Ian G. Barbour

«¿Qué lugar le corresponde a la religión en una era dominada por la ciencia? ¿Es posible creer hoy en Dios? ¿Qué imagen de Dios es compatible con la imagen científica del mundo?» Éstos son algunos de los interrogantes que le sirven de guía a Ian G. Barbour, auténtico pionero en el campo de las relaciones entre ciencia y religión, para abordar esta compleja cuestión, tanto desde una perspectiva histórica como sistemática. El análisis histórico de la Revolución científica de los siglos XVII y XVIII, la cual supuso el final de la cosmovisión medieval nacida del maridaje de la fe bíblica con el aristotelismo, así como el examen de los desarrollos de la biología y la teología durante el siglo XIX, ponen de manifiesto que ni la metáfora de una «guerra» entre ciencia y religión como tampoco la de una «armonía fundamental» entre ambas satisfacen a una interpretación más matizada y atenta a las diversas corrientes y posiciones. La consideración sistemática de los métodos de la ciencia y la religión, y el estudio comparativo de sus respectivos modelos y paradigmas, introducen a su vez una nueva visión de la naturaleza, la cual ofrece un terreno fecundo también para el teólogo y el creyente. Es así como el autor propone, desde lo que él denomina «una concepción relacional y multiestratificada de la realidad», un contexto renovado para la teología actual. 

Religion and Science is the definitive contemporary discussion of the many issues surrounding our understanding of God and religious truth in this scientific age. Ian Barbour, winner of the 1999 Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion for his pioneering role in establishing the study of religion and science, explores many occasions where the relationship between the two was especially antagonistic. From physics in the sixteenth century to biology in the Victorian Era, Religion and Science is a fascinating exploration of two conflicting, yet at times interdependent schools of thought.Ian Barbour is Professor Emeritus of Physics and Religion at Carleton College, Northfield, Minn. He was named the winner of 1999 Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion for his pioneering role in establishing the study of religion and science. He donated the $1.42 million prize to the Berkeley Center for the Study of Theology and Science and to Carleton College. He is the author of many books, including Religion and Science, Ethics in an Age of Technology, and Religion in an Age of Science.[M]agisterial in scope, balanced in perspective, rich in detail, and full of intellectual passion. For a generation to come, anyone setting out to explore the subtle relationships between science, religion, ethics, and technology will begin with Barbour as the guide. Religious Studies Review

For centuries, scientists, theologians, and the general public have debated the question: what impact should scientific discoveries have on religion? The argument has been so heated at times that some scientists, like Galileo, were forced to recant their conclusions by Church authorities. In When Science Meets Religion, nuclear physicist and theologian Ian Barbour presents a clear, contemporary introduction to the essential issues, ideas, and solutions in the relationship between religion and science. Barbour, who was awarded the 1999 Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion for his pioneering role in advancing the study of religion and science, addresses creation and the Big Bang, quantum physics and ultimate reality, evolution and continuing creation, and many other fascinating topics that cross the boundary between laboratory and pulpit.Ian Barbour is Professor Emeritus of Physics and Religion at Carleton College, Northfield, Minn. He was named the winner of 1999 Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion for his pioneering role in establishing the study of religion and science. He donated the $1.42 million prize to the Berkeley Center for the Study of Theology and Science and to Carleton College. He is the author of many books, including Religion and Science, Ethics in an Age of Technology, and Religion in an Age of Science.No surer and fairer guide to the proliferating literature on the relation of science and religion can be found than Ian Barbour. - Arthur Peacocke, Oxford University, author of From DNA to Dean: Reflections & Explorations of a Priest-Scientist

A comprehensive examination of the major issues between science and religion in todays world.

Scientist and philosophers have more in common than might first appear, especially when the language used in the two disciplines receives a closer scrutiny, Ian G. Barbour treats three scientific view-points that can clarify the specific nature of religious language. The first theme is the diverse function of language. Science and religion each has its own task and its own applicable logic and language. Religious symbols and their expression in myths imply a perspective and interpretation of human history and experience, directing attention to particular patterns in events. The second theme is the role of models in both scientific and religious language. What the "billiard ball model" of a gas and the biblical model of personal God both achieve is an interpretation of experience, a restructuring of how one sees the world. The third area in which science and religion have a common stake is the role of paradigms. Paradigms are standard examples of scientific investigation which embody a set of assumptions and becomes a research tradition until replaced by other assumptions. Religions has its paradigms, like the covenant of Sinai, wich have issued in traditions. Dr. Barbour concludes that scientific and religious language bother offer knowledge of reality based on experience. In determining the appropriate data and criteria for this experience the philosopher of religion can profit greet from the work of the scientist.

¿Por qué se produjo el big-bang? ¿Pone en entredicho la física cuántica nuestros supuestos acerca de la realidad? ¿Es la evolución el modo que Dios eligió para crear? ¿Estamos determinados por nuestros genes? ¿Puede actuar Dios en un mundo sometido a leyes? ... ... ... Durante siglos, los cientificos, los teologos y el publico en general han compartido numerosas preguntas en torno a las consecuencias de los descubrimientos cientificos para la fe religiosa. Y eso sigue sucediendo hoy, en los comienzos de este nuevo milenio. El fisico nuclear y teologo Ian Barbour, galardonado en 1999 con el Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion por su pionera contribucion al estudio de las relaciones entre la ciencia y la religion, ofrece una introduccion clara y actual a los problemas, ideas y respuestas esenciales al respecto. En un lenguaje sencillo y directo, Barbour analiza fascinantes temas que arrojan luz sobre el encuentro critico de la dimension espiritual y la dimension cuantitativa de la vida. IAN BARBOUR, profesor emerito de fisica y religion en el Carleton College (Northfield, Minnesota) y una de las figuras mas destacadas en el estudio de las relaciones entre la ciencia y la religion, es autor, entre otros, de Problemas de religion y ciencia (Sal Terrae, 1966), Religion and Science (1997) y Ethics in an Age of Technology (1993).

What are the conflicting ethics and assumptions that lead to divergent views and technology? To help shed light on this question, Ian Barbour analyzes three social values: justice, participatory freedom, and economic development. He defends such environmental principles as resource sustainability, environmental protection, and respect for all forms of life and presents case studies in agriculture, energy policy, genetic engineering, and the use of computers. Finally, he concludes by focusing on appropriate technologies, individual life-styles, and sources of change: education, political action, response to crisis, and alternative visions of the good life.