Self-Righteousness Through Popular Science Our Culture’s Romance with Naturalism James V. Bachman
Editor’s Note: The following essay by James V. Bachman is welcomed and timely. Our readers will remember that Concordia Seminary’s 20th Annual Theological Symposium (September 22–23, 2009) will engage the theme “Science and Theology: New Questions, New Conversations.” Connected with that theme, we invited our alumni (and others who are interested in this conversation) to read John Polkinghorne’s Science and Theology: An Introduction. Polkinghorne is generally recognized as one of the world’s leading voices in a renewed and lively conversation between theology and science which has emerged over the past twenty or thirty years. He had a brilliant career as a particle physicist (he had a significant role in the discovery of the quark), before turning to theology and entering the priesthood of the Church of England. In that sense, he speaks as an insider to both scientists and theologians. But of course, he is no Lutheran, and many have pointed out that he concedes more to current scientific theories (in matters such as the age of the universe and evolution) than an orthodox Christian should. A review of Polkinghorne will be appearing online at www.ConcordiaTheology.org, as an invitation to our readers to participate in an online discussion there. In the following piece, Bachman, a theologian and a philosopher, engages another related topic which will be vital to the “new conversations” we seek to foster between science and theology, also in Lutheran circles. Bachman does not engage Polkinghorne directly, but his discussion of what science actually is will resonate helpfully with those familiar with Polkinghorne’s approach. Bachman also pushes the dialogue further, with his critique of the naturalistic assumptions which undergird most modern science—and especially popular notions and discussions of science. That naturalism is reductionistic, and Bachman explains here the theological implications of reducing our view of the world to naturalistic data. Such trenchant theological reflection will not settle every debate that arises between science and theology (as Bachman himself points out). But this essay will be invaluable reading for all of us who seek connections between scientific observation and reasoning on the one hand, and faith-filled study of God’s self-revelation in Christ on the other. We hope it may serve as an intellectual appetizer for our upcoming Symposium. Bon appétit! William W. Schumacher
James V. Bachman is Professor of Philosophy and Ethics and Dean of Graduate Studies, Christ College, at Concordia University, Irvine, California. He has previously been a parish pastor, campus pastor, and professor at Florida State University and Valparaiso University, and visiting professor at Concordia Seminary, St. Louis. Concordia Journal/Summer 2009
279