Serious Talk - by John Polkinghorne (Paperback)

About the Book

Polkinghorne argues that the habits of thought that are natural to the scientist are the same habits of thought that can be followed also in the search for a wider and deeper kind of truth about the world.

Book Synopsis

Although now an Anglican priest and head of one of the prestigious colleges in Cambridge University, John Polkinghorne has spent most of his adult life working as a theoretical physicist. He is therefore uniquely qualified and frequently called upon to set forth the relationship between science and theology in a way that takes the two disciplines seriously. Polkinghorne argues that the habits of thought that are natural to the scientist are the same habits of thought that can be followed also in the search for a wider and deeper kind of truth about the world. He calls this bottom-up thinking, that is starting not with general principles but with the particularity of experience, and then asking what is sufficient to explain the phenomena and give an understanding of what is going on. Portions of this book were delivered as the Pascal Lectures at the University of Waterloo (1992) and as the William Belden Noble Lectures at Harvard University (1993). The first half of the book seeks to establish an acceptable meeting point for science and religion. The second half looks at some specific theological issues approached creation, the role of chance, God s engagement with time, the anticipation of a destiny awaiting humanity beyond death, and the end of the universe. John Polkinghorne is President of Queens College in Cambridge University. He is the author of many books, including Reason and Reality, published by Trinity Press International.

From the Back Cover

Although now an Anglican priest and head of one of the prestigious colleges in Cambridge University, John Polkinghorne has spent most of his adult life working as a theoretical physicist. He is therefore uniquely qualified to set forth the relationship between science and religion in a way that takes the two disciplines seriously. Professor Polkinghorne argues that the habits of thought that are natural to the scientist are the same habits of thought that can be followed in the search for a wider and deeper kind of truth about the world. He calls this "bottom-up" thinking, that is, starting not with general principles but with the particularity of experience, and asking what is sufficient to explain the phenomena and give an understanding of what is going on. Serious Talk begins with the search for an acceptable meeting point for science and religion. Following this are examinations of specific theological issues approached in the spirit of such a meeting point: creation, the role of chance, God's engagement with time, the anticipation of a destiny awaiting humanity beyond death, and the end of the universe.

Review Quotes

"This book is Polkinghorne at his best knowledgeable as a distinguished quantum physicist, believing as an Anglican priest, delightfully curious and insightful as a "would-be theologian" (his words), earnestly trying all the while to demonstrate the possibility of a fruitful consonance between science and theology in the quest for understanding." Charles L. Currie, S.J.--Sanford Lakoff "Theological Studies "

"Western culture needs constant, varied, and skilled attention to loosen the knot that scientism hold upon its open-mindedness. Since religion is frequently accused by scientists of tying just such a knot of its own, all the more urgent that scientists with theological training, such as Polinghorne, be incoved in the apologetic enterprise to motivate a belief based upon rational inquiry."--Sanford Lakoff "Anglican Theological Review "

"This book is Polkinghorne at his best -- knowledgeable as a distinguished quantum physicist, believing as an Anglican priest, delightfully curious and insightful as a "would-be theologian" (his words), earnestly trying all the while to demonstrate the possibility of a fruitful consonance between science and theology in the quest for understanding." ----, "Theological Studies "

About the Author

John Polkinghorne is the president of Queen's College, Cambridge and the author of Reason and Reality (Trinity), Serious Talk: Science and Religion in Dialogue (Trinity), and The End of the World and the Ends of God (Trinity).