The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion

What a wonderful and inspiring week we had!
The Faraday Institute Summer Course 2024 🥳

SUMMER COURSE 2024
*The Art and Science of Human Health and Spirituality*
Monday 1st July – Friday 5th July, 2024

Science touches every aspect of life – from how it begins and how it ends, to how it is lived in between. The same, of course, is true of religion. Looking the other way, every aspect of life touches science – from politics and power, to understanding the roots of creativity and communication. And the same, of course, is true of religion. This one-week course considers this rich interplay: how science, religion, medicine, and the arts mutually inform, illuminate, and enrich one another.

The course draws together expert speakers from across diverse disciplines to address these topics, though it does not assume that attendees have any formal training in any or all of the topics covered. Many of the speakers have a personal religious – often Christian – faith, though the talks are intended for those of any faith or none.

https://www.faraday.cam.ac.uk/event/the-art-and-science-of-human-health-and-spirituality-the-faraday-institute-summer-course-2024/

What is Artificial Intelligence, and what are the risks and opportunities? How can Christians respond?

Church leaders, ordinands and others active in the church are invited to discuss these and more questions and be encouraged, inspired and equipped at our monthly zoom catchup for the Faraday Churches community, this Thursday 27th June.

We’ll discuss this month’s new Biblically-based resource on Artificial Intelligence with our special guests Graham Budd and Revd Charmaine Mhlanga, both of whom are experienced in thinking, writing and speaking about AI.

There will also be time to hear about the next steps in rolling out this new project to serve church leaders on a wide range of topics, and to share news and ideas.

Register on Eventbrite (minimum £1 donation) to receive zoom details. The event is being run twice to allow for different schedules.

12.30-1.30pm, with Revd Charmaine Mhlanga: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/920215357907?aff=oddtdtcreator
7.30-8.30pm, with Graham Budd: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/921521624987?aff=oddtdtcreator

Online Catchup: AI, the Fall and Future Hope What is Artificial Intelligence, and what are the risks and opportunities? How can Christians respond? Register to receive zoom details!

What a pleasure to welcome visitors from Belmont University last week! We had a great time, including a tour around Westminster College, Cambridge and Lucy Cavendish College, University of Cambridge!
You go, ! ✈️🗺🌎

This academic year we have had 11 research seminars, with topics ranging from 'Effective Field Theories in Particle Physics' through 'Kepler, Galileo and Aliens' to 'Why Biological Evolution Should Inspire Worship'. The latest and final seminar, delivered by Dr Marius Dorobantu on 21st May, was titled 'The Quest for Human-Level AI and its Implications for Theological Anthropology' and the recording is available to watch at faradayinstitute.online/Dorobantu
Our next research seminar series will begin on 8th October. Want more science-faith content in the meantime? Check out our bank of recordings of past seminars and lectures: https://www.faraday.cam.ac.uk/events/past-events/
Or if you are keen to join an upcoming event, there are still places available on this year's summer course, held at Lucy Cavendish College from 1st to 5th July. Book at faraday.institute/summercourse2024
If you want to be sure of finding out about our events and keeping up to date with our news, sign up for our monthly newsletter https://faraday.institute/newsletter and follow us on Facebook.

Dr Marius Dorobantu – The Quest for Human-Level AI and its Implications for Theological Anthropology | Faraday On 21st May at 1pm Dr Marius Dorobantu will give a seminar entitled ‘The Quest for Human-Level AI and its Implications for Theological Anthropology’.

OUT NOW!

The latest Faraday publication complements our existing series of books for 3-5-year-olds. The God Made Activity Book can be used alongside, after or independently of God Made Animals, God Made Space and God Made the World to encourage young children to explore the wonders of the natural world in a fun, interactive, hands-on and age-appropriate way.

20 pages of scenes and activities engage children in celebrating the creativity and diversity of all that God made with over 30 large stickers of animals, planets and natural features.

Activities include:
– observing the moon and stars on a starry night
– charting the weather
– using stickers for a pre-historic animals’ scene (including dinosaurs)
– collecting and identifying the great variety of leaves
– going on a mini-beast search expedition
– identifying the planets of the solar system, growing vegetables to eat
– matching animals to their habitats using stickers.

Explore further with Faraday Kids www.faradaykids.com or head straight to the shop at https://www.faraday.cam.ac.uk/shop/god-made-activity-book/

What does it mean to be human?

What does science have to say about humanity? What does religion say? How do these two influences coexist and interact?

Playing God: Science, Religion and the Future of Humanity by Nick Spencer and Hannah Waite is the latest book to address these questions. The Faraday Institute's Church Engagement Director Ruth Bancewicz Churches would thoroughly recommend it:

"chapters cover extending lifespan, vaccination, the meaning of personhood and whether we should attribute it to animals, Artificial Intelligence, mental health and abortion... the authors address these subjects respectfully but with a lightness of touch that left me feeling informed and challenged but not wrestled into intellectual or emotional submission... it’s an excellent addition to the popular-level science and religion literature."

You can read Ruth's full review at https://www.faraday.cam.ac.uk/churches/church-resources/posts/book-review-playing-god-science-religion-and-the-future-of-humanity/

or, if you're ready to dive straight into the book itself, get your copy here: https://www.faraday.cam.ac.uk/shop/playing-god/

We're looking forward to the first of our events this weekend!
Tomorrow our Youth and Schools team will be running a stall at the Cambridge Academy for Science and Technology, Robinson Way, CB2 0SZ. Drop in anytime from 11am to 4pm for hands-on science fun!
On Thursday 21st March at 6pm Prof. Keith Fox will deliver this term's public lecture on 'Bioethics: Are Biologists Opening Pandora’s Box?' in the Queen's Building Lecture Theatre, Emmanuel College. Abstract and bookings at https://faraday.institute/publiclecture
On Sunday 24th March the baton is back with the Youth and Schools team at the New Museums Site on Bene't Street for an interactive session for families. Tickets for this session are limited so book your place now at https://www.faraday.cam.ac.uk/event/big-world-big-questions-is-there-space-for-faith-in-a-scientific-world/

Bioethics: Are Biologists Opening Pandora’s Box? | Faraday On Thursday 21st March 2024 Prof. Keith Fox will be speaking at The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion Public Lecture entitled: ‘Bioethics: Are Biologists Opening Pandora’s Box?’.

Join us online or in the Healey Room, Westminster College on 12th March at 1pm to hear Dr Nathan Bossoh deliver a seminar entitled ‘Science, Religion and the Material Turn: Exploring New Global Potentials through Colonial Museum African collections’.

Over the last few decades the history of science discipline has shifted – with noticeable progress – from Western-focused narratives towards more globalised histories of science. In comparison however, the subdiscipline ‘history of science and religion’ has, only in the last decade, begun to make this shift beyond Christian-focused Eurocentric boundaries. In their 2011 book Science and Religion Around the World John Brooke and Ronald Numbers attempted to map out a viable approach to globalising histories of science and religion, yet the work highlighted more issues than it solved. One reason these issues have prevailed, I suggest, remains due to approaches and methodologies. Whilst historians have paid much attention to the various intellectual, social and cultural contexts of science and religion in history, they have paid less attention to the material cultural contexts. In this talk therefore, utilising the results from my ongoing research into the ‘Wellcome African materials’ held by the London Science Museum, I explore a currently underutilised, yet fruitful, mode of investigation. By incorporating indigenous narratives embedded in colonial museum collections into histories of science and religion, I argue that material histories can enrich current scholarship. Furthermore, in bringing the history of science and religion more firmly into contact with museum studies, my research sits alongside emerging trends within the field which increasingly seek to position history of science and religion as a more public facing discipline which can speak directly to key contemporary social, political, national, and international discussions and debates.

A light sandwich lunch will be served in the Healey Room from 12:30.

Book online:

Dr Nathan Bossoh – Science, Religion and the Material Turn: Exploring New Global Potentials through Colonial Museum African Collections | Faraday On 12th March at 1pm Dr Nathan Bossoh will give a seminar entitled ‘Science, Religion and the Material Turn: Exploring New Global Potentials through Colonial Museum African collections’.

Join us online or in the Healey Room, Westminster College on 13th February at 1pm to hear Dr Pete Jordan deliver a seminar entitled ‘Rescuing Religion from Obsolescence? John Templeton on Science and Religion’.

Investor turned philanthropist John Templeton (1912-2008) is widely recognised for financing projects across many areas through his three philanthropic organizations: the Templeton Religion Trust, the John Templeton Foundation, and the Templeton World Charity Foundation. While his financial support has helped the field of science and religion to grow and consolidate, it is not commonly understood why he supported science and religion activities. In this talk I draw on Templeton’s extensive writings to answer three questions: First, Why did Templeton care about science and religion? Second, What are the main features of his thinking about science and religion? And third, In what ways (if at all) does science and religion appear in Templeton’s instructions for his philanthropies? Answering these questions draws out Templeton’s theological and historical commitments, as well as the relations between these commitments, his philanthropic interests, and his hopes and dreams for the future.

A light sandwich lunch will be served in the Healey Room from 12:30.

Book online:

Dr Pete Jordan – Rescuing Religion from Obsolescence? John Templeton on Science and Religion | Faraday On 27th February at 1pm Dr Pete Jordan will give a seminar entitled ‘Rescuing Religion from Obsolescence? John Templeton on Science and Religion’.

Last Tuesday Prof. Martin Barlow delivered a very well-received seminar on 'Kepler, Galileo and Aliens'. Missed it? The recording is now available to watch at faradayinstitute.online/Barlow
If this topic fascinates you, you may be interested in a previous lecture by Revd Prof. David Wilkinson titled 'Exoplanets, Aliens and God'. Like all our public lectures, the recording is available to watch on our website: faradayinstitute.online/Wilkinson
Bookings for our next public lecture are now available at faraday.institute/PublicLecture . Prof. Keith Fox will be speaking on 'Bioethics: Are Biologists Opening Pandora's Box?' as part of the Cambridge Festival and in partnership with Christians in Science.

Bioethics: Are Biologists Opening Pandora’s Box? | Faraday On Thursday 21st March 2024 Prof. Keith Fox will be speaking at The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion Public Lecture entitled: ‘Bioethics: Are Biologists Opening Pandora’s Box?’.

On Thursday 21st March Prof. Keith Fox will be speaking at The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion Public Lecture entitled: ‘Bioethics: Are Biologists Opening Pandora’s Box?’ as part of the Cambridge Festival.

Tickets are freely available and registration is now open. Secure your spot at faraday.institute/publiclecture

Abstract: There have been many dramatic advances in biological sciences in the past 20 years, including the ability to modify our own human genome, new ways to treat diseases and even for generating artificial life. At first sight, many of these applications seem beneficial and might enable cures of genetically inherited diseases by eliminating defective genes from future generations. These seem like exciting prospects, but they raise questions about what is ‘normal’. Other advances might enable us to eliminate organisms that spread diseases, to restore damaged environments or to revive species that have become extinct. Each of these seem like laudable aims, but they may come with unintended consequences. Some other scientific questions are fascinating, but are best left unanswered – where should we stop? We need to consider these things in advance, for today’s science fiction soon becomes tomorrow’s science fact. These raise questions about what it means to be human, what things we should value, and how we can live virtuous lives.

The lecture will be held at the Queen’s Building Lecture Hall, Emmanuel College, Cambridge followed by a short drinks reception. All attendees are kindly requested to be seated by 5:45pm.

This event is in partnership with Christians in Science.

Bioethics: Are Biologists Opening Pandora’s Box? | Faraday On Thursday 21st March 2024 Prof. Keith Fox will be speaking at The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion Public Lecture entitled: ‘Bioethics: Are Biologists Opening Pandora’s Box?’.

Join us online or in the Healey Room, Westminster College on 13th February at 1pm to hear Prof. Martin Barlow deliver a seminar entitled ‘Kepler, Galileo and Aliens’.

While it is often supposed that the idea that aliens may exist is a recent idea, this is not supported by the actual history of astronomy. This talk will survey the work of Kepler and Galileo, the two major astronomers in the first part of the 17th century, with an emphasis on what they had to say about aliens. Both of them thought it likely that the Moon was inhabited by rational beings, but their reasoning owed more to theological principles than scientific evidence. I will then review the impact of their work on the thought of the English clergyman and natural philosopher John Wilkins, who was a co-founder of the Royal Society, and author of the first book written in English advocating an inhabited Moon.

A light sandwich lunch will be served in the Healey Room from 12:30.

Book online:

Prof. Martin Barlow – Kepler, Galileo and Aliens | Faraday While it is often supposed that the idea that aliens may exist is a recent idea, this is not supported by the actual history of astronomy. This talk will survey the work of Kepler and Galileo, the two major astronomers in the first part of the 17th century, with an emphasis on what they had to say a...

On Tuesday Dr Jon Thompson presented his research on 'Personal Identity and Resurrection: Early Modern Philosophical Perspectives'. Missed it? The recording is now available to watch at faradayinstitute.online/Thompson
You can read more about Dr Thompson's research, including his published work, at https://www.faraday.cam.ac.uk/research/re-embodying-the-soul/
Or, if this talk has brought up new questions for you and your children, check out our book '101 Great Big Questions', where questions posed by children are answered by world-leading theologians and scientists. Among the 101 questions are "What makes me me?", "Is there life after death?" and "Could a robot ever fall in love or have a religious faith?"

Dr Jon Thompson – Personal Identity and Resurrection: Early Modern Philosophical Perspectives | Faraday On 30th January at 1pm Dr Jon Thompson will give a seminar entitled ‘Personal Identity and Resurrection: Early Modern Philosophical Perspectives’.

Join us online on 30th January at 1pm to hear Dr Jon Thompson deliver the first of this term's research seminars, entitled ‘Personal Identity and Resurrection: Early Modern Philosophical Perspectives’.

Serious philosophical reflection on personal identity began with John Locke’s Essay concerning Human Understanding in the early Enlightenment – in which Locke developed his famous concept of personal identity as continuity of consciousness. Or so the story is often told.

This seminar explores the rich and interesting array of views on personal identity in the earlier seventeenth century, arguing that reflection on bodily resurrection both gave shape to – and was shaped by – a profound transformation of self-understanding in wider Western philosophy.

This seminar will be delivered over Zoom and we will not be hosting an in-person audience on this occasion.

Book online: faradayinstitute.online/Thompson

Dr Jon Thompson – Personal Identity and Resurrection: Early Modern Philosophical Perspectives | Faraday On 30th January at 1pm Dr Jon Thompson will give a seminar entitled ‘Personal Identity and Resurrection: Early Modern Philosophical Perspectives’.

On 7th December the AI Faith & Civil Society Commission held its inaugural summit at Methodist Central Hall, Westminster. Speakers including our own Executive Director Graham Budd covered issues and questions including 'AI Ethics Frameworks -Status and opportunities', 'Ethical foundations, collaborative action: building human-centred AI with shared values' and 'What is the economic incentive for truth in AI development?'
Check out the AI Faith and Civil Society Commission website https://www.ai-commission.com/ for more information and to follow this story as it develops. There will be much more to come, but in the meantime, here's a flavour of last month's event!

Are you a parish priest, churchwarden, PCC member or other church leader? Are you looking to improve your understanding of real-world issues that affect your church community? It is still possible to join our course for church leaders on AI, 'Artificial Intelligence, Genuine Care'. The second of five sessions is coming up on 24th January. Go to https://www.faraday.cam.ac.uk/event/artificial-intelligence-genuine-care/ for more information and to sign up for the course.

Artificial Intelligence, Genuine Care | Faraday Speakers: Dr Ruth Bancewicz, Dr Mike Brownnutt, Mr Graham Budd, Revd Dr Chris Goswami, Revd Charmaine Mhlanga, Prof. John Wyatt

The recording of Dr Andrew Jackson's seminar 'The Divine Logic of Evolution: Reading Evolution Through Maximus the Confessor’s Logoi Cosmology' on 28th November is now available to watch at faradayinstitute.online/Jackson
To explore this topic of evolution and theology further, you may be interested in Dr Rope Kojonen's seminar from February, which you can watch at faradayinstitute.online/Kojonen
Missed any of the other seminars this term? They are all available online:
- faradayinstitute.online/Doolittle
- faradayinstitute.online/Ubiali
- faradayinstitute.online/Woolley

The Divine Logic of Evolution: Reading Evolutionary Biology Through the Lens of Maximus the Confessor’s Logoi Cosmology | Faraday Category: Bible, Biology, Chance, Christianity, Creation, Evil, Evolution, Faith, God, Life On Earth, Origin Of Life, Suffering, Theology

Struggling for Christmas gift ideas for a child or young person? Check out the range of books for ages 3-11 available at faraday.institute/shop or for even more books and resources head to www.faradaykids.com or www.faradayeducators.com
Order by 11th December to be sure of getting them in time for Christmas!

Short of ideas for Christmas presents? We have a great range of books on all sorts of science-faith topics, from genome editing to climate change and from natural disasters to the success of Richard Dawkins to get people thinking. Intrigued? Or after something different? More details at faraday.institute/shop
Order by 11th December to be sure of getting them in time for Christmas!

Maybe you've never considered this before, but data sets are shaped by human behaviour. And that means sin is built into algorithms.

But all is not lost. AI can still be used for good. Read this week's by Dr Ruth Bancewicz to discover how you can be a voice and a catalyst for practical action to use and create AI-based technologies that will build lasting joy: bit.ly/46kbEuT.

The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion

We greatly enjoyed hearing Dr Mary Woolley deliver the findings of NICER's research into trainee and early-career teachers' experiences of science-faith encounters in the classroom. Missed it? The recording is now available online: faradayinstitute.online/Woolley
Did you know The Faraday Institute has a whole department devoted to youth and schools? Visit www.faradaykids.com or www.faradayteens.com for age-appropriate content including answers to science-faith questions, ideas of fun experiments to do at home and books. For teachers and other adults working with children and young people, www.faradayeducators.com is the place to go for classroom resources and information about upcoming training opporwww.faradayeducators.com about what the Faraday Institute Youth and Schools Programme could do for you and your young people, contact [email protected] and someone on the team will be delighted to talk with you.
The last of this term's research seminars will be delivered today by Dr Andrew Jackson, on 'The Divine Logic of Evolution: Reading Evolutionary Biology Through the Lens of Maximus the Confessor’s Logoi Cosmology'. Join us in the Shasha Suite, Woolf Building at 1pm, or for details about how to participate in the seminar online head to faradayinstitute.online/Jackson

Faraday Educators Visits Find out what we can offer to your school, church or other group Training Find out about the training we offer to teachers, church workers and speakers

Join us online or at the Shasha Suite, Woolf Building on 28th November at 1pm for a seminar by Dr Andrew Jackson, who will talk on ‘The Divine Logic of Evolution: Reading Evolutionary Biology Through the Lens of Maximus the Confessor’s Logoi Cosmology’.

Maximus the Confessor, the 6th-7th Century Byzantine monk and theologian, is renowned for his exposition of creation in terms of the logoi, the refracted Logos (‘Word’) of John Chapter 1 and the ‘rational principles’ of Greek philosophy. In recent years, some scholars have hinted at a certain resonance between Maximus’ logoi cosmology and biological evolution. Based on a close reading of Maximus, I argue that such resonance is indeed justified, which helps to articulate a distinctly ‘immanentist’ or ‘incarnational’ view of divine action within evolution. There are, however, some notable dissonances between the logoi and evolution which need addressing, for which I offer some possible (and neglected) solutions drawn from Maximus and the Eastern Orthodox tradition more broadly. Of the practical applications that arise from this research, I will focus on one: the need for a greater recognition of the theophanic potential of the particular, the divergent and the transitional in evolution, as against recent trends in theological discussions of evolution that tend to privilege the universal, the convergent, and the terminal.

Book online at

Dr Andrew Jackson – The Divine Logic of Evolution: Reading Evolutionary Biology Through the Lens of Maximus the Confessor’s Logoi Cosmology | Faraday On 28th November at 1pm Dr Andrew Jackson will give a seminar entitled ‘The Divine Logic of Evolution: Reading Evolutionary Biology through the Lens of Maximus the Confessor’s Logoi Cosmology’.

We very much enjoyed Prof. David Fergusson's public lecture last week on 'The Persistence of Faith: Scientific and Theological Perspectives'. If you missed it, you can watch the recording at https://faradayinstitute.online/Fergusson
Prof. Fergusson's talk and the subsequent Q&A session raised some interesting points around evolutionary psychology, with the emergence of 'the cognitive science of religion' as a distinct branch within that field of study. If you'd like to explore this further, you might find some of our books helpful: for example, Dr Denis Alexander's 'Are We Slaves to Our Genes?' or 'Is There Purpose in Biology?', or the recently published 'Coming to Faith through Dawkins'. These and more are available via our website at https://www.faraday.cam.ac.uk/shop/

The Persistence of Faith: Scientific and Theological Perspectives | Faraday Almost all the leading Christian theologians have regarded religion as a natural phenomenon evident in every society. Though their assessments of the value of a sensus divinitatis vary, this assumption about the rootedness of religion in our human condition is pervasive. As a ‘natural’ phenomeno...

Join us online or in-person on 14th November at 1pm for a seminar by Dr Mary Woolley, who will talk on ‘Early Career Teacher Experiences of Science-Religion Encounters in the Classroom: Towards a Shared Understanding of Purpose?’.

In 2019, NICER, a university research-centre at Canterbury Christ Church University, were awarded a grant from the Templeton World Charity Foundation to explore ‘Beginning teachers experiences of science/religion encounters: an integrated vision of knowledge?’ Four years later, Dr Mary Woolley shares some of the key findings and resources created by the project. The research project used focus groups with student teachers from 6 universities and an online survey accessed by over 900 teachers to explore teachers’ confidence and competence in engaging with science/religion encounters in the classroom and the barriers and facilitators they faced. Findings relate to the need for a shared understanding of purpose between science and RE teachers, but also the need for mutual respect and deeper dialogue if pupils are going to make necessary links across subject boundaries.

Dr Mary Woolley – Early Career Teacher Experiences of Science-Religion Encounters in the Classroom: Towards a Shared Understanding of Purpose? | Faraday On 14th November at 1pm Dr Mary Woolley will give a seminar entitled ‘Beginning Teachers Experiences of Science-Religion Encounters in the Classroom: Towards a Shared Understanding of Purpose? ’.

We had a great time at the Summer Course last week at Lucy Cavendish College, University of Cambridge! Check out some photos we took to remember the experience.

Photo credit: Pavlina Kasparova and Wendy Finella.

We are concluding a week filled with inspiring, challenging, and ground-breaking lectures. Thank you for the great discussions and fellowship!
Lucy Cavendish College, University of Cambridge

Dr Denis Alexander talks about the reason behind his new book 'Coming to Faith through Dawkins' (co-edited with Alister McGrath; due for publication by Kregel in August 2023). He notices that one consequence of the 'New Atheism' movement is that it stimulated people to think about questions of science and faith. The book includes twelve stories of people from atheist/agnostic backgrounds who came to believe in God and became Christians.