Science and Religion, 1450-1900: From Copernicus to Darwin

by Richard G. Olson

Overview

Galileo. Newton. Darwin. These giants are remembered for their great contributions to one of the most important phenomena in world history: science. But what is often forgotten is the profound influence on their lives and works of that other great phenomenon of Western Culture: Christianity. This book, the first volume in the Greenwood Guides to Science and Religion, explores the many ways in which religion—its ideas, attitudes, practices, and institutions—interacted with science from the beginnings of the Scientific Revolution to the end of the 19th century. Infused with the most up-to-date scholarship, the volume is aimed at the nonspecialist audience, explaining in clear language how inextricably linked science and religion have been during most of the last 500 years.

While discussing how science and religion occasionally clashed, this volume also explores the positive interactions these two institutions have experienced during this seminal period in Western history. The Christian Humanism of the 16th century promoted the new, utilitarian approach to natural knowledge that distinguishes Modern from Medieval science. The Jesuits were instrumental in the development of the experimental and mathematical sciences during the Scientific Revolution. In the 17th century, the English Puritans advocated alchemical science and their opponents, liberal Anglicans, promoted a new, mechanistic approach to the sciences. The geological advances of the 19th century were often religiously motivated; the discoveries of biblical criticism of the same period were inspired by the science of the day. This volume includes a selection of primary source documents to help readers understand the arguments and beliefs of the people of the time, and an annotated bibliography to assist readers in finding further information on the topics.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780313326943
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	10/30/2004
Series:	Greenwood Guides to Science and Religion
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	6.14(w) x 9.21(h) x 0.75(d)

About the Author

RICHARD G. OLSON is Professor of History and Willard W. Keith Fellow in the Humanities at Harvey Mudd College. His work has focused on the interrelationships between the natural sciences and other cultural domains, including moral philosophy, the social sciences, political ideology, and religion. His publications include Science Deified and Science Defied (vol. 1, 1982, vol. 2, 1990) and The Emergence of the Social Sciences, 1642-1792 (1993).

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
List of Illustrations
Series Foreword
Galileo and the Church: Or, How Do Science and Religion Interact?
Religion and the Transition to "Modern" Science: Christian Demands For Useful Knowledge
Science and the Catholicism in the Scientific Revolution, 1550-1770
Science and Religion in England: 1590-1740
Newton's Religion, Newtonian Religions, and Eighteenth Century Reactions
Scientific Understandings of Religion and Religious Understandings of Science, 1700-1859
Back to the Beginnings—Of the Earth, of Life, and of Humankind—1680-1859
What To Do About Darwin?
Primary Sources
Annotated Bibliography
Time-Line
Index

Editorial Reviews

Highly recommended. Readers with an interest in science, at the lower-undergraduate level and above.
—Choice

Provide[s] a rich historical background to the interaction between science and religion.
—Seymour H. Mauskopf, Nuncius

Should appeal to aficionados of science and religion interested in the interaction of culture with the development of science.
—Fraser F. Fleming, Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith

An interesting, insightful, and clearly argued overview.
—Edward B. Davis, Isis

Olson's meticulous treatment of the rich variety of interconnections between science and religion was a refreshing revelation. The book does an excellent job of documenting the complex tangle of interconnections between religious thought and scientific work during this time period.
—Journal of the Association of Christians in the Mathematical Sciences

The book can be warmly recommended to anyone interested in the various ways in which religion interacted with science from the beginning of the Scientific Revolution to the end of the 19th century.
—William R. Shea, Archives Internationale d'Histoire des Sciences

From the Publisher

Olson's meticulous treatment of the rich variety of interconnections between science and religion was a refreshing revelation. The book does an excellent job of documenting the complex tangle of interconnections between religious thought and scientific work during this time period.

Journal of the Association of Christians in the Mathematical Sciences

Should appeal to aficionados of science and religion interested in the interaction of culture with the development of science.

Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith - Fraser F. Fleming

An interesting, insightful, and clearly argued overview.

Isis - Edward B. Davis

Highly recommended. Readers with an interest in science, at the lower-undergraduate level and above.

Choice

Provide[s] a rich historical background to the interaction between science and religion.

Nuncius - Seymour H. Mauskopf

The book can be warmly recommended to anyone interested in the various ways in which religion interacted with science from the beginning of the Scientific Revolution to the end of the 19th century.

Archives Internationale d'Histoire des Sciences - William R. Shea

The book can be warmly recommended to anyone interested in the various ways in which religion interacted with science from the beginning of the Scientific Revolution to the end of the 19th century.

— William R. Shea

Archives Internationale d'Histoire des Sciences

An interesting, insightful, and clearly argued overview.

— Edward B. Davis

Isis

Should appeal to aficionados of science and religion interested in the interaction of culture with the development of science.

— Fraser F. Fleming

Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith

Provide[s] a rich historical background to the interaction between science and religion.

— Seymour H. Mauskopf

Nuncius