize for Peace, Sir J. Houghton, a devout Christian and a prominent atmospheric physicist underscored in 2017 - during an address to the International Society for Science, whom he was a founding member - our responsibility:
"The Bible tells us that God's creation is good, but also that it is groaning because of human sin. We have a responsibility to care for God's world, and not to abuse it. Climate change is one of the most serious threats to God's creation and well-being of our fellow humans, especially the poor and vulnerable."
He ended his lecture with a statement on global warming:
"three qualities . should guide our stewardship - honesty, holism . and humility. The alliteration of the three Hs assists in keeping them in mind."
Let's, therefore heed the call to collective responsibility, and work towards a future where our actions align with the divine trust placed upon us and ensure a thriving legacy for generations to come.
As we transition to the next section, we'll delve deeper into evil's origin question. Is it attributable to God or have we projected human qualities onto a divine entity? Meantime, let's the word to:
- the wisdom of Democritus who stated ([Bt] p. 55):
"... the evils not being imputable to them (the gods of the pre-Socratics), but are only the consequence of human blindness and lack of discernment,"
- and the reflections of the Christian philosopher C.S. Lewis (ref.734, p.268) who claimed that:
"God is not a person who is good and then tells us what goodness is, rather, goodness is the actual nature of God, and we know it because God shares it with us. We may think God is unfair, but that is because we are applying our standards of fairness to a Being who knows infinitely more than we do. When we are in the water, we feel the wetness, but the fish does not, in the same way, our assessment of good and evil is not necessarily God's" [Ls],
Provide intriguing perspectives on this matter.
"What amazes me is not the existence of evil: it is natural,and we understand that it exists and why.
What amazes me is the existence of good, of divine paternity, I suppose."[Mw]
Wilfred Monod
Why did God, whose omnipotence, omniscience, wisdom, and will, allow evil to exist? Regardless of religious belief, no one can deny that the human race has experienced, and continues to endure many hardships and sufferings that faith alone cannot rationalize. In effect, the question of why God allows evil is as ancient as the creation of the world itself, and it continues to defy consensus, despite the undeniable existence of evil.
I find the perspective of Wilfred Monod, a provocative Protestant Pastor, particularly intriguing because it challenges us to delve deeper into its profound insights and grapple with its implications. Before delving into the heart of the matter, let's turn to his son Théodore, an esteemed Biologist and fellow Protestant (ref.579, p.185), who shed light on the subject. During an interview, Théodore stated:
".it is the Christian revelation, evangelical,..... which introduced the notion of good into human history. The evil, that it is there, it is the continuation of its past" [Md3].
Allow me to share an intriguing anecdote about W. Monod
who, according to Edmond Blattchen [Md3] once inscribed these powerful words on the walls of the "Oeuvre de la Clairière" in a poverty-stricken district of "Les Halles" in Paris:
"To believe anyway, to hope anyway, to love anyway."
This inspired remark prompted his son Théodore to exclaim:
"That is the essence of faith. Despite all odds. It epitomizes the evangelical ideal. It's truly magnificent."
The absence of Good, as W. Monod suggests is the primary origin of evil, often referred to as natural evil. This encompasses uncontrollable catastrophes like tsunamis, floods, volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, predators, and pandemics caused by lethal viruses or bacteria, which are consequences of the law of evolution. However, pandemics and their repercussions can also be attributed to human activities, such as war, terrorism, rape, and the misuse of scientific discoveries, .this represents the
It's worth noting that for Hindu devotees (Hinduism is the world's third-largest religion after Christianity and Islam), evil is perceived as a blessing from the Lord, intended to liberate them from worldly materialism and focus on the spiritual realm. According to their beliefs, the origin of evil and suffering lies in the material world (cf. [Ba] T1-p. 113 & T3 pp. 307 & 308), emanating from "external powers" governed by three "gunas" (Virtue, Passion, and Ignorance), which shape our thoughts,
"Material science born from human intellect, cannot alleviate our suffering, it is the superior inner power of Maya, under the direction of Krishna, the Supreme Lord that can truly set us free."
Thus, our woes would have "celestial, earthly, or bodily origins," and would be exacerbated by material progress. The stars are even held accountable for calamities like "excessive heat and cold, abundant or insufficient rainfall, leading to famine, disease, poverty, and epidemics.. Causing physical and mental anguish."
But, how can we explain to skeptics, to those who endure suffering, why an all-powerful and Benevolent God allows evil to exist? Let's explore the perspectives of philosophers, theologians, and even believing scientists.
- Among those who advocate for the necessity of evil, envisioning a future where Good will ultimately triumph, we can turn to St. Paul the Apostle (ref.67-p.21), who proclaimed during his visit to the Romans:
"For I consider that the sufferings of the present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us..." [Rm 8: 18-30].
These words encapsulate the idea that present sufferings, while difficult and inexplicable, will pale in comparison to the magnificent future awaiting us.
Similarly, the teachings of Doctors of the Church like St Augustin (ref.79, p.24), and the Dominican St Thomas Aquinas (ref.127, p.36) shed light on the intricate relationship between good and evil, positing that the permission of evil serves a greater purpose and leads to the fulfillment of the good of the universe, respectively. We noted that St Augustine stated:
"...a hundred times God has permitted evil to derive a good, that is, a greater good."[Ag1]
and asserted that evil exists due to the misuse of human free will, while St Thomas Aquinas claimed that evil is a necessary consequence of the universe striving toward the ultimate good:
"...the permission of evil, tends to the good of the universe" [Ta].
According to him, virtue naturally leads man, enlightened by Reason, towards perfection. This idea was opposed by Voltaire (ref.187, p.57) in his tale "Candide," which recounts the adventures of an optimistic young man despite the events he encounters. Note that a few years earlier he was of a contrary opinion stating:
"What is bad about you is good in the arrangement of things."
For Moses Maimonides (ref.114, p.33) a prominent Jewish philosopher and theologian, evil is not a creation from God, nor a supernatural force, but rather the absence of good
it is the consequence of the "free will" granted to man, who has the choice to do good or evil. He believed that the suffering experienced in the world serves as a test of human faithfulness and commitment to righteousness. The story of Job [Bi] in the Hebrew Bible exemplifies this notion, as Job's faith is put to the test
"... for the end of everything is to become like him [God] in perfection...... no one can fail to recognize the action of a free will acting with intention and not by necessity."
In Islamic theology, we find parallel ideas and a call for humans to demonstrate faith, devotion, and righteousness in the face of evil. The Qur'an speaks of suffering as a test, a trial designed to differentiate the righteous from the wicked, and an opportunity for individuals to strengthen their faith and connection with Allah.
For the mystic Martines de Pasqually (ref.555, p.174) God is neither responsible for the Good nor the Evil that affects us. It is not He who created Evil, but rebellious spirits opposed to His laws, precepts, and commandments. Similarly, good thoughts are birthed by loyal spirits. It is up to fallen humanity to choose its path through the gift of Free Will bestowed upon them. They can either align themselves with God's army, consisting of faithful angels, or with the rebels who initiated Evil. T
One may wonder why God did not foresee some would rebel against His laws and why, following their transgression, He did not revoke the Free Will. Martines explains that if He had not endowed His creations with Free Will, the concepts of good and evil would have no place, and since His laws are eternal, He cannot revoke a right without contradicting Himself.
While these explanations may not fully satisfy those directly affected by suffering, they provide some philosophical and theological frameworks to understand the coexistence of evil and a benevolent God. Some individuals may question their faith, turning to agnosticism, or deism, while others find solace and strength in their religious beliefs despite their doubts. The resilience of faith in the face of suffering is a testament to the human spirit and the belief that a better world awaits those
D.J.: "What is your relationship with God at this time?"
E.W.: "Very tense since the war. I believe in God despite him, as I believe in man despite men. God never stops testing me. Since God is God, he is everywhere, in all acts, in all decisions, but then where was he during the Holocaust? We can consider ourselves before death as before God. Am I His victim? His partner? His adversary? I continue to ask questions that have no answers."
I understand his doubts very well and admire the man who, despite all the difficulties of life, did not deny the Judaic religion in which he was brought up
even if at certain times, when he was interned in the concentration camp, he rebelled against God who "had not kept his promises," namely, to protect "his people." In 1987, answering Michaël de Saint Cheron [Wi], he said clearly:
"...not having been abandoned by God nor abandoned God, it was his relationship with his faith that was shaken, but his faith was always present."
His trust in God - who, according to Jewish tradition decides where one is born and the conditions in which one lives, it is He who personally watches over His "treasures" - remained intact. Wiesel provides an interesting answer to the question asked about the origin of suffering:
"The fact that there is so much suffering, agony, death, and casualties today shows that we - and all our contemporaries - have failed to match our actions to our abilities" [Wi].
The Jewish philosopher, Emmanuel Levinas, who was also a prisoner of war of the nazis, does not question whether God was present during the Holocaust. But he agrees with E. Wiesel in his analysis: it is up to humans to build a world where goodness would prevail. This creates a bridge with Christian theologians for whom God wants our Good but has left a place for Evil because he decided to leave us free will.
Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu, winner of the 1984 Nobel Peace Prize, has never given up on the power of joy and redemption. Even in the face of apartheid, he endured and resisted the pains, sufferings, and injustices with grace and courage. He wisely said:
"I believe in God, who can respond to prayers, to whom we can give trust and without whom life on this earth would be without meaning (a tale told by an idiot). I believe that God has revealed Himself to us in many ways and through many men and women and that for us here in the West the clearest revelation is through Jesus and those that have followed him" [Tu].
While these courageous behaviors can be discussed, some mysterious aspects can only be explained by appealing to faith. Only faith in the existence of God and a better world, where justice reigns, can overcome these trials. It is, in my opinion, more difficult for those who suffer, with or without apparent reason than for those who have good fortune (some would say it is a gift from heaven, but it is difficult to admit for a true believer) not to depend on the whims of fate or the ignominy gener
According to Tihomir Dimitrov, the answer to a similar question asked to the 1993 Nobel Prize in Physics J.H. Taylor, Quaker (ref.377, p.112) was:
"We are active in the Religious Society of Friends, that is, the Quakers and it's been an important part of our lives, more so for my wife and me than for our children. My wife and I spend time with our faith group
it's a way for us to make connections with our philosophical views on life, why we are on the Earth, and what we can do for others.. The Quakers are a group of Christians who believe that there can be direct communication between an individual and the Spirit, which we may call God. B
This seems to have been the vision of Max Planck (ref.255, p.78), the father of quantum physics, the 1918 Nobel Prize winner in Physics, and a Lutheran who remained a practicing Christian despite the ordeals he underwent. I have not found any writings by him on the subject nor for sir I. Newton (ref.185, p.59), a prominent Anglican, and his alter ego A. Einstein (ref.268, p.81), a Pantheist. Nevertheless, we know that Newton maintained correspondence with his friend and fellow Cambridge student,
The Lutheran polymath Gottfried Leibniz recalls that:
"... among the ancients, the fall of Adam was called Felix culpa, a happy sin, because it had been repaired with immense advantage by the incarnation of the Son of God, who gave to the universe something nobler than anything that would otherwise have existed among creatures."
To summarize, there is a fairly broad consensus among non-scientist theologians, rabbis, imans, prominent scientists, and others that evil results from the "Free will" granted to Humanity by God with the idea that it will induce some positive effect on it. But we cannot conclude this paragraph without presenting the stances of some believing scientists for whom the answer is grounded in the theory of evolution and natural selection (cf. §5.4). Since the advent of Darwin's groundbreaking theory o
Enter Peter and Rosemary Grant [Gr], two exceptional individuals whose Christian convictions have seamlessly coexisted with their transformative contributions to the fields of evolutionary zoology and biology.
Their enduring collaboration has not only left an indelible mark on our understanding of life's complexities but has also shaped the very fabric of our knowledge about Earth's diverse ecosystems.
Picture this: Peter and Rosemary, born roughly 1,000 miles apart, shared an early and profound fascination with the wonders of the natural world during their formative years. Peter's insect collections and flower studies mirrored Rosemary's penchant for gathering plant fossils and comparing them to their living counterparts.
Their mutual curiosity laid the foundation for their future as scientists.
While Peter delved into the depths of zoology at the prestigious University of Cambridge, Rosemary Partington pursued her zoology BSc degree at the University of Edinburg. Fatefully, in the breathtaking landscapes of Vancouver, Canada at the University of British Columbia, Rosemary's academic journey intertwined with Peter's, and their kindred spirits aligned. Two years later, their marriage marked the beginning of a dynamic partnership in the realm of evolutionary zoology.
Their collective impact on our understanding of the natural world is immeasurable, continually inspiring generations of scientists worldwide. The Grant's extensive studies, particularly their four-decade exploration of finches adaptation on the Galápagos Islands, have made significant contributions to our understanding of natural selection, speciation, and hybridization in these birds. Their work has illuminated the frequent occurrence of natural selection and, in some instances, the surprising
"A major burden was removed from the shoulders of believers when convincing evidence was advanced that the design of organisms need not be attributed to the immediate agency of the Creator, but rather is an outcome of natural processes."
The Grant's illustrious careers have garnered them numerous prestigious medals, awards, and accolades from esteemed scientific Societies, including the Royal Society. In their journey, Peter and Rosemary Grant have not only advanced our scientific understanding but have also provided solace to those seeking to reconcile the wonders of creation with the tenets of faith.
An interesting stance is that one of the prominent biochemists Denis Alexander (ref.704, p.250) an apologetic Baptist. Although he acknowledges that pain and suffering are a reality of the natural world and that they can be caused by various factors such as genetic mutations, environmental factors, and human actions, his credo, both in his numerous lectures, interviews, and books, is that:
"Whilst the cost of existence is extremely high, it can nonetheless be squared with the idea of a God of love whose ultimate purposes for humankind render that cost more comprehensible" [Ar2].
His perspective is informed by both his scientific understanding of the natural world and his Christian faith As a biochemist analyzing the complex and dynamic system of interactions among living organisms and their environment he quotes various examples including that of the ambivalent carbon cycle. On the one hand, it is harmful to humanity through the emission of carbon dioxide (CO2) resulting from the activities of volcanoes and mankind
on the other hand, it is essential to life on our plan
- On one hand, responsible for greenhouse gas emissions such as CO2 and methane (CH4) into the atmosphere
causing global warming, affecting weather and climate events such as heat waves, droughts, floods, storms, tsunamis, sea level rise.. It is also the cause of the acidification of oceans and seas, resulting in negative effects on marine life: corals, mollusks, and plankton...
- On the other hand, it is essential for the sustainability of life on Earth, as it regulates the flow of carbon dioxide between the atmosphere and living organisms. Thanks to the photosynthesis process, green plants (containing chlorophyll) and some other organisms, absorb light. The light energy is converted into chemical energy allowing to convert water, CO2, and minerals into Oxygen (O2) and energy-rich organic compounds according to the following relation:
CO2 + H20 + light energy -( organic compounds + O2.
If photosynthesis ceased most organic matter, food, organisms, and gaseous oxygen would disappear, also I agree with his stance.
The Christian biochemist Francisco Alaya (ref.682, p.243), while studying theology in Salamanca, Spain, found that:
"Darwin was a much-welcomed friend" [Dn2].
Upon his emigration to the USA in 1961, Alaya actively engaged in lectures, and debates with proponents of a literal interpretation of the Bible and Intelligent Design concepts. Concurrently, he pursued groundbreaking research in molecular biology, contributing to a novel understanding of species origin and advancements in preventing and treating diseases such as malaria.
In his publication: "Darwin's Gift to Science and Religion," Alaya explains how natural selection solves the perennial problem of evil. He posits that floods, droughts, predators, parasites, dysfunctions, and diseases are not indicative of a flawed or malevolent design but rather inherent outcomes of life's evolutionary processes. According to Alaya, the features of organisms are not the result of deliberate design by the Creator, providing a unique perspective that bridges science and theology.
The common thread that runs through the views of R. and P. Grant, D. Alexander, and F. Alaya, whether through natural process or divine purpose, is an attempt to make sense of the complexity of life and the existence of pain and suffering.
Once is not custom, I give my perspective on the intriguing subjects of "free will" and the concepts of "good and evil." These reflections have been fortified by various readings and discussions, shedding light on these profound topics. First and foremost, the question arises: Did God bestow upon us the gift of free will? If our response leans towards negation, it would render our earthly existence devoid of purpose, reducing it to a mere predetermined script. I subscribe to the belief in a bene
1st. The notion that God created the universe without a predetermined purpose. This perspective implies a laissez-faire approach as if God simply "let it be" or relinquished control of Satan. However, this view contradicts the very essence of God's anthropic project and His omnipotence. I firmly reject this thesis, as I have expounded upon in this essay.
2nd. The belief that God created the Best of All Possible Worlds (cf. §V.6) for the benefit of humanity.
This perspective encompasses the laws of nature we have observed, including the law of evolution and its corollary natural selection
an idea that remains irrefutable in contemporary times. However, for various reasons elucidated earlier, it is conceivable that God has imparted a direction to this law
a direction that can be likened to the "Omega Point," as proposed by P. Teilhard de Chardin (ref.505, p.157) or the "arrow of Time," as envisioned by I. Prigogine (ref.387, p.115). Nevertheless, t
In conclusion, the interplay between free will, good, and evil remains a profound and ongoing inquiry, intertwined with the mysteries of existence and the divine. Although A. McGrath (ref.739, p.271) expert in the relationship between science and religion "does not believe that humanity will ever fully explain suffering" he shares the common opinion that:
These considerations invite us to ponder the nature of God's omnipotence and the intricate design of the universe, weaving together the fabric of our beliefs and understanding.
The question of whether death marks the end of our journey has intrigued humanity since the dawn of modern civilization. This enduring debate is evident in the ancient engravings found in various caves and archeological sites. While some pioneering thinkers like G. Leibniz (ref.181, p.53) have explored the concept of pre-established harmony, the voices of recognized scientists have largely been absent. Let's, for now, turn to the realm of philosophers and theologians, with a promise to revisit G
Across different city-states and historical periods, Hellenists' beliefs about the afterlife have undergone significant evolution, shaped by philosophical and religious developments. A common thread emerges: souls, after death, are ushered into the Underworld, where they face judgment based on their earthly actions and deeds by Hades, the enigmatic ruler of this dark realm. To embark on this journey, souls must cross over the fabled River Styx, and the proper burial rites ensure their safe passa
- Elyseum, a realm of peace and joy reserved for heroes and those favored by the gods.
- The Fields of Asphodel where average souls reside, experiencing neither great suffering nor immense pleasure.
- Tartarus, the deepest and darkest part of the Underground, reserved for the most wicked souls.
Plato's Philosophical Insights. Among the variations, Plato (ref.54, p.15) stands out for his adaptation of Orphic beliefs into a comprehensive theory of the soul's destiny after death. Plato posited that the soul was immortal, originating from a divine source. Yet, he also proposed in Timeus that:
"Individual souls comprised residue of the universal soul substance, albeit of an inferior grade."
According to Plato, the soul could undergo reincarnation in different bodies, influenced by its earthly actions and virtues. He believed that through philosophical initiation and reminiscence, the soul could access knowledge of its origin and destiny.
Eternal Life in Harmony. For Hinduism, those who have detached themselves from material pursuits and devoted their lives to the Supreme Soul, God (Sri Krsna), will, upon death, merge into eternal life in perfect harmony with Krishna.
Common Threads in Abrahamic Religions. The three Abrahamic religions: Judaism, Christianity, and Islam possess unique beliefs regarding the afterlife while sharing some common tenets:
- The soul separates from the physical body at the moment of death.
- Judgment Day: God evaluates each soul based on deeds and faith during earthly life. Rewards await the righteous, while punishment awaits those who have rejected God and committed evil acts. Some theologians explore concepts like Teshuvah (repentance) in Judaism, Purgatory in Christianity, and the Barzakh, an intermediate state between death and judgment in Islam.
- Resurrection. The body will be reconstituted and reunited with the soul.
As we circle back to our central theme, let's shift our focus to the perspectives of scientists. Blaise Pascal, a renowned scientist (ref.170, p.48), possessed a brilliant and inquisitive mind that constantly pondered the question:
"What is man, this mortal, that you are mindful of him,
The son of Adam that you care for him?" [PS 8:5]
In contemplating "What is man in nature?" Pascal answered, "Nothing concerning the infinite, yet everything concerning nature." According to him, we only comprehend life and death through Jesus Christ, who, by being crucified, buried, and resurrected, provides hope for an eternal spiritual life.
The distinguished Lutheran scientist, Gottfried Leibniz, the founder of the infinitesimal Calculus, and a rationalist philosopher, postulated that the soul is a monad (ref.182, p.53, and pp.55-56), a simple, indivisible substance characterized by perception and appetite. Each monad possesses a unique identity and nature, striving to increase its perception and happiness. Pre-established by God, monads play a vital role in the divine plan, harmonizing with their bodies and the universe, and colla
Max Planck (refs.255&782, pp.78&303), a devout Lutheran and 1918 Nobel Prize winner in Physics, one of the Fathers of Quantum Mechanics, not only stood as one of the greatest scientists of our era, praised by A. Einstein, and L. de Broglie,. but also deeply permeated by a profound religious attitude [Pl 2 & Pl3]. For him, our soul, a part of God's Mind, being not bound by natural laws, is not subject to death but to judgment, and it is eternal. This perspective is not only found in some of his w
I cannot conclude this exploration of death without reminding you that, long related to the realms of science fiction, the concept of a Multiverse or Multiple Universes has captured (cf. chapter IV.2.) the imagination of cosmologists since Hugh Everett's groundbreaking work in 1967 (ref.575, p.184). Pioneering minds such as Andrei Linde (ref.561, p.179), and Andreas Albrecht (ref.562 p.179), . have since embraced this notion. The idea of a parallel universe, impervious to electromagnetic waves y
"Through death, the family is not destroyed
it transforms: a part of it goes into the invisible. We believe that death is an absence when it is a discreet presence. We believe it creates an infinite distance, when it eliminates all distance, bringing back to the spirit what was localized in the flesh. to die is to reunite, it's a paradox to assert that..."
My perspective is bolded and further strengthened by reflections from Great Scientists and Nobel laureates. As a Roman Catholic who believes in the resurrection, I am inclined to trust that we are being tested, for we have a role to fulfill even after our earthly life has ended. Death is a doorway to eternal life. In the Christian faith, marked by the anticipation of the resurrection of the dead, earthly life's purpose is to earn the promised eternal life by following God's commandments, as stat
"The agony of death brings forth the truth: this is what you were turning away from. You were indifferent to it. Well, We remove your veil
your sight is clear today."
Conclusion
"This conviction, linked to a deep feeling of a superior reason, revealing itself in the world of experience, translates for me the idea of God...I affirm that the religious feeling cosmic is the most powerful and noble motive of the scientific research."
A. Einstein [Ei]
"Religion has a most important role in pointing out that there is more to life than selfish materialism"
A. Hewish (ref. 371)
I have chosen the following epigraph for this essay from Gottfried Leibniz (ref.182, p.53): "Why is there something rather than nothing?." This question, posed by a prominent religious scientist of Isaac Newton's stature (ref.185, p.56), is a poignant inquiry addressed to atheists who adhere to materialism. He was not asking about a cause like all other causes, but asking about the root of all possible causes. Leibniz endeavored to provide a more profound answer to this question through his conc
It's worth noting that A. Einstein (ref.268, p.81) held a similar scientific viewpoint, as evident in his statement (cf. [Ei1], p.20):
"His (The scientist's) religiosity consists of astonishment and ecstasy at the harmony of the laws of nature, revealing an intelligence so superior that all human thought and ingenuity can only reveal their derisory nothingness in the face of it."
Over four centuries, immense progress has been achieved in science, leading to a deeper understanding of the universe's structure. While some "mysteries" have been unveiled, others have arisen, prompting Albert Einstein's observation:
"What is incomprehensible is that the universe is comprehensible."
These discoveries have painted a picture of a universe more intricate than that envisioned by philosophers and exegetes who lived before the advent of modern science. Today, we comprehend that quarks and leptons, governed by the four fundamental forces that may have been unified at the moment of the Big Bang, constitute the universe's fundamental building blocks. Their properties are determined solely by "initial conditions" and approximately fifteen "fundamental constants." These constants, not
"...these laws (in the discovery of which he participated as he points out) do not rely on the principle of necessity but on the principle of wisdom's choice. This stands as one of the most compelling and nuanced arguments for the existence of God, particularly for those who delve into these matters."
Two centuries later, Max Planck (refs.255&782, Pp.78&302), the 1918 Nobel Prize in Physics, universally recognized as the father of Modern Physics, a devout Protestant, will state a similar viewpoint:
"The existence of these constants is a palpable proof of the existence in nature of something real and independent of every human measurement"
Hence, there is no room for the concept of "pure chance," as we have sought to elucidate. Paradoxically, this strengthens rather than undermines the position of theists, in contrast to the misconceptions of the 17th century during the dawn of experimental science. However, my intention was not to prove but to support the notion, that our faith in God, the Creator, should not be solely rooted in scientific discoveries. Regardless of one's belief system, we have observed that all the necessary con
- Belief in the existence of God is not naive.
- Moderate scientific rationality can coexist with religion
as agnostics have testified.
- On the other hand, some materialists exhibit an overly rigid rationalism, that takes on religious characteristics, a phenomenon more prevalent in France than in the USA, for example,
- Atheist negationists lack valid arguments. John Lennox, Professor Emeritus of Mathematics at Oxford University, ENG, and an apologist for Christianity [Lx], recently expounded on why atheists lack compelling arguments. It was during a conference in Haifa, ISR, attended by Christian students. Lennox, a seasoned defender of his faith in Christ since his days at Cambridge University, is well-known for his televised debates with prominent atheist scientists, including the eminent atheist ethologis
To advance toward my goals, I have engaged with some of the most prominent scientists of our era, recognizing that science is the cornerstone of materialist thinking. While many of us may be unaware of it, scientists themselves are well aware of the controversies within the field. Therefore, there's no inherent reason for these controversies to vanish when they delve into matters of faith. Interestingly, a significant number of Nobel Prize laureates, a prestigious accolade established only in 19
Also, our objective has been to objectively illustrate the evolution of thoughts:
- the "ancient worldview" held that the world was eternal, shaped by gods from a primordial, timeless substance. These gods, embodying Nature's faces and forces, were products of the primitive Universe.
- Subsequently, with "Moses," the Hebrews, guided by the Pentateuch, embraced a creative perspective on the world, centered around Yahweh-God, who fulfilled their spiritual needs. They honored Him with the title "God of Israel," a name passed down from Jacob, the third Patriarch following his father Isaac, and his grandfather Abraham.
- In "Hellenic antiquity," despite the prevalence of polytheism, scientific rationalism emerged alongside attempts at mechanistic interpretations, with a focus on finality. Plato and Aristotle stood as undisputed Masters of thought of this era. It's worth noting that for Aristotle and his disciples, a first cause (a god) was deemed necessary to "shape" the limited world in which they resided. This rationalism would leave a profound imprint on Western thought.
- The "Middle Ages" witnessed the Hellenization of the Arab-Islamic world, often referred to as the "Islamic Golden Age." The Arabic language served as a conduit for Aristotelian ideas, enriched by the thinkers of the Arab-Muslim empire, some of whom made significant contributions to the advancement of science, particularly in fields like medicine and optics. Until the end of the 16th century, the domain of science remained intertwined with theology.
- The 17th century, marked a significant shift in the relationship between science and religion. Catholic scientists like René Descartes [De] (ref.152, p.43), Galileo Galilei (ref.144 to 146, p.41), and Blaise Pascal (ref.170, p.48), paved the way for a confrontation between mathematical models and empirical evidence. Philosophers with a keen interest in science were also vocal during this period. Descartes' assertion that: "our senses do not reveal the true nature of things but only their utili
- In the vibrant landscape of the 18th century Enlightenment, a period teeming with intellectual ferment, it proves challenging to identify a stalwart defender of religion against the prevailing tide of freethinkers. However, in the illustrious figure of L. Euler (ref.210, p.63), hailed as the Master of mathematicians in his era, and revered as one of the greatest mathematicians of all time, we find a compelling voice. Euler, whose prolific writings spanned philosophy and theology, held a convic
"It is not sufficient to say with the blind philosophers, that God is the soul of the world, that he is the universal spirit, that he is the internal mover of everything. We must go further, and conceive him as independent of all material beings, as the source of all existence, and as the original cause of all that is beautiful, good, and perfect in the universe."
- In the mosaic of scientific progress realized during the 19th century, Pasteur's contributions (ref.240, p.73) shine as a beacon of innovation and compassion, transcending the boundaries of his era and leaving an enduring impact on the trajectory of human advancement. He aptly stated:
"Little science estranges men from God, but much science leads them back to Him."
- In the 20th century, the quest for answers regarding the origin of the Universe, underwent a profound transformation. No longer confined to theological explanations, this pursuit became the realm of a select group of visionary scientists proficient in the intricate realms of mathematics, navigating the uncharted waters of a four-dimensional, non-Euclidean space.
A pivotal moment in this intellectual journey was the revelation of electromagnetic waves, an unprecedented revelation that unfolded in the wake of James C. Maxwell's groundbreaking discoveries (ref.234, p.71).
Maxwell, a devout Presbyterian, brought to light phenomena previously unimaginable. His revelations set the stage for the introduction in 1905 of Einstein's transcendent general theory of relativity (ref.268, p.81)
a Spinozian Pantheist whose paradigm-shifting work catapulted theoretical physics into a new epoch. Einstein's genius was underscored by the remarkable fact that many of his predictions found empirical confirmation through the ingenious experiments of his contemporaries.
As the torchbearers of science advanced so did the tapestry of knowledge, particularly in physics, astronomy, and biology. Yet, with each revelation, new enigmas surfaced. The advent of Quantum Mechanics, exemplified by W. Heisenberg's principle of indeterminacy (ref.316, p.93), ushered in an era where the very fabric of reality was shown to possess inherent uncertainty. For example, the accurate trajectory of an isolated electron eluded definitive determination, while the collective behavior of
In contrast, the creation of the universe by a divine hand remains firmly deterministic, shrouded in the unknowable mystery of God. Naturally, we possess limited insights into the Divine, for neither God nor the realm of spirituality finds a place within the structured models of cosmologists. Nevertheless, the march of physics has illuminated the boundaries of human comprehension. A good example is our profound ignorance of dark matter and dark energy these elusive elements that make up a large
- The 21st century has unequivocally underscored the chasm between the realm of science and the loftier world Plato once alluded to. This profound distinction crystallized with the momentous discovery of gravitational waves in 2015 (cf. chap.2, p.135) and, subsequently, the unveiling of the long-anticipated image of a Black Hole (Sagittarius A*) at the heart of our galaxy in 2019. These breakthroughs birthed new mathematical models anchored in the Theory of General Relativity, delving into n-dim
Our journey through the millennia has shifted us from ancient cosmogony, where the wisdom of the ancients reigned supreme, to cosmology, an intricately specialized bastion of the sciences that has surged forward since the dawn of the 20th century. As our knowledge expands, rendering the universe more comprehensible to a select few, it also unfurls a cascade of new questions, potentially challenging previously established doctrines. Yet this complexity underscores the intricacies of celestial mec
In the face of these cosmic enigmas, it becomes evident that the universe occasionally withholds its secrets, waiting to be unlocked by the divine wisdom of a higher power. While physicists grapple with the unknown, we are reminded that science and reason have their bounds, and the cosmos' awe-inspiring complexity perpetually inspires humility and wonder in the hearts of those who seek to unravel its deepest mysteries. Although our discourse has centered on the Cosmos, delving into the realm of
"Science and religion address different facets of reality, and one who believes that everything can be explained through a simplistic materialistic lens may be deemed naive."
This naivety echoes the sentiment of 1933 Nobel Prize-winning Christian physicist E. Schrödinger (ref.309, p.91), a philosopher, who wrote in "Nature and the Greeks" (1954):
"In short, I have not the slightest hesitation in declaring that to accept an existing material world as an explanation of the fact that we are all finally empirically in the same environment is metaphysical and mystical. It is convenient but a bit naive. By adopting this hypothesis, we lose a lot of things. But in any case, no one has the right to denounce other points of view as mystical and metaphysical, imagining that his own is devoid of these weaknesses."
In chapter 4 ("The Arithmetical Paradox: The Oneness of Mind"), Schrödinger, expresses, particularly his monistic view of reality, inspired by the Vedantic philosophy of India, according to which consciousness is singular and plurality is only in appearance (cf. chap.3, p.167). He also criticizes the materialistic conception of the world, which he considers naive and metaphysical, imagining that his own is empty of these weaknesses. He emphasizes the fact that the attempt to entirely eradicate t
"... the art and the science lifeless, deprived of soul, and incapable of the least ulterior development."
Having showcased that numerous esteemed scientists personally embrace the concept of a supreme architect, whom they call God, and even lean towards theism, it becomes evident that belief in God is not antithetical to contemporary scientific thought. This hope is that these pages provide the elements needed to confront skepticism and, with unwavering faith, whether any potential mockery from atheists or proponents or probabilistic theories that, if true, might fail to account for the creation of
To resume, exploration throughout the centuries has confirmed that it is impossible to scientifically disprove the existence of God, the Creator of "Heaven and Earth," as affirmed by the three Abrahamic religions and others. Perhaps this is because, as Mahatma Gandhi posited, religious sentiment resides within us, consciously or unconsciously, transcending the realm of the intellect. [Col2 p. 265].
For skeptics, I turn to Lord William Kelvin (ref.227, p.68), the progenitor of Thermodynamics, and a devout Christian, who asserted:
"Do not be afraid to be free thinkers! If you think hard enough you will be forced by science to believe in God, the founder of all religions. You will find that science is not antagonistic to religion but an auxiliary to it."
"The deeper I delve into my scientific inquiries, the more I am inclined to believe that science and atheism are incompatible."
"... Atheism is an idea so insane that I cannot put it into words."
As expressed by the Anglican poet and painter Dante G. Rossetti:
"The atheist's most challenging moment arises when gratitude swells within, and there is no one to thank."
It suggests, that believers while contemplating the beauty and perfection of nature, have cause to thank God for His divine craftsmanship.
I will let the word to Michal Heller (ref.700, p.248), a prominent contemporary cosmologist and Catholic priest, laureate of the prestigious 2008 Templeton Prize, a great admirer of Pythagoras (ref.55, p.16) and Leibniz (ref.182, p.53) said:
"Does the universe need to have cause? Causal explanations are a vital part of the scientific method. Various processes in the universe can be displayed as a succession of states, in such a way that the preceding state is a cause of the succeeding one. If we look deeper at such processes, we see that there is always a dynamic law prescribing how one state should generate another state. But dynamical laws are expressed in the form of mathematical equations, and if we ask about the cause of the un
and, to Dr. Frank Wilczek (ref.381, p.113), Pantheist, Laureate of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2004. In 2022, the Templeton Prize committee recognized his exceptional use of mathematical tools to explore the profound questions that have intrigued humanity for centuries, including our place in the universe. This well deserved accolade affirmed his ability to peer into the mysteries of existence using equations, diagrams, calculations, and intellectual concepts, affirming the intrinsic link betw
"The central miracle of physics to me is that by playing with equations, drawing diagrams, doing calculations, and working within the world of mental concepts and manipulations, you are describing the real world. If you were looking to try to understand what God is by understanding God's work, that's it."
This remarkable scientist continues to blaze new trails in physics, introducing groundbreaking concepts and theories that unveil hidden dimensions of reality, much in the spirit of Sir J. Templeton. With his unique blend of space and time, advanced mathematics, and profound philosophical ideas, Wilczek's work invites readers to witness a universe of awe-inspiring beauty and intellectual wonder. In doing so, he exemplifies the profound interconnectedness of science and spirituality offering a bea
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Authors
Ref. - P .
NOM Prénom
14-5
Abdu'l-Baha (Teheran, Persia 1844-1921 Haïfa) head of the Baha'i faith.
230-70
Adams John C. (GB: Laneast 1819-1892 Cambridge), astronomer, Anglican.
714-255
Aetius Flavius (Durostorum = Silistra, BGR 395-454 Ravenne, ITA), Roman Patrice.
394'-117
Ahmad Mirza (Qadiyan, Punjab 1835-1908) founder of Ahmadism.
682-243
Alaya Pereda Francisco J. (Madrid, ESP 1934), biologist. Catholic.
562-179
Albrecht Andreas (Ithaca, NY-US 1957), theoretician physicist.
761-283
Aldrin Buzz (Glen Ridge, NJ-US 1930), astronaut, Freemason, Presbyterian.
704-250
Alexander Denis (ENG 1945), molecular biologist, Catholic.
100-30
Alhazen ou Ibn al-Haytham (EGY: Bassora 965-1039 Cairo), experimental Scientist, Chiite.
350-105
Alpher Ralph (USA: Washington DC 1921-2001 Austin, TX), cosmologist Agnostic Jew
406-120
Alter Harvey I. (New York, USA 1935), 2020 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Jew.
105-31
Al-Baghdahi Abu'l Barakat (IRQ: Balal 1080-1164/65 Bagdad), physician. Jewish =& Muslim.
108-32
Al-Bayhaqî Zahir al-Dîn (Sabzevar, IRN 1097-1169), mathematician, Muslim..
97-29
Al-Fârabi (Fârâb, Turkestan 872-950 Damascus, SYR), philosopher, scientist. Muslim.
94-28
Al-Fazari Muhammad (Persian or Arab died in 796 or 806), an astronomer, and astrologer. Muslim.
109-32
Al-Ghazâlî Abû Hamid Mohammed ibn Mohammed Ghazâlî (Tus, IRN 1058-1111), philos. Soufiste.
91-27
Al-Khwarizmi (Khiva, OUZ 780-850 Bagdad, IRQ), mathematician, astronomer. geog., Muslim Imam.
93-28
Al Kindi (IRQ: Koufa 801-873 Bagdad), mathematician, physicist scholar. Muslim.
87-26
Al' Mamûm (Bagdad, IRQ 786-833 Tarse, TUR), Calif, Muslim Theologian.
96-28
Al-Razi (Rayy, IRN 865-925 or 935), polymath, Muslim.
120-34
Al-Tusi Nasir al-Dîn (Tus, IRN 1201-1274 Bagdad, IRQ) polymath, Muslim.
620-213
Ampère André-Marie (FR: Lyon 1775-1836 Marseille), physicist, Catholic.
625-216
Anatole France (FRA: Paris 1844-1924 St Cyr-sur-Loire), 1921 Nobel of Literature. Free thinker.
631-220
Anaxagoras (TUR - 500 to - 428 Lampsaque (Asie Mineure), astronomer, philosopher.
36-12
Anaximander (Miletus -610 to -546) astronomer, and philosopher.
38-12
Anaximenes (Miletus -550 to -480) astronomer, physicist, and philosopher.
758-282
Anders William (Hong Kong 1955), astronaut.
331-98
Anderson Carl D. (New York 1905-1991 San Francisco), 1936 Nobel Prize in physics.
63-20
Aristarchus of Samos (Samos, GRC -310 to - 230), astronomer, mathematician, philosopher.
59-18
Aristotle (Stagire nowadays Rtavro [GRC -384 to - 322 Chalcis, Eubea), polymath, and philosopher.
208-62
Arius (Cyrénaïque, LBY 256 - 336 Constantinople, TUR). Priest, Christian Theologian.
760-282
Armstrong Niels (OH-US: Wapakoneta 1930-2012 Cincinnati), Astronaut, Freemason, Methodist.
411-122
Arrhenius Svante SWE: Vik 1859-1927 Stockholm), 1903 Nobel Prize in Physics. Lutheran
400-118
Ashkin (USA: New York 1922-2020 Rumson, NJ)), 2018 Nobel Prize in Physics. Jewish
324-96
Aspect Alain (Agen, Fr 1947), 2022 Nobel Prize in Physics.
207-62
Athanasius of Alexandria (EGP: Damanhour 296/298 -373), Christian Bishop, Father of the Church.
175-51
Atlan Henri (Blida, ALG 1931), biologist, Jew Spinozian.
111-32
Averroes (Cordoba, ESP 1126-1198 Marrakech, MAR), physician. Muslim.
104-31
Avicebron (ESP: Malaga 1020 -1057 Valence), metaphysicist, Rabbi.
101-30
Avicenna or Ibn Sina (Afshana, UZB 980-1037 Hamadhan, IRN), physician, Muslim.
219-66
Avogadro Amedeo (ITA : Turin 1776 - 1856), a physical chemist. Catholic.
15-5
Baha'u'llah (Nur, Persia 1817-1892 Acre), funder of the Baha'i faith.
192'-58
Bainbridge John (ENG: Asby-de-la-Zouch 1582-1643 Oxford) Astronomer, Church of England Priest.
639-224
Baltimore David (New York 1938) 1975 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine.
265-80
Bardeen John (USA: Madison, WI 1908-1991 Boston, MA). Physicist and Engineer. Nobel Prize in Physics in 1956 and 1972.
456-135
Barish Barry Clark (Omaha, NE-US 1936), 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics, Jewish.
329-98
Barkla Charles G. (Widnes, ENG 1877-1944 Edinburg, Scotland), 1901 Nobel in Physics. Methodist.
791-314
Barr Stephen (NY-US 1953), physicist, astrophysicist, Catholic.
188-57
Barrow Isaac (London, ENG 1630- 677), mathematician. Anglican Theologian -& Catholic.
696-247
Barrow John D. (London, ENG 1952), physicist, mathematician, astrophysicist. Protestant.
356-106
Basov Nikolaï (RUS: Ousman 1922-2001 Moscow), 1964 Nobel Prize in Physics.
220'-67
Baye Thomas (ENG: London 1702-1761 Tunbridge Wells, Kent), mathematician. Presbyterian Pastor.
25-9
Beaud Richard (Albeuve CHE 1942), philosopher, egyptologist, Dominican Theologian
550-169
Beck Friedrich (Wiesbaden, DEU 1927-2008), theoretical physicist.
262-79
Becquerel Henri (Fr: Paris 1852-1908 Le Croisic), 1903 Nobel Prize in Physics, Catholic.
689-245
Behe Michael (Altoona, PA-US 1952), biologist, Catholic.
385-114
Bekenstein Jacob (Mexico City 1947-2015 Helsinki, Finland), theoretical physicist. Jewish.
370-110
Bell Burnell Jocelyn (Lurgan, Ulster, IRL 1943), physicist. Quaker.
117-34
Ben Abraham de Montpellier Solomon, (first half of 13th century). Rabbi
116-33
Ben Juda of Ceuta, Magreb 1160-1226), physician, mathematician, astronomer, Rabbi.
118-34
Ben Nachman Moses (Girona 1194-1270 Acre, kingdom of Jerusalem), philosopher, physician, Sephardic rabbi, Kabbalist
605-205
Bergson Henri (Paris, Fr 1859-1941), Philos., Nobel Prize in Literature. Jewish (buried as Catholic).
740-272
Bernard d'Espagnat (FRA: Fourmagnac 1921-2015 Paris), theoretical physicist. Christian.
193-58
Bernoulli Jacques (Bâle, CHE 1654-1705), mathematician, Protestant.
541-165
Birch Charles (AUS: Melbourne1918-2009 Sydney), biologist, geneticist, and Anglican theologian
297-89
Bohr Niels (Copenhagen, DNK 1885-1962), 1922 Nobel Prize in Physics. Atheist.
237-72
Boltzmann Ludwig (Vienna, AUT 1844-1906 Duno, ITA), physicist, Deist materialistic.
757-282
Borman Frank (Gary, IN-US 1928), astronaut. Christian.
313-93
Born Max (Breslau-Empire allemand 1882-1970), 1954 Nobel Prize in Physics. Jew -& Lutheran.
619-212
Boscovich Roger, J. (Dubrovnik, HRV 1711-1787 Milan, ITA), mathematician, Jesuit.
183-56
Bossuet Jacques-Bégnine (Fr: Dijon 1627 - 1704 Paris), Catholic Theologian.
320-95
Bothe Walther (DEU: Oranienbourg 1891-1957 Heidelberg), 1939 Nobel Prize in Physics, Lutheran.
196-59
Boyle Robert (Lismore, IRL 1627-1691 London, ENG), chemist, Anglican apologist.
211-64
Bradley James (ENG: Sherborne 1693-1762 Chalford), astronomer, Priest, Church of England.
364'-108
Brailovsky Victor (Moscow, RUS 1935), mathematician, informatician, Orthodox Jewish.
733-268
Brooks Frederick Jr. (Durham, NC-US 1931), 1999 Turing Prize, Evangelical apologist,
517-159
Brunet Michel (Magné, Fr 1954), paleontologist.
617-211
Brunschwig Jacques: (FR Paris 1929-2010), philosopher.
459-136
Buenanno Alessandra (ITA), CERN collaborator.
630-219
Cairns-Smith (Kilmarnock, Scotland 1931-2016 Uplawmoore, ENG), biologist.
137-38
Calvin Jean (Noyon, Fr 1509-1564 Genève, CHE). Protestant (Calvinist).
743-274
Campbell William C. (Ramelton, North Ireland, UK 1930), biologist, parasitologist. Protestant.
174-51
Cantor Georg (St-Petersburg, RUS 1845-1918 Halle-German Empire), mathematician. Lutheran.
292-87
Carrel Alexis (FR: Sainte-Foye-lès-Lyon 1873-1944 Paris), 1912 Nobel Prize in Physio. or Med. Catholic.
648-229
Carter Brandon (AUS 1942), cosmologist Theist.
752-279
Carver George W. (Diamond US-MO 1864-1943 Tuskegee, AL), researcher, and inventor. Christian.
722-261
Cauchy Augustin, Louis, baron (FR: Paris 1789-1857 Sceaux), mathematician. Catholic.
767-286
Cergnignani Carlo (ITA: Teulada 1939-2010 Milano), mathematician
447-132
Charpentier Emmanuelle (Juvisy-sur-Orge 1968), 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Catholic.
680-243
Chauvin Rémy (Toulon 1913-2009 Sainte-Croix-aux-Mines), biologist. Catholic.
717-258
Christine de Lorraine (Nancy 1565-1637 Florence, ITA), Catholic.
80-24
Cicero Marcus (ITA: Arpinum -106 to -43 Gaeta) was a philosopher and politician. Theist pagan.
522-161
Clark Ron (South Africa 1944), archeologist.
238-72
Clausius Rudolf (Koszalin, POL 1822-1888 Bonn, DEU), physicist, Protestant.
66'-21
Clavius Christophorus (Bamberg, DEU 1538-1612 Rome, ITA), astronomer, Jesuit.
427-127
Clinton Bill (Hope, AR-US 1946), 42ème president des USA, Baptist.
776-296
Cobb John B. (Kobe, JPN 1925), environmentalist, Christian.
358-107
Cohen-Tannoudji Claude (Constantine, French Algeria 1933), 1997 Nobel Prize in Physics, Jewish.
433&435-129
Collins Francis (Staunton, VA-US 1950), geneticist, 2020 Templeton Prize, Evangelical apologist.
709-253
Combulazier Charles (Fr: Marseille 1903-1991) Doctor in Sciences. Catholic priest.
326-98
Compton Arthur (US: Wooster, OH 1892-1962 Berkeley, CA), 1927 Nobel in Physics, Presbyterian.
633-220
Conklin Edwin G. (USA: Waldo, OH 1863-1952 Princeton, NJ.), Biologist, Methodist.
103-31
Constantine IX (TUR: Antioch 1000-1055 Constantinople), Christian emperor.
135-38
Copernicus Nicolaus (Prussia: Thorn 1473-1543 Frauenberg), astronomer, Catholic canon.
340-101
Cory Carl (Prague, CZK 1896-1984 Cambridge, US-MA ), 1947 Nobel Prize in Physiology. Catholic.
339-101
Cory Gerty, born Radnitz (Prague, CES 1898-1957 Glendale MI-US), 1947 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine Jewish =& Catholic
729-265
Costa de Beauregard (Fr: Paris 1911-2007 Poitiers), theoretical physicist, Catholic.
637-223
Cousteau Jacques-Yves (Fr: St André de Cubzac 1910-1997 Paris), oceanographer, Catholic.
738-271
Coyne George V. (Baltimore, MD-US 1933), astronomer, Catholic Creationist.
650-231
Crick Francis H. (Northampton, ENG 1916-2004 San Diego US-CA), 1962 Nobel in Physio., Atheist.
263&264-79&80
Curie Marie born Sklodowska (Varsovie, POL 1867-1934 Passy, Fr). Nobel in Physics (1903) & Chemistry (1911),
241-74
Curie Pierre (Fr: Paris 1859 - 1906). 1903 Nobel Prize in Physics.
662-238
Dallinger William H. (ENG 1839-1990), protozoologist, Methodist minister.
217-65
Dalton John (ENG: Eaglesfield 1766-1844 Manchester), chemist, Quaker.
232-70
Darwin Charles (ENG: Shrewsbury 1809-1882 Down), was a biologist. Anglican he became Agnostic.
598-202
David de Posquières Abraham ben (Fr: Narbonne 1120-1197 Posquières-Gard), Rabbi kabbalist.
554-173
Davies Paul (London, ENG 1946), theoretical physicist, cosmologist, and astrobiologist, Christian.
306-91
Davisson Clinton J. (USA: Bloomington, IL 1881-1958 Charlottesville, VA), 1907 Nobel Prize in Physics.
698-247
Dawkins Richard (Nairobi, KEN 1941), ethologist, Atheist.
70'-22
Decius (Budalia, ALB 201-251 Roma, ITA) Emperor.
47-13
Democritus (Abdera-Thrace -470 to -370 & Leucippus, co-inventor of atom concept.
691-246
Dembski William (Chicago, IL-US 1960), mathematician, informatician, Evangelist Theologian.
152-43
Descartes René (La Haye-en-Touraine, Fr 1596-1650 Stockholm, SWE), scientist, philos. Catholic.
745-275
Deterre Philippe (Troyes, FR 1952), biologist, Catholic priest.
576-184
Deutsch David (Haïfa, ISR 1953), Quantum Computer scientist, Atheist.
155-44
de Bérulle (Cérilly 1575-1629 Paris), Cardinal Catholic.
303-90
de Broglie Louis V. (Fr: Dieppe 1892- 1987 Louveciennes), 1929 Nobel Prize in Physics, Catholic.
161-45
de Fermat Pierre (FRA: Beaumont-de-Lomagne 1607 - 1665 Castres), scientist. Catholic.
194-58
de Rochon Alexis-Marie (FRA: Brest 1741-1817 Paris), scientist, Catholic priest.
615-210
de Saint-Exupéry Antoine (FRA: Lyon 1900 - 1944 drowned in the Mediterranean Sea), writer.
664-238
de Vries Hugo (NLD: Haarlem - Ede), biologist, geneticist, Anabaptist.
167-47
de Waard Cornelis (Bergen-op-Zoom, NLD 1879-1963 Flessingue island, NLZ), was a scientific historian.
587-192
delle Colombe (ITA : 1565), scientist, Catholic.
365-108
Dicke Robert (USA: St Louis, MO 1916-1997 Princeton, NJ), scientist.
39-12
Diogenes of (Sinope, TUR - 413 to - 327 Corinth, GRC), philosopher, cynic school representative.
92-28
Diophantus of (Alexandria, EGY between 3rd and 2nd c. B.C. s. ), arithmetician.
317-94
Dirac Paul (Bristol, ENG 1922-1984 Tallahassee, FL-US), 1933 Nobel Prize in Physics. Deist.
539-165
Dobjansky Theodosius (Nemyriv-UKR 1900-75 San Jacinto, CA), genet., Russian Orthodox Christian.
448-132
Doudna Jennifer (Washington DC-US 1964), 2020 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Christian.
474-144
Duhem Pierre (FRA: Paris 1861-1916 Cabrespine) physicist, chemist, and historian. Catholic.
639'-224
Dulbecco Renato (Catanzaro, It 1914-2012 La Jolla, US-CA) 1975 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicin.
221-67
Dumas Jean-Baptiste (FRA : Alès 1800-1884 Cannes), chemist, Catholic.
436-130
Dunston Georgia M. (Norfolk, VA-US 1944) microbiologist. Baptist.
640-224
Duve Christian (Thames-Ditton, ENG 1917-2013 Nethen, BEL), biologist-geneticist, Catholic.
291- 87
Dyson Frank (Measham, ENG. 1868-1939) Royal astronomer. Baptist.
588-193
Dyson Freeman (Crowthorne, ENG. 1923), physicist. Christian.
736-269
Eaves Lindon J. (Walsall, ENG. 1944). geneticist, Anglican priest.
749-277
Edison Thomas (USA: Milan, OH 1847-1931 West Orange NJ), inventor. Deist.
268-81
Einstein Albert (Ulm, DEU 1879-1955 Princeton, NJ-US), 1921 Nobel in Physics, Jew Pantheist.
775-294
Eisenberg Josy (FR: Strasbourg 1933-2017) Rabbi.
771-289
Ellis George (Johannesburg, S-Africa 1939), cosmologist, 2004 Templeton Prize, Quaker.
43-13
Empedocles (Agrigente, GRC ? - 495 à ? - 435), engineer, physician, philosopher, poet.
450-133
Englert François (Etterbeek, BEL 1932) Baron, 2013 Nobel Prize in Physics. Jewish -& Catholic.
610-208
Enns Peter (Passaic, NJ-US 1961), theologian Evangelist.
61-20
Epicurus (GRC: Samos -341 to -270 Athens), philosopher, astronomer.
64-20
Eratosthenes (Cyrene, LBY -276 to -194 B.C. Alexandria, EGY) was a mathematician and astronomer.
210-63
Euler Leonhard (Basel, CHE 1707-1783 St Petersburg RUS), mathematician & physicist, Calvinist.
575-184
Everett Hugh (US: Washington DC 1930-1982 McLean, VA), mathematician, physicist, cosmologue.
253-77
Fabre Jean-Henri (FRA: Saint Léons 1823-1915 Sérignan-du-Comtat) was an ethologist. Deist Christian.
464-138
Fackle Heino (Cologne, DEU 1966), radio astronomer and physicist, Protestant Pastor.
656-235
Falk Darrell R. (Vancouver, CAN 1946), biologist, Evangelist.
235-71
Faraday Michael (ENG: Newington 1791-1867 Hampton Court), physicist. Calvinist Presbyterian.
629-219
Farooqi Sadaf (middle 1960), physician. Muslim.
202-61
Fatio de Duillier Nicolas (Basel, CHE 1664-1753 Worcester, ENG), mathemat., astrophysicist., Protestant.
764-285
Feit Carl (Teaneck, NJ-US. 1945), microbiologist, Rabbi.
268'-81
Fermi Henrico (Roma, ITA 1901-1954 Chicago, IL-US), 1938 Nobel Prize in Physics.
440-131
Fert Albert (Carcassonne, FR 1938), 2007 Nobel Prize in Physics.
361-108
Feynman Richard (USA: Queens, NY 1918-1988 Los Angeles CA), 1965 Nobel Prize in Physics. Free thinker of Jewish education.
29-10
Flavius Josephus (Jerusalem, ISR 37/38-100 Roma, ITA), historiographer.
634-222
Flew Anthony Garrard (ENG: London 1923-2010 Reading), biologists, Atheist -& Deist.
182'-53
Fontenelle (FRA: Rouen 1657-1757 Paris). Living dictionary, scientific populariser, cartesian.
596-198
Fourier Joseph Baron (Auxerre 1768-1830 Paris), scientific, Catholic.
139-39
Fra Mauro (Venezia, ITA 1385-1460), cartographer, Catholic Benedictin.
432'-128
Franklin Rosalind (ENG: Notting Hill 1920-1958 London), chemist, biologist, . Jewish.
222-67
Fresnel Augustin (FR: Broglie 1788-1827 Ville d'Avray), experiment. & theoretician. physicist. Catholic
286-86
Friedmann Alexander (RUS: St Petersburg 1888-1925 Leningrad), mathematician, and physicist.
414-123
Friedmann Jerome I. (Chicago, US-IL 1930), 1990 Nobel in Physics. Atheist.
426-126
Fuller Richard B. (USA: Milton, MA 1895-1983 Los Angeles, CA), architect, inventor, Unitarian.
742-274
Funès José G. (Cordoba, ARG 1963), astronomer, Jesuit.
88'-27
Galen Claudius (Pergamon, TUR 129-216 Roma, ITA), physician, Agnostic.
144 to 146-41
Galilei Galileo (ITA: Pisa 1564-1642 Arcetri) was an astronomer, and a physicist. Catholic.
229-69
Galle Johan (DEU: Radis 1812-1910), astronomer.
349-105
Gamow Georges (Odessa, UKR 1904-1968 Boulder, CO-US], theoretical physicist.
796-318
Gandhi (IND: Porbandar 1869-1948 Delhi) lawyer, politician, "Father of India." Hinduist.
98-29
Gaon Saadja (Medinet el-Fayoum, EGY 882-982 Bagdad, IRQ), Rabbi.
177-52
Gassin dit Gassendi Pierre (FRA: Champtercier (04) 1592-Paris 1655), astronomer. Catholic canon.
710-254
Gaudi Antoni (ESP: Reus 1852-1926 Barcelona), God's Architect, Catholic.
213-64
Gauss Johann C (DEU: Brunswick 1777-1885 Göttingen). "Prince of Mathematicians," Christian.
259-79
Geiger Hans (DEU: Neustadt an der Weinstrabe, All. 1882-1945 Potsdam) was a physicist.
417-124
Gell-Mann Murray (USA: New York 1929- 2019 Santa Fe, NM) 1969 Nobel Prize in Physics.
466-138
Genzel Reinhard (Bad Homburg vor der Höhe in Hesse 1952), 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics.
99-29
Gerbert d'Aurillac (Belliac FRA 945/950-1003 Roma, ITA), scientist, Pope Sylvester II.
306'-91
Germer Lester (USA: Chicago, IL 1896-1971 Gardner, NY), physicist.
465-138
Ghez Andrea (NY-US 1965) Astrophysicist, 2020 Nobel Prize in Physics.
699-247
Giberson Karl W. (Bath, Nouveau Brunswick, CAN 1957), physicist, Evangelist.
439-131
Gilbert Walter (Boston, US-MA 1932), 1980 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
393-117
Glashow Sheldon (New York, USA 1933), theoretical physicist, Jewish.
184-56
Gödel Kurt (Brno, AUT 1906-1978 Princeton, NJ-US) mathematician, and philosopher. Protestant.
766-286
Golshani Mehdi (Isfahan, IRN 1939), physicist, Muslim.
646-227
Goodall Jane (London, Eng 1936) Primatologist, anthropologist, 2021 Templeton Prize, Christian.
397-117
Goodenough John B. (Jeina, DEU 1922), 2019 Nobel Prize in Physics, Evangelist.
325-97
Goswami Amit (IND 1936) physicist. Hinduist,
681-243
Gould Stephen J. (New York, USA 1941-2002), paleontologist, biologist, Agnostic Jewish.
783-303
Grant Peter (London, ENG. 1936), zoologist and evolutionary biologist.
784-303
Grant Barbara Rosemary (Amside, ENG. 1936), zoologist and evolutionary biologist.
635-222
Grassé Pierre-Paul (FRA: Périgueux 1895-1985 Carlux), zoologist, Catholic.
661-237
Gray ASA (US: New York 1810-1888 Cambridge, MA), physicist, botanist, Presbyterian.
403-119
Green Michael, B. (London, ENG 1946), theoretical physicist.
195-59
Grimaldi Francesco (Bologna, ITA 1618-1663, physicist, Jesuit priest.
381'-113
Gross David (Washington-DC 1941) 1941 Nobel Prize in Physics.
593-196
Grothendieck Alexandre (Berlin, DEU 1928-2014 St Lizier, Fr), 1966 Medal Fields. Atheist=&Deist.
441-131
Grünberg Peter (Pilsen, CZ 1939-2018 Jülich, DE), 2007 Nobel Prize in Physics, Catholic.
122-35
Guillaume d'Auvergne (FRA: Aurillac 1190- 1249 Paris), Catholic Theologian.
106-31
Guillaume de Conches (Conches-en-Ouche 1080-1154), Catholic Theologian.
577-184
Gurzadyan Vahe (Erevan, ARM 1955), was a physicist, mathematician, and cosmologist.
391-116
Guth Allan (New Brunswick, NJ-US 1947), cosmologist.
345-103
Hahn Otto (DEU: Frankfurt 1879-1968 Göttingen), 1945 Nobel Prize of Chemistry, Lutheran.
676-241
Haldane John B.S. (Oxford, ENG 1892 - 1964 Bhubaneswar, IND), geneticist, Atheist.
243-74
Haüy René Just (FRA: St Just-en-Chaussée 1743-1822 Paris), mineralogist, Catholic Priest.
369-110
Hawking Stephen (ENG: Oxford 1942-2018 Cambridge), theoretical physicist.
707-252
Hefner Philip (Denver, CO-US 1932), Lutheran Theologian.
154-44
Hegel Georg W. F. (DEU: Stuttgart 1770-1831 Berlin), philosopher, Christian.
779'-301
Heidegger Martin (DEU: Baden 1889-1976 Fribourg), philos., theologian. Protestant =& Catholic.
312-93
Heisenberg Werner (DEU: Wurtzburg, 1901-1976 Munich), 1932 Nobel Prize of Physics, Lutheran.
700-248
Heller Michael (Tarnow, Pol. 1936), cosmologist, 2008 Templeton Prize, Catholic
37-12
Heraclitus (Ephesus, TUR -576 to -480), philosopher and cosmologist.
352-105
Herman Robert (USA: New York 1914-1997 Austin, TX), cosmologist.
249-75
Hertz Heinrich R. (Hambourg, German confederation 1857-1894 Berlin, DEU), was a physicist.
332-99
Hess Victor F. (Peggau, AUT 1883-1964 Mount Vernon, NY-US), 1936 Nobel in Physics, Catholic.
371-111
Hewish Antony (Fowey, UK 1924-2021), radio-astronomer, 1974 Nobel Prize in Physics, Christian.
449-133
Higgs Peter (Newcastle, ENG 1929), theoretical physicist. 2013 Nobel of Physics.
63-20
Hipparchus (Nicaea, TUR -190 to -120 Rhodes, Dodecanese), mathematician, astronomer .
88'-27
Hippocrates (GRC: Island of Cos -460 to -377 B.C. Larissa), physician.
732-267
Hodgson Peter (London, ENG 1928-2008), nuclear physicist, Catholic
414'-123
Hofstadter (New York 1915-1990 Stanford, CA), 1961 Nobel Prize in Physics. Theist.
658-236
Hooker Joseph (UK
Halesworth 1817-1911 Berkshire), was a physician and an explorer. Anglican.
301-90
Hubble Edwin P. (USA: Marshfield, MO 1889-1953 San Marino, CA), astronomer.
513-158
Hublin J-Jacques (Mostaganem, Algeria, FRA 1953), paleo anthropologist.
378-112
Hulse Russel A. (New York 1950), astrophysicist, 1993 Nobel Prize in Physics.
798''-319
Hunt William H. (London, ENG: 1827-1910), painter. Anglican.
744-275
Hutchinson Ian Horner (ENG 1951), nuclear physicist, Christian.
660-237
Huxley Thomas H. (GB: Ealing 1825-1895 Eastbourne), biologist and anthropologist, Agnostic.
179-52
Huyghens Christian (La Haie, NL 1629-1696), was a mathematician, physicist, and astronomer. Lutheran,
134-38
ibn'al-Shatir (Damas, SYR 1304-1375), astronomer, Muslim.
95-28
ibn Firnas Abbas (ESP: Rond 810-887 Cordoba), physician, chemist, poet, Muslim.
88-27
ibn Ishaq Hunayn (Al-Hira, IRQ 808-877), Nestorian Christian.
96'-29
Ibn Sahl Sabur ( ?? - 869), Persian physician, Christian.
89-27
ibn Qurra Thâbit (Harran, TUR 826-901), Sabean.
763-283
Irwin James B. (USA: Pittsburg, PA 1930-1991 Glenwood Springs, CO), astronaut, Baptist.
147-42
Isaacson Walter (New Orleans, LA-US 1952) historian, and biographer.
214'-65
Jacobi Carl Gustav J. (Kingdom of Prussia: Potsdam 1804-1851 Berlin), mathematician, Anglican
731-267
Jaki Stanley (Györ, Hun 1924-2009 Madrid, Esp), astrophysicist, Templeton Prize, Benedictin
33-11
Jasper Karl (DEU: Oldenburg 1883-1969 Basel) existentialist philosopher. Christian.
367-109
Jastrow Robert (USA: New York 1925-2008 Arlington, VA), astrophysicist, Agnostic.
429-127
Jefferson Thomas (USA: Shadwell, VA 1743-1826 Monticello, VA). 3rd Pdt USA, Christian or Deist.
688-245
Johnson Phillip (1940), law professor, Presbyterian.
264''-80
Joliot Curie Frédéric (Paris, FRA 1900-1950),1935 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
264'-80
Joliot Curie Irène (Paris, FRA 1897-1956),1935 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
314-93
Jordan Pascual (DEU: Hanover 1902-1980 Hamburg), theoretical physicist.
224-68
Joule P. James (ENG: Salford 1818-1889 Sale), physicist, chemist, . Anglican.
410-122
Jouzel Jean (Janzé, FRA 1947), glaciologist and climatologist, 2012 Vetlesen Prize, Catholic.
677-242
Jung Carl G. (CHE: Kesswil 1875-1961 Küsnacht) was a physician, and a psychiatrist. Protestant.
84-26
Justinian 1st (TUR: Tauresium 482-565 Constantinople), Roman emperor.
2'-xi
Kant Emmanuel (Könisberg-Prusse-Orientale 1724-1804), philosopher, Agnostic.
622-214
Kastler Alfred (FRA: Guebwiller 1902-1984 Bandol), 1966 Nobel in Physics, Evangelical protestant.
415-123
Kendall Henry (Boston, MA 1926). 1990 Nobel in Physics, Theist.
718-258
Kendler Kenneth S. (New York, USA 1950), geneticist, Jewish.
762-283
Kennedy, John F. (USA: Brooklyn, MA 1917-1963 Dallas, TX), 35th USA President, Catholic.
149&150-42&43
Kepler Johannes (DEU : Weil 1571-1630 Ratisbonne), astronomer, Lutheran.
754-280
Khan Mashriqui Inayatullah (PAK: Amritsa 1888-1963 Lahore), mathematician, and logician. Islamic scholar (Theistic Evolutionist).
748-277
Kocher Emil Th. (Bern, CH 1841-1917), 1909 Nobel of Physiology or Medicine. Moravian Church,
216-65
Kronecker Léopold (Legnica, POL 1823-1891 Berlin, DEU), mathematician, Jewish =& Christian.
212-64
Lambertini Prospéro L. (ITA : Bologne 1675-1758 Rome), Pope Benedict XIV.
694-246
Lamoureux Denis (Alberta CAN 1954), biologist, Catholic.
254-77
Landsteiner Karl (Baden bei-Wien, AUT 1868-1943 US-NY), 1930 Nobel in Physiol. Med., Catholic.
220-66
Laplace Pierre-Simon de, Marquis (Beaumont-en-Auge 1749-1827 Paris), scientist, Catholic.
243'-74
Lavoisier Antoine de (FR: Paris 1743-1794) Philosopher, Economist, and Chemist. Catholic.
341-102
Lawrence Ernest (USA Canton, SD 1901-1958 Palo Alto, CA), 1939 Nobel Prize in Physics, Anglican.
453-134
Lederman Léon, M. (USA: New York 1922-2018 Rexburg, ID), 1988 Nobel Prize in Physics.
182-53
Leibniz Gottfried Wilhelm (DEU : Leipzig 1646-1716 Hanover), polymath », Lutheran.
719-259
Leibowitz Yeshayahu (Riga, LET 1909-1994 Jerusalem, ISR), biochemist, Jewish.
642-226
Lejeune Jérôme (FRA: Montrouge 1926-1994 Paris), geneticist, Catholic.
342-102
Lemaître Georges (BEL: Charleroi 1894-1966 Louvain) astronomer. Catholic canon.
789-313
Leonardo da Vinci (Toscana, ITA 1452-1519 Le Clos Lucé, Amboise, FRA), polymath, Catholic.
Lennox John (IRL 1943) was a mathematician, and philosopher. Christian apologist.
148-42
Leprince-Ringuet Louis (Alès 1901-2000 Paris) FRA: physicist, Catholic.
597-201
46-13
Leucippus (Miletus, Ionia -460 to -370) & Democritus, philosophers.
779-301
Levinas Emmanuel (Kaunas, LTU 1905-1995 Paris), philosopher, Jewish.
721-259
Levi-Montalcini Rita (ITA: Torino 1909-2012 Roma), 1986 Nobel of Physiology or Medicine, Sephardic Jew.5
734-268
Lewis Clive Staples (Belfast, IRL 1898-1963 Oxford, ENG), philosopher, Catholic.
428-127
Lewis Merither (USA: Charlottesville, VA 1774-1809 Nashville, TN), military explorator.
203-61
Le Sage Georges-Louis (Genève, CHE 1724-1803), physician.
228-69
Le Verrier Urbain (FRA: Saint-Lô 1811-1877 Paris) was an astronomer and mathematician. Catholic.
472-143
Lincoln Abraham (Comté de Hardin, KY 1809-1865 Washington-DC (murdered)). 16ème Pdt USA.
561-179
Linde Andrei Dimitrievitch (Moscow, RUS 1948), theoretical physicist.
145-41
Lippershey Hans (Wesel, DEU 1570-1619 Middelbourg, NLD), physicist.
244-74
Lippmann Gabriel (Bonnevoie, LUX 1845-1921 wrecked), 1908 Nobel Prize of Physics, Jewish.
724-262
Littré Emile (Paris1801-1881), physician, Agnostic.
151-43
Lord Francis Bacon (ENG: London 1561-1626 Highgate), was a scientist, philosopher, and Anglican.
336-99
Lord Ernst B. Chain (Berlin 1906-1979 Castlebar IRL), 1945 Nobel of Physiology or Medicine, Jewish.
337-100
Lord John Boyd-Orr of Brechin, (Scotland: Kilmaurs, 1880-1971 Edzell) was a scientific researcher in nutrition. Free Church of Scotland.
335-99
Lord Howard Florey (Adelaide, AUS 1898-1968 Oxford ENG), 1945 Nobel in Physiol., Agnostic.
227-68
Lord William Kelvin was born Thomson (Belfast, IRL 1824-1907), Father of Thermod., Presbyterian.
267-80
Lord Rayleigh was born John W. Strutt, (Essex, ENG: Langford Grove 1842-1919 Witham), 1904 Nobel Prize of Physics, Anglican.
252-76
Lord Ernest Rutherford, Baron of Nelson (Brightwater, NZL 1871-1937 Cambridge, ENG), 1908 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Anglican, near YEC
273-82
Lorentz Hendrik (NLD : Arnhem 1863-1928 Haarlem), 1902 Nobel Prize in Physics, Free thinker.
759-282
Lovell James (Cleveland, OH-US 1928). Astronaut.
189-57
Lucas Henry (ENG 1610-1663), Anglican priest, sponsor of a scientific chair.
136-38
Luther Martin (Eisleben, Saxe 1483-1546), Catholic -& Protestant Lutheran
114-33
Maïmonide Moses (Cordoba, ESP 1135-1204 Fostat, EGY), physician, astronomer. Jewish Theologian.
135'-38
Maria da Novara Domenic(Ferrara 1454-1504 Bologna), mathematician, astronomer, physician, Catholic
250-76
Marconi Guglielmo ITA: (ITA: Bologna 1874-1937 Roma), 1909 Nobel Prize of Physics, Anglican.
471'-143
Margenau Henry (Bielefeld, DE 1901-1997 Hamden CT-US), was a physicist, and philosopher. Christian.
197-59
Mariotte Edme (FRA: Dijon 1620-1684 Paris), chemist, Catholic Priest.
555-174
Martines de Pasqually (FRA: Grenoble 1727-1774 St Domingue), Freemason, Mystic Catholic.
420-125
Mather John Cromwell (Roanoke, VA-US 1946), 2006 Nobel Prize in Physics.
685-244
Maturana Humberto (Santiago, CHL 1928), biologist, Catholic.
234-71
Clerk Maxwell James (GB: Edinburg 1831-1879 Cambridge), physicist, Evangelical Presbyterian.
421-125
Mayor Michel (Lausanne, CHE 1942), 2019 Nobel Prize in Physics.
756-282
McBrierty Vincent (Belfast, IRL 1942, physicist, Catholic.
655-235
McCready Price J. (Havelock, CAN 1870-1963 Lorna Lind, US-CA), Adventist, Creationist Author
454-134
McCullough Matthew (1985), CERN senior physicist.
739-271
McGrath Alister (Belfast, IRL 1953), molecular biophysicist. Anglican Theologian.
578-185
Meissner Krzysztof (Varsovie, POL 1961), theoretical physicist, Catholic.
347-104
Meitner Lise (Vienna, AUT 1878-1968 Cambridge, ENG), physicist, Jewish -& Protestant.
657-236
Mendel Gregor (CZE: Heinzendorf bei Odrau, Silesia 1822-1884 Brno), biologist, Catholic monk.
71-22
Mercati Giovanni (Reggio Emilia, ITA 1866-1957 Vatican), Cardinal.
166-47
Mersenne Marin (Oizé 1588-1648 Paris) was, a philosopher, scientist, and Catholic priest.
463-137
Messier Charles (FRA: Badonviller (31) 1739-1817 Paris), astronomer, Christian.
281-85
Michell John (ENG: 1724-1793 Yorkshire), physicist, and father of seismology. Evangelist.
247-75
Michelson Albert (Strzelno, POL 1852-1931 Pasadena, CA-US), 1907 Nobel of Physics..
737-269
Miller Kenneth (Rahway, NY-US 1950), biologist, Catholic.
727-264
Millikan Robert (USA: Morrison, IL1868-1953 San Marino, CA), 1923 Nobel in Physics, Anglican.
313'-93
Minkowski Hermann (Alexotas, RUS 1864-1909 Göttingen, DEU), mathematician.
231-70
Mitchell Maria (US-MA: Nantucket 1818 -1889 Lynn), astronomer, Unitarian.
638-223
Monod Jacques (FRA: Paris 1910-1976 Cannes), 1965 Nobel of Physiology or Medicine, Atheist.
579-185
Monod Théodore (FRA: Rouen 1902-2000 Versailles), biologist, explorer, humanist, . Protestant,
778-298
Monod Wilfred (Paris, FRA: 1867-1943), professor of theology, Protestant.
248-75
Morley Edward W. (USA: Newark, NJ 1838-1923 West Hartford, CT), physicist.
703-249
Morris Simon Conway (Carshalton, ENG 1951), paleontologist, Christian.
29-10
Moses (16 - 17ème c. Before J-C), founder of the Jewish religion.
414''-124
Mössbauer Rudolf (DEU: Munich 1929-2011 Grünwald), 1961 Nobel Prize in Physics, Atheist.
470-140
Munk Salomon (Glogow, POL 1803 - 1867 Paris, FRA), librarian, Jewish,
537-164
Muori Alysson (Brazil ~ 1974), neurobiologist.
412-123
Murray Joseph E. (US-MA: Milford 1919-2012 Boston), 1969 Nobel of Physiology. or Medicine., Catholic.
259'-79
Müller Walther (Hanover, DEU 1905-1979 Walnut Creek, CA-US), physicist.
85-26
Nestorius (Syrie 380 - 451 Kargeth), Christian Patriarch of Constantinople.
566-180
Onsager Lars (0slo, DNK 1903-1976 Coral Gables, Fl-US), 1968 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
632-220
Oparin Alexandre I. (RUS: Ouglicht 1894-1980 Moscou), biochemist, Christian.
348-104
Oppenheimer Robert (USA: New York 1904-1967 Princeton, NJ, theoretical physicist, Mystic.
70-22
Origen (Alexandria, EGY 185-253 Tyr, LYB), Christian exeget.
419'-125
Osborne Louis S. (Roma, ITA: 1923-2012 Lexington, US-MA) « Gentle giant of physics," Christian.
627-218
Ovid (Sulmone, ITA -43 B.C. to 17 A.C.), layer, poet.
442-131
Pääbo Svante (Stockholm, Sweden 1955), 2022 Nobel Prize of Physiology or Medicine, Agnostic?
191-58
Paley William (ENG: Peterborough 1743-1805 Bishopwearmouth), naturalist, Anglican apologist.
181-53
Papin Denis (FRA: Blois 1647-1713), inventor, Protestant.
180-53
Pardies (FRA: Pau 1636-1674 Paris), physicist, Jesuit.
40-13
Parmenides (of Elea, Asia Menor -530 to -444), the Pythagorean, philosopher.
170-48
Pascal Blaise (FRA: Clermont-Ferrand 1623-1662 Paris), was a scientist, philosopher, and Catholic.
240-73
Pasteur Louis (FRA: Dôle 1822-1895 Villeneuve-l'Etang), pioneer in microbiology, Catholic.
310-92
Pauli Wolfgang (Vienna, AUT 1900-1958 Zurich, CHE), 1945 Nobel Prize in Physic, Catholic.
651-233
Peacocke Arthur (ENG: Watford 1924-2006 Oxford), biochemist, Anglican panentheist.
76-23
Pecci Vicenzo =& Pope Leo XIII (ITA: Carpineto Romano 1810-1903 Vatican).
366-108
Peebles Jim (Winnipeg, CAN 1935), cosmologist, 2019 Nobel Prize in Physics.
583-191
Pelt Jean-Marie (FRA: Rodemack, Moselle 1933 - 2015 Metz), Life Sciences, Catholic.
364-108
Penzias Arno Allan (Munich, DEU 1933), 1978 Nobel Prize of Physics, Conservative Jewish.
443-132
Perlmutter Saul (Champaign-Urbana, IL-US 1959), 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics.
359-107
Phillips William D. (Wilkes-Barre, US-PA 1948), 1997 Nobel Prize in Physics. Methodist.
65-21
Philo of (Alexandria, EGY -20 to 45), philosopher.
52-14
Philolaos of Crotone (Metaponto, ITA -470 to -390 Thebes, GRC), scientist, philosopher, and politician.
519-160
Pickford Martin (Trowbridge, ENG 1943), palaeo-primatologist.
255-78&782-302
Planck Max, Karl (DEU: Kiel 1858-1947 Göttingen), 1918 Nobel Prize of Physics. Lutheran.
570-182
Plantinga Alvin (Ann Arbor, MI-US 1932), professor of Philosophy, theologian protestant,.
54-15
Plato (Athens, GRC -428/-427 to -348), real name: Aristocles, philosopher, Theist pagan.
78-23
Plotinus (Lycopolis, EGY 205-270 Naples, ITA), philosopher.
381''-113
Politzer David (New York 1941), 1941 Nobel Prize in Physics.
571-182
Polkinghorne John (Weston-Super-Mare, ENG 1930), a theoretical physicist, theologian, and Anglican priest. 2002 Templeton Prize.
741-273
Pollack Robert E, (Brooklyn 1940), biologist, Jew.
212-64
Pope Benedict XIV, born Lambertini Prospéro L. (ITA : Bologna 1675-1758 Roma).
77-23
Pope Benedict XVI, born Ratzinger Joseph A. (Marktl-Bavaria 1927).
66-21
Pope Grégoire XIII (ITA: Bologna 1502-1585 Roma).
1-xi
Pope John-Paul II, born Wojtyla Karol, J. (Wadiwic, POL 1920-2005 Vatican).
76-23
Pope Leo XIII born Vincenzo Pecci (Capiuto Romano, ITA 1810-1903).
679-243
Pope Pie XII, born Eugenio, Maria, G. G. Pavelli (ITA: Roma 1876-1958 Castel Gandolfo).
99'-29
Pope Sylvester II cf. Gerbert of Aurillac
540-165
Popper Karl (Vienna, AUT 1902-1994 London, ENG), philosopher of sciences, Protestant.
387-115
Prigogine Iliya (Moscow, RUS 1917-2003 Brussels, BEL), 1977 Nobel Prize of Physics, Jewish Atheist.
357-106
Prokhorov Alexander (Atherton, AUS 1916-2002 Moscow, RUS), 1964 Nobel in Physics, Theist.
102-31
Psellos Michel (Constantinople, TUR 1018-1078), Christian monk.
68-21
Ptolemy (EGY: upper Egypt around 90-168 Canopy), astronomer.
45-13
Pullman Bernard (Wloclawek, POL 1919-1996 Paris, FRA), biophysicist.
55-16
Pythagoras (Samos, Aegean island -580 to -495 Metaponte, ITA), philosopher, scientist.
422-125
Queloz Didier (CHE 1966), 2019 Nobel Prize in Physics.
77-23
Ratzinger Joseph A. (Marktl, DEU 1927) =& Pope Benedict XVI.
190-58
Ray John (Black Notley, Essex, ENG: 1627-1705), naturalist, Anglican apologist.
4-1
Reeves Hubert (Montréal, CAN 1932), scientist. He said I am neither an Atheist nor an Agnostic.
140-39
Ricci Mattéo (Macerata, ITA 1552-1610 Beijing, CHN), scientist, Jesuit.
408-120
Rice Charles M. (Sacramento CA-US 1952) 2020 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
214-65
Riemann (G. F.) Bernhard (Breselenz, Kingdom of Hanover 1826-1866 Selasca, Kingdom of Italia). Famous mathematician, Christian.
445-132
Riess Adam (Washington DC-US 1969), 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics.
168-47
Roberval « The Mathematician », born Gilles Personne (FRA: Roberval 1602-1675 Paris), Catholic.
328-98
Roentgen Wilhem (DE: Lennep 1845-1923 Munich), 1901 Nobel Prize in Physics, Anglican ??.
282-85
Römer Ole Ch. (DNK : Aarhus 1644-1710 Copenhaguen), astronomer.
143-40
Rolston Holmes (Staunton, VA-US 1932), scientist, 2003 Templeton Prize, Presbyterian priest.
798-319
Rossetti Dante G. (ENG: London 1828-1882 Birchington-on-Sea), painter, poet, illustrator, Anglican
687-245
Rostand Jean (FRA: Paris 1894-1977 Ville d'Avray), biologist, Agnostic.
255'-78
Rubens Heinrich (DEU: Wiesbaden 1865-1922 Berlin), physicist.
388-115
Rubin Vera (USA: Philadelphia, PA 1928-2016 Princeton, NJ), astronomer, Jewish.
683-244
Ruffié Jacques (FRA: Limoux 1921-2004), hematologist, geniticist, Christian.
394-117
Salam Abdus (Jhang Sadar, PAK 1926-1996 London, ENG). 1979 Nobel of Physics, Ahmadist.
765-286
Sandage Allan (USA: Iowa City, IA 1928-2010 San Gabriel, CA), Cosmologist, Christian.
438-130
Sanger Frederick (ENG: Rendcomb 1918-2013 Cambridge) 1958 & 1980 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
119-34
Sapi Inès Physicist CERN.
644-227
Sartre Jean-Paul (FRA: Paris 1905-1980), philosopher, Atheist.
692-246
Schaefer Henry F. (Grand Rapids, US-MI 1944), chemist, Protestant.
491-150
Scharf Caleb (ENG 1968). Researcher and writer in Astrobiology.
354-106
Schawlow Arthur L. (Mount Vernon, NY 1921-1999 Palo Alto, CA, 1981 Nobel in Physics, Methodist.
444-131
Schmidt Brian (Missoula, MT-US 1967). 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics.
309-91
Schrödinger Erwin (Vienna, AUT 1887-1961), 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics, Philosopher. Anglican.
592-196
Schroeder Gérald (USA 1940) theoretical physicist. Orthodox Jewish.
402-119
Schwarz John, H. (North Adams, MA-US 1941), theoretical physicist, 2013 Fundamental Physics Prize.
363-108
Schwinger Julian (USA: New York 1918-1994 Los-Ángeles, CA), theoretical physicist, Jewish.
70'-22
Septimius Severus (Leptis Magna, LBY 146-211 Eboracum-Yorkshire, ENG), pagan emperor.
787-309
Sertillanges Antonin-Dalmasse (FR: Clermond-Ferrand 1863-1948 Sallanges) Dominican philosopher.
518-160
Sénut Brigitte (Paris 1954) Paleopromatologist, paleoanthropologist.
730-266
Sharansky Anatoli =& Natan (Donetz, UKR 1948), mathematician =& Politician, Atheist =& Jewish.
266-80
Sharpless Karl B. (Philadelphia, 1941), Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2001 and 2022, Quaker.
295-88
Sir William Henry Bragg (ENG: Westward,1862-1942 London), 1915 Nobel Prize in Physics. Anglican.
296-88
Sir William Lawrence Bragg (Adelaide, S-Australia 1890-1971 Waldringfield, ENG) 1915 Nobel Prize in Physics. Anglican.
300-89
Sir James Chadwick (GB: Bollington 1891-1974 Cambridge), 1932 Nobel Prize in Physics.
343-103
Sir John Cockcroft (ENG: Todmorden 1897-1967 Cambridge), 1951 Nobel Prize in Physics, Methodist.
291-87
Sir Frank Dyson (Measham, ENG. 1868-1939 into the sea), Royal astronomer, Baptist.
164-46
Sir John Eccles (Melbourne, AUS 1903-1997 Locarno, CHE), 1963 Nobel of Physiology, Deist.
290-87
Sir Arthur Eddington (ENG: Kendal 1882-1844 Cambridge), Astronomer, Quaker.
334-99
Sir Alexander Fleming (UK: Darvel, Scotl. 1881-1955 London), 1945 Nobel Prize in Physiology, Presbyterian.
251-76
Sir John A. Fleming (ENG: Lancaster 1849-1945 Sidmouth), physicist, engineer, Christian,
223-67
Sir William R. Hamilton (Dublin, IRL: 1805-1865), scientist, Anglican.
595-198
Sir William Herschel (Hanover, DEU 1738-1822 Slough, ENG), astronomer, Lutheran.
409-121
Sir John T. Houghton (Wales: Dyserth 1931-2020 Dolgellau), 1955 Nobel Prize of Peace, Evangelist.
407-120
Sir Michael Houghton (UK 1949), 2020 Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine.
351-105
Sir Fred Hoyle (ENG: Bingley, Yorkshire 1915-2001 Bournemouth), cosmologist & Astron, Atheist.
753-280
Sir James H. Jeans (London 1877-1946 Dorking, Surrey) was a physicist, astronomer, and mathematician. Anglican.
260-79
Sir Ernest Marsden (ENG: Manchester 1889-1970 Wellington), was a physicist.
798'-319
Sir John Millais (ENG: Southampton 1829-1896 London), painter. Anglican.
589-194
Sir Nevill F. Mott (Leeds, ENG 1905), 1977 Nobel Prize in Physics, Anglican.
185&204-56&61
Sir Isaac Newton (ENG: Woolsthrope 12/1642 or 01/1643-1727 Kensington), physicist, Anglican.
368-109
Sir Robert Penrose (Colchester, ENG 1931), mathematician, 2020 Nobel of Physics, Agnostic Jewish.
373-111
Sir Martin Ryle (ENG: Brighton 1918-1984 Cambridge), astronomer.
164'-46
Sir Charles Sherrington (ENG: Islington 1857-1952 Eastbourne), 1932 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, Anglican.
226-68
Sir George G. Stokes (Comté de Sligo, IRL 1819-1903 Cambridge, ENG), Lucasian Pr. Anglican.
434-129
Sir John Templeton (Winchester, TN-US 1912-2008 Nassau, BHS), economist, Presbyterian.
307-91
Sir George Paget Thomson (Cambridge, ENG: 1892-1975), 1937 Nobel Prize in Physics, Anglican.
308-91
Sir Joseph J. Thomson (ENG: Manchester, 1856-1940 Cambridge), 1906 Nobel in Physics, Anglican.
424-126
Smalley Richard (USA: Akron, OH 1943-2005 Houston TX), 1996 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Christian.
419-125
Smoot George F. (Yukon, FL-US 1945), 2006 Nobel Prize in Physics.
53-15
Socrates (near Athens, GRC -469 to -399 B.C., sentenced to death), philosophers' Master.
258-78
Soddy Frederick (ENG: Eastbourne 1877-1956 Brighton), 1921 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
299-89
Sommerfeld Arnold (Könisberg, Prussia 1868-1951 Munich, DEU), theoretical physicist.
73-22
Sonier de Lubac Henri (FRA: Cambrai 1896-1991 Paris), Jesuit Theologian Cardinal-diacre.
172-50
Spinoza Baruch (NLD: Amsterdam 1632 - 1677 La Haye) was a philosopher. Pantheistic Jew.
659-237
Spottiswoode William (ENG, London 1825-1883), mathematician, physicist, Anglican.
563-179
Steinhardt Paul (Washington D-C, USA 1952), cosmologist.
123-35
St Albert the Great (DEU: Lauinguen 1193-1280 Cologne), scientist, Dominican.
81-24
St Ambrose of Milano (Trier, DEU 340-397 Milano ITA), Doctor and Father of the Church
715-256
St Anselme de Cantorbery d'Aoste (Aosta, ITA 1033-1109 Canterbury, ENG), Catholic monk.
79-24
St Augustin of Hippo (Thagaste [Souk Ahras, Roman ALG] 354-430 Hippo [Annaba]), Christian, Doctor, and Father of the Church.
128-36
St Duns Scotus John (Dun, ENG 1266-1308 Cologne, DEU), Franciscan theologian.
67-21
St Paul the Apostle (Tarsus 0-65 Roma executed).
127-36
St Thomas d'Aquin St (ITA : Aquino-Lazio 1224-1274 Priverno-Lazio), Dominican theologian, Doctor, and Father of the Church.
346-104
Strassmann Friedman "Fritz" (DEU: Boppard 1902-1980 Mainz), chemist.
582-190
Sudarshan George (Pallam British India 1931-2018 Austin, TX-US), theoretical physicist, Hinduist.
705-251
Swimme Brian (Seattle, US-WA 1950), cosmologist, evolutionist Theist.
384-114
Taylor John G. (ENG 1931-2002), mathematician.
377-112
Taylor Joseph H. (Philadelphia, PA-US 1941), astrophysicist, 1993 Nobel Prize in Physics. Quaker.
416-123
Taylor Richard E. (Medicine Hat, CAN 1929-Stanford, US-CA 2018). 1990 Nobel Prize in Physics.
505-155
Teilhard de Chardin Pierre (Orcines, FRA 1881-1955 New York, US), paleontologist, geologist, Jesuit.
639-224
Temin Howard M. (USA: Philadelphia, PA 1934-1994 Madison, WI), 1975 Nobel in Physiology, Jewish.
35-12
Thalès (Milet, Ionia, end of beginning of Vth c. B.C.), initiator of Philosophy, polymath.
262'-79
Thompson Benjamin (Woburg, US-MA 1753-1814 Auteuil, FRA), philanthropist, Anglican
227'-69
Thomson James (Ballinainch, IRL 1786-1849 Glasgow, Scotland), mathematician, Presbyterian.
227''-69
Thomson James (Belfast, IRL 1822-1892 Glasgow, Scotland), physicist, Presbyterian.
58'-18
Thonnard François-J. (BEL: Barvaud-sur-Ourthe 1896-1974 Saint-Gérard), Catholic priest.
458-136
Thorne Kip (Logan, US-UH 1940), 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics.
647-229
Thuan Trinh Xuan (Hanoï, VNM 1948) was an astrophysicist. Buddhist.
781-302
Tihomir (1995) double Master's degree in Psychology and Philosophy.
695-247
Tipler Franck (Andalusia, AL-US 1953), mathematician Theist, adept of I.D. as an idea.
573-183
Tolman Richard C. (USA: West Newton, MA 1881-1948 Pasadena, CA), physicist, chemist,.
362-108
Tomonaga Sin-Itiro (Tokyo, JPN 1906-1979), theoretical physicist.
661'-237
Torrey John (New York: 1796-1873), was a physician, botanist, and chemist. Protestant.
178-52
Torricelli Evangelista (ITA: Faenza 1608-1647 Firenza), scientist, Jesuit.
355-106
Townes Charles (USA: Greenville, SC 1915-2015 Oakland, CA), 1964 Nobel of Physics, Protestant.
780-301
Tutu Desmond (ZAF: Klerksdorp 1931-2021 Cap), 1984 Nobel Prize for Peace, Anglican Archbishop.
684-244
Varela Francisco (Santiago, CHL 1946-2001 Paris, FRA), biologist, Buddhist.
567-180
Vasilescu Dan (FR: Paris 1937), biophysicist, Agnostic.
431-128
Venter Craig (Salt Lake City, UT-US 1946), biologist.
187-57
Voltaire, born François Marie Arouet (Paris 1694-1778), philosopher, Deist.
624-215
Von Braun Wernher (Wirsitz, Posnania 1912-1977 Alexandria, US-VA), inventor, Lutheran.
294-88
Von Laüe Max (DEU: Pfaffendorf 1879-1960 Berlin), was a physicist. Catholic.
663-238
Walcott Charles D. (USA: New York Mills, NY 1850-1927 Washington, DC), paleontologist, Anglican.
176-51
Wallis John (ENG: Ashford 1616-1703 Oxford), mathematician, Presbyterian.
344-103
Walton Ernest (IRL: Dungarvan 1903-1995 Belfast), 1951Nobel Prize of Physics, Methodist.
665-238
Warfield Benjamin (USA: Lexington, KY 1851-1921 Princeton, NJ), Presbyterian Bishop.
432-128
Watson James D. (Chicago, US-IL 1928), 1962 Nobel in Physiology or Medicine.
395-117
Weinberg Steven (New York, USA 1933), theoretical physicist.
735-268
Weisley John (ENG: Epworth 1703-1791 London). Methodist founder, Pastor.
457-135
Weiss Rainer (Berlin, DEU 1932), 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics, Agnostic.
280-84
Wheeler John A. (USA: Jacksonville, FL 1911-2008 Hightstown, NJ), nuclear physicist, Unitarian.
233-70
Whewell William (ENG: Lancaster 1794-1886 Cambridge) polymath, scientist
Anglican theologian.
209-63
Whiston William (ENG: Norton 1667-1752 Rutland), Mathematician. Presbyterian Theologian.
706-252
White Robert (ENG: 1952), geophysicist.
542-166
Whitehead Alfred N. (Ramsgate, ENG 1861-1947 Cambridge, US-MA), math., philos., metaph. Theist.
398-118
Whittingham Stanley ( Nottingham 1941), 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Christian.
774-294
Wiesel Elie (Sighetu Marmatiei, ROU 1928-2016 New York, USA), 1986 Nobel Prize for Peace, Hassimid Jew.
381-113
Wilczek Frank (New York, USA 1951), 2004 Nobel in Physics, 2022 Templeton Prize, Pantheist.
192-58
Wilkins John (ENG: Fawsley 1614-1672 London), Anglican bishop.
581-186
William of Ockham (Ockham, ENG 1285-1347 Munich, DEU) philosopher. Franciscan theologian.
364'-108
Wilson Robert Woodrow (Houston, TX-US 1936), 1978 Nobel Prize in Physics, Agnostic.
755-281
Winchester Albert (Waco, TX-US 1908-2007), biologist, Baptist.
404-119
Witten Edward (Baltimore, MD-US 1951), theoretical physicist, Medal Fields. Jewish.
1-xv
Wojtyla Karol, J. (Wadiwice, POL 1920-2005 Vatican) =& Pope St John-Paul II.
41-13
Xenophanes of (Colophon, Ionia -570 to -475), philosopher.
141-39
Xu Guangqi (CHN: Shanghai 1562-1633 Beijing), scientist, Jesuit.
635-235
Yahya Harun / Oktan Adnan (Ankara, TR 1956), Interior designer, negationist, Islamist creationist.
399-118
Yoshino Akira (Suita, JPN 1948), 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
273'-82
Zeeman Pieter (NLD : Zonnemaire 1865-1943 Amsterdam), 1902 Nobel Prize in Physics, Free thinker.
42-13
Zeno of Elea (Elea -490 to -430), dialectician.
5-2
Zoroaster (Persia around 10th c. B.C.), founder of Zoroastrianism.
390-116
Zucky Fritz (Varna, BGR 1898-1974 Pasadena, CA-US), astronomer.
Glossary
Clear idea: ref.158-44.
Accident: ref.469-p.141
COBE (satellite): ref.418-p.124.
Adventist: ref.654-p.236.
Compete: ref.594-p.199.
Ahmadism: ref.394-p.117
Contingent: ref.626&773-p.220&294.
Amphibological: ref.585-p.194
Anagogical: ref.75-p.23.
Cosmogenese: ref.670-p.241.
Anthropic Principles: ref.648-p.231.
Cosmological constant: ref.289-p.87.
Anthropoid/Simiiform: ref.510-p.159.
Cromagnon man: ref.532-p.165.
Dark Matter: ref.390-p.116 & §1979-p.116.
Antiparticle: ref.318-p.94.
Arianist: ref.208-p.62.
Deduction: ref.157-p.44.
Ashram: ref.796'-p.318.
Deist vs Theist: ref.186-p.57.
Astronomical Unit = UA: ref.496-p.154.
Demiurge: ref.23-p.9.
Denisova man: ref.530-p.163.
Atomystic: ref.607-p.209.
DNA: Appendix 2 - p.142.
Australopithecus: ref.520-p.162.
Duality: ref.304-p.90.
Big Crunch: p.86.
Eclectism: ref.80'-p.24.
Big Rip: ref.551-p.172.
EHT: ref.462-p.138.
Big Splat: ref.574-p.185.
Eleatic School: ref.8-p.2.
Black Hole: refs.279&380-Pp.84&113.
Ennead: ref.24-p.9.
Entropy: ref. 238'-p.72.
Bohr's Atom: ref.298-p.89.
Epicurism / Epicurus: ref.61-p.20.
Bohr's complementarity principle: 321-p.96.
Epicycle: ref.69-p.22.
ESO: ref.467-p.139.
Brahman / Brahmana: ref.44-p.13.
Eudemonism: ref.57-p.17.
Brane: §4.2.1. p.184.
Existentialism: ref.32-p.9.
Fiqh vs Hadith: ref. 112-p. 32.
Brightest: ref.492-p.153.
Fullereness: 425-p.126.
Brownian motion: ref.288-p.86.
Cabbala/Kaballa: ref.603-p.206.
Gaia: ref.501-p.156.
Calâm/Kalâm & Mu'tazilite: ref.90-p.27.
Gene / Genome: Appendix 2 - p.142.
Catarrhinian: ref.511-p.159.
Geodesic: ref.284-p.86.
Church Father/Doctor: ref.9-p.3.
Gödel's theorem: ref.613, p.212.
Omega's Point: refs.669 &697-Pp.241&249.
Hadith vs Fiqh: ref.112-p.32.
Hegira: ref.86-p.26.
Ontology/Proslogion: ref.716-p.257.
Hermeneutic: ref 586-p.194.
Orphism: ref.786-p.308.
Hexapla: ref.72-p.22.
Orthogenesis: ref.666-p.240.
Higgs' Boson: ref.451-p.134.
Paleolithic: ref.675-p.242.
Higgs' field: ref.449-p.134.
Panspermia: ref.504-p.156.
Holistic / globalist: ref.26-p.9.
Pantheist: ref. 19- p.8.
Hominidae: ref.514-p.161.
Parousia: ref.702-p.250.
Homo Erectus: ref.525-p.163.
Pentateuch: ref.28-p.10.
Homo ergaster: ref.524-p.163.
Perihelion of Mercury: ref.283-p.85.
Homo Floriensis: ref.535-p.166.
Homo Habilis: ref.523-p.163.
Peripatetic: ref.124-35.
Homo Nadeli: ref.534-p.166.
Photoelectric effect: ref.275-p.83.
Homo Rhodiensis: ref.531-p.165.
Photon: ref.276-p.84.
Homo Sapiens: ref.533-p.165.
Idea: ref.58-p.17.
Pithecanthropus: ref.526-p.163.
Intelligent Design: ref.690-p.246.
Planck's length: ref.401'-p.119.
Inter. Genome Human Project: Appe. 2-p.142.
Planck's Time: ref.13-p.4.
Planck's wall: ref.477-p.149.
Intuition: ref.156-p.44.
Planet, Planetesimals: ref. 489-p.152.
Irenism/Leibniz: ref.182'-p.55.
Isotope: p. 87, cf. Soddy 1910.
Plasma: ref.482-p.150.
Isotropically / isotropic: p. 181.
Pliocène: ref.545-169.
Lepton/Quark: ref.481-p.149.
Pongo or Pondigae: ref.515-p.161.
LIGO/VIRGO: ref.455-p.135.
Primate: ref.507-159.
Lucy: 521-p.162.
Principle of Complexity: ref.647-p.231.
Luzon man: ref.536-p.163.
Milesian School: ref.7-p.2.
Principle of Equivalence: ref.277-p.84.
Milky Way: ref.302-90.
Monism: ref.173-p.50.
Principle of Indeterminacy: ref.316-94.
Matter wave: ref.305-p.91.
Moral Law: refs.2&725-Pp.xi & 171.
Principle of Relativity: ref.271-p.82.
Moravian: ref.747-p.277.
M Theory: ref. 405-p.120.
Process thought: ref.543-p.168.
NAS: ref.686-p.245.
Proslogion: ref.716-p.257.
Neandertal man: ref.528-p.163.
Pulsar: ref.372-111.
Nesher Ramla: ref.529-p.163.
Quark/Lepton: ref. 481-p.148.
NIH: ref.770-p.289.
Quakers: ref.217-p.66.
Nominalist: ref.133-p.37.
Quantum postulate: ref.257-p.78.
Noogenesis: ref.667-p.240.
Quantum state/Spin: ref.311-p.93.
Noosphere: ref.671-p.241.
Rhodesian man: ref.527-p.114.
Nuclear fusion: ref.461-p.137.
Nyaya-sutra: ref.50-p.14.
YEC: Young Earth Creationist: ref. 653-p.236.
Rutherford's Atomic Model: ref.261-p.79.
Samaritan: ref.31-p.10.
Sassanides: ref.10-p.3.
School of Chartres: ref.107-p.32.
Secular: ref.121-p.35.
Septuagint: ref.30-p.10.
Sinanthropus (Peking man): ref.527-p.163.
Singularity: ref.479-p.149.
Space-Time: ref.278-p.84.
Spallation: ref.486-p.150.
Standard Model: ref.382-p.113.
Star: ref.488-p.151.
Strepsirrhinian: ref.508-p.159.
String Theory: ref.401-p.119.
Substance: ref.34-p.11 & 51-p.14.
Sufi: ref.110-p.32.
Supernova: ref.490-p.152.
Tarsiiform: 509-p.159.
Tartarus: ref.21-p.8.
Theist vs Deist: ref.186-p.57.
Theory of Special Relativity: ref.269-p.82.
Thorah: ref.27-p.9.
Three Universe theory: ref.548-p.170.
T.O.E. (Theory Of Everything): ref.383-114.
Trinity dogma: ref.206-p.62.
Tropological: ref.74-p.23.
Universe's expansion: ref.338-p.101.
Univocity: ref.129-p.37.
Upanishad: ref.6-p.2.
Vaisesika or Vaiheshika-Sutra: ref.49-p.14.
Vedânta-Sutras: ref.6-p.2.
Verb (the) or the « Word »: ref.711-p.255.
VIRGO/LIGO: ref.455-p.135.
W.M.A.P.: p.135, 2nd alinea.

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