From Bill Owen
Marrickville, New South Wales, Australia
Margaret Wertheim’s comments on James Gilbert’s book Redeeming
Culture (Review, 24 May, p 44)
outline the connection between science and
religion in popular culture. Many readers are no doubt aware of Albert
Einstein’s statement: “Science without religion is lame, religion without
science is blind.” I believe that the cosmic religious experience is the
strongest and the noblest driving force behind scientific research.
According to the review, Gilbert suggests that a synthesis between science
and religion is ultimately impossible. In their bookThe Matter Myth,
Paul Davies and John Gribbin insist that theologians should restrict themselves
to subjects that are outside the scope of science. This, of course, ensures that
experts in the field of religion should make no attempt to combine these fields
of study—yet Davies apparently allows no reciprocal restriction on
scientists dabbling in the field of religion, as evident by his claim that
scientists are working toward and will eventually attain “the mind of God”.
Stephen Hawking concludes A Brief History of Time with the
suggestion that when scientists have finally attained “the answer to everything”
the general public should be invited to share in discussing this subject, yet he
apparently sees little value in contributions from nonscientists in attaining
that final answer.
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