Science and Christianity

1. Science and Christianity Dave Scott and Daphne Brenner

2. Science vs. Religion: Myth or Melee? • The nature of interaction between the two disciplines is still debated today. • Science is the paradigm of truth and rationality. • Religion has yet to be proven irrational or a matter of private, subjective opinion.

3. The Debate about Scientific Realism • The majority of modern scientists embrace realism. • Most debates between Creationists and evolutionists assume scientific realism. • There are three main schools of thought regarding scientific realism.

4. Views of Science

5. Rational Realism • Scientific theories are true or approximately true. • A mature scientific theory makes existence claims. • Rationality is an objective notion and conceptual relativism is false. • A scientific theory will embody certain epistemic virtues.

6. Rational Realism • The aim of science is a literally true picture of the world.

7. Rational Nonrealism • Science is rational in an objective, nonrelativist sense. • Theoretical terms do not refer to the real world. • The real world lies beyond what our senses tell us. • Science gives inaccurate descriptions.

8. Phenomenalism • Scientific knowledge is about what we can perceive with our senses. • That which cannot be perceived cannot be supposed to exist within scientific theories. • Theoretical terms do not represent entities that exist. • Laws of nature and theories are nothing but records of past experiences which can be used to anticipate future experience.

9. Operationism • Theoretical terms are shorthand devices for laboratory operations. • Theoretical entities do not really exist. • The laws of science are not true descriptions of the underlying structure of the world. • These things are just sets of lab operations and recorded numbers in a lab notebook.

10. Pragmatism • Science merely aims to find theories that work, not truer and truer ones about the world. • There are two types of problems: empirical and conceptual. • Theories which solve problems will embody certain epistemic virtues which might not be true.

11. Constructive Empiricism • Science aims to give empirically adequate theories. • Acceptance of a theory involves a belief only that it is empirically adequate. • That which is accepted might not be real.

12. Nonrational Nonrealism • There is no objective sense in which science is rational. • There are no givens. • Rival theories or paradigms cannot be compared. • Science is simply rules arbitrarily drafted by scientists.

13. The Limits of Science • The validation of science is a philosophical issue, not a scientific one. • Science assumes that the senses are reliable and give accurate information about the physical world and not merely successive sense impressions.

14. Presuppositions of Science • Perception: Perceptual realism or representative dualism. • The mind is rational and the universe can be understood. • Uniformity of nature must be assumed to justify induction. • Assumes the existence of universals.

15. Presuppositions of Science • Assumes that the laws of logic are true and that truth exists. • Assumes certain moral, epistemic, and methodological values. • The existence of boundary conditions. • The general characteristics of science are repeatability, observability, and empirical testability.

16. Science and Theology are Compatible • Both disciplines speak about the origin of the cosmos, man and life in general. • They describe the same reality using different methods • Complementary view: How? What? + Who? Why? • Theology asserts that God acts directly and indirectly • The Christian worldview is most congruent with science

17. Creation Science: Outlined • Ex nihilo creation • Inadequacy of macroevolutionary theory • plants and animals created within fixed limits • “Man ain’t no . monkey!” • Catastrophism in geology • Young Earth

18. Scientific Validity of Creation Science • Supernatural terms (God) can function within theories describing the natural • Biblical roots do not disqualify truth • Makes predictions • No less open to revision than modern evolutionary science

19. Support for a Literal Genesis Account • Yom- Hebrew word -“Day” • In Mosaic books, a numerical adjective always means a literal 24 hours • In OT, 97% of its 1900 uses, it is literal • Chronological order usually the backbone of Biblical narrative • Genesis 1&2 set the tone for a historical narrative

20. Flaws in Macroevolutionary Theory • Myth of the Prebiotic Soup • Limited Genetic Potential • Problems in the fossil record • 2nd Law of Thermodynamics says “A chance of 1 in 10 to the 40,000th power”

21. Closing Statements • Science is not infallible • Religion is not irrational • Christian theology is integrable with science • Creation science is scientific • Darwinian science is not proven fact