After last night’s launch event, BioLogos is up and running full steam. As a member of the academic community, what are your thoughts on the BioLogos Foundation? Can BioLogos accomplish it’s ambitious agenda or at least move the conversation closer to where it should be (see below)? Are there particular resources, events, and discussions at BioLogos which impress you or stirr interest in dialogue? BTW, come back tomorrow. I have some thoughts to share regarding … (well you’ll just have to wait)
The BioLogos Foundation promotes the search for truth in both the natural and spiritual realms, and seeks to harmonize these different perspectives.
Dr. Francis Collins established The BioLogos Foundation to engage America’s escalating culture war between science and faith. On one side of the conversation, the “new atheists” argue that science removes the need for God. On the other side, religious fundamentalists argue that the Bible requires us to reject much of modern science. Many scientists, believers, and members of the general public do not find these options attractive.
There is therefore a great need to contribute to the public voice that represents the harmony of science and faith. BioLogos addresses the core themes of science and religion, and emphasizes the compatibility of Christian faith with what science has discovered about the origins of the universe and life. In order to communicate this message to the general public, The BioLogos Foundation has created BioLogos.org.
Funded by a grant from the John Templeton Foundation, the website articulates the compatibility of modern science with traditional Christian belief. Among other resources, this website posts responses to many of the questions received by Collins, Giberson, and Falk since the publication of their books, including: The Language of God; Saving Darwin; and Coming to Peace With Science. By providing trustworthy insight, BioLogos stands as a reliable source of scholarly thought on contemporary issues in science and faith. — http://www.biologos.org/about
Note: Francis Collins spoke on Science as Worship (introduced by Kathy Tuan-MacLean) at Following Christ 08. Duration: 56:26.
Update (4/11/2012): In a fixing broken links projects, I took note of the significant change in material found at http://www.biologos.org/about. Take a look and compare how the organization has developed from a vision of a few people to a larger resource community with a heavy focus on blogging.
Tom enjoys daily conversations regarding living out the Biblical Story with his wife Theresa and their four girls, around the block, at Elizabethtown Brethren in Christ Church (where he teaches adult electives and co-leads a small group), among healthcare professionals as the Northeast Regional Director for the Christian Medical & Dental Associations (CMDA), and in higher ed as a volunteer with the Emerging Scholars Network (ESN). For a number of years, the Christian Medical Society / CMDA at Penn State College of Medicine was the hub of his ministry with CMDA. Note: Tom served with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship / USA for 20+ years, including 6+ years as the Associate Director of ESN. He has written for the ESN blog from its launch in August 2008. He has studied Biology (B.S.), Higher Education (M.A.), Spiritual Direction (Certificate), Spiritual Formation (M.A.R.), Ministry to Emerging Generations (D.Min.). To God be the glory!
As a Christian anthropologist, I am very pleased to see \good science\ applied to the problem.
Any group that quote-mines Stephen Hawking is not good.
See question 19.
Neil, thank you for your comment, but is that your only complaint with BioLogos? Question 19 is “What is the “fine-tuning” of the universe, and how does it serve as a “pointer to God”?” BioLogos’ answer to the question is mostly an overview of the topic of “fine tuning,” and includes a number of possible counter-explanations. They quote Hawking to set up a much longer article, not as an authority in favor of their position, and they provide a clear reference, and even a link, to Hawking’s article. Maybe you don’t like their answer, but using this quote from Hawking is hardly a cardinal sin (especially if their first 18 questions passed muster).