Forever Learning Institute

The so-called Conflict Thesis, made popular by Andrew Dickson White and John WIlliam Draper in the 19th century, claims that science and religion are, at best, in conflict, and, at worst, at warfare with each other. This talk will look at the historical roots of this purported tension, beginning with the Galileo affair and ending with Intelligent Design. We will examine Stephen Jay Gould's Non Overlapping Magisteria (NOMA), Richard Dawkins' belief that many Christians are essentially idiots, and wrestle with the idea of beauty and the seemingly numinous qualities of nature. This session will meet Wednesday, April,m22.