Science and Religion: Some Historical Perspectives (Cambridge Studies in the History of Science) [Paperback]

John Hedley Brooke (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521283744 | ISBN-13: 978-0521283748 | Publication Date: May 31, 1991

One of the most fascinating and enduring issues in the development of the modern world is the relationship between scientific thought and religious belief. It is common knowledge that in Western societies there have been periods of crisis when new science has threatened established religious authority. The trial of Galileo in 1633 and the uproar caused by Darwin's Origin of Species(1859) are two famous examples. Taking account of recent scholarship in the history of science, Professor Brooke takes a fresh look at these and similar episodes, showing that science and religion have been mutually relevant in such a rich variety of ways that simple generalizations are not possible. Standing back from general theses affirming "conflict" or "harmony," which have so often served partisan interests, the author's object is to reveal the subtlety, complexity, and diversity of the interaction of science and religion as it has taken place in the past and in the twentieth century. Instead of treating science and religion as discrete definable entities, his approach is sensitive to shifting boundaries and willing to consider the contexts in which particular forms of science could be used both for religious and secular ends. The result is that, without assuming specialist knowledge, Brooke provides a wide-ranging study from the Copernican innovation to in vitro fertilization.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"An excellent introduction to [the important] question--what is the historical relation between science and religion...This well-crafted book also contains an extensive and useful bibliography essay." New Scientist

"In his impressive and thoughtful book, John Hedley Brooke, a historian of science, stands back from the contention and shows how history can illuminate the relationship of science and religion." Geoffrey Canto, Times Literary Supplement

"...a book which I read with great profit and can recommend to teachers and students of the relation between science and religion. It is in many respects the best study of the history of the interplay of Christian theology and modern science that I have come across." Peter Byrne, ????

"...brilliant, intellectually exciting....a `must' for anyone interested in science, in religion, and in our Western intellectual tradition." Spirituality Today

"This is an astonishing book about one of the most important problems facing our culture. Down the ages, the relationship of science to philosophy and religion has changed in countless ways. The main theme of this book is the almost unbelievable subtlety, complexity and diversity of this relationship. One cannot help but admire the author's vast reading, his penetrating critical power, his grasp of detail and his ability to summarize." H.N.V. Temperley, Nature

"...well written and will repay the attention that it demands by providing a fine background in the history of science as it has been affected by the historical progress of religious thought in the West." Gordon Stein, The American Rationalist

"...I have no hesitation in saying flatly that every scholar in our discipline, and many others as well, should benefit from reading this work." Edward B. Davis, Isis

"He has given us a brilliant, perceptive, subtle, nuanced analysis, which will permanently alter the way scholars and the informed lay public view the relations of science and religion. It is up to the rest of us to build on the foundation that Brooke has provided." David Lindberg, Metascience

"John Hedley Brooke's latest book is arguably the most important historical analysis of science and religion since Andrew Dickson White's History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom appeared nearly a century ago....the starting place for all future discussions of the subject." Ronald L. Numbers, Metascience

"...an admirable historical survey...Brooke admirably criticizes historiographical methods that describe the relations of science and religion in an undimensional fashion...Historians of the modern era have in this volume one of the best surveys of science and religion available in English. One pedagogical advantage is that it forces the reader to evaluate differing interpretations of the history of interactions between science and religion. The text is supplemented by an excellent bibliographic essay and an index. " Kenneth J. Howell, Journal of Modern History

Product Details

• Paperback: 434 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press (May 31, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521283744
• ISBN-13: 978-0521283748
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 6 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #249,561 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best book I know on the topic, August 14, 2000

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Timothy Chow - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Science and Religion: Some Historical Perspectives (Cambridge Studies in the History of Science) (Paperback)

Brooke challenges many comfortable myths about the history of science and religion in the West. Fans of Andrew White's "warfare" metaphor---that science and theology have always been in conflict with each other---will find that this simplistic metaphor fails to capture the complexity of actual historical data. On the flip side, Christian apologists who maintain that Christianity deserves the lion's share of the credit for the rise of natural science in the West will also find that reality is much more complicated than this neat story would have it. The book is a must for anyone who is serious about understanding the relationship between these two powerful forces that shape so much of Western culture today.

25 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Lots of potential, but fails to deliver for this reader., June 5, 2005

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D. Collingridge (Utah) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Science and Religion: Some Historical Perspectives (Cambridge Studies in the History of Science) (Paperback)

Without a doubt, John Brooke is very knowledgeable on the history of science and religion. His knowledge is evident in this book "Science and Religion: Some Historical Perspectives." Unfortunately, however, his writing style does not do justice to his understanding. Here are some of the major writing style concerns that I have.

First, he repeatedly quotes authors without providing references in the form of end notes. Take, for example, the second paragraph on page 119. It reads, "Aristotle had this to say in the context of explaining planetary motion, 'We are inclined to think of the stars as mere bodies or units...we ought to think of them as partaking of life and initiative.'" No end note!? This happens throughout the book and it is really annoying. He continually relies on quotes to support his arguments but you can't find the source of the quote. Or he often says, "so and so said..." but does not surround the supposed statement with quotation marks. This gives the book an unscholarly feel. So often I found myself thinking, "Well, should I trust Brooke, that he is correctly representing the ideas and comments of others?" This is a risk I am not willing to take.

Second, his writing style does a lot of what I call "name dropping." For example, he will be writing about Galileo, and then suddenly, in the same paragraph, slip in the name of some person and then say a thing or two about that person without providing a context or background about who that person is or why he or she is important. A little bit of this is ok, but there is too much of it and it gets annoying after a while, not to mention making it hard to follow the discussion. He takes too much for granted in thinking that the reader knows these obscure people.

Third, he often refers to Bacon, but which one!? Are you talking about Roger or Francis? This gets real annoying after a while. Again, he is taking too much for granted in thinking that the reader knows who he is talking about.

Fourth, the writing style in this book is, I hate to say, convoluted and oftentimes exhausting to read. Too often the reader has to stop, go back, and slowly read over again (and yes, again) to ensure full understanding. This makes reading the book laborious. Here is an example from page 109, first full paragraph. "The scientific texts produced by Jesuit scholars were sometimes short on theory [how so?]. This may reflect the belief [whose belief?] that catalogs of data [what kind of `catalogs of data'?] were more appropriate for teaching purposes or that there were pressures to shy away [what is meant by `shy away', and why?] from controversial ideas [such as...?]. Even those who saw the need for theoretical models [what is meant by `theoretical models'?] sometimes exulted [you mean, `delighted in'] in a pluralism [theoretical pluralism?] that had the effect of giving priority to none"[which is to say that....?]. This example contains many ideas, but they are just mashed together. All the while the reader is trying to keep pace as he or she goes along. Again, he takes for granted that the reader understands as he does.

Fifth, there are too many negatives. Try the following sentence found on page 19: "To say that religious belief could function as a presupposition of science need not [one] entail the strong claim that, without [two] a prior theology, science would never [three] have taken off." Reading this sort of verbiage page after page gets tedious.

On the positive side, he emphasizes the importance of interpreting past events within the context of which those events occurred. In all fairness there are a lot of gems in this book, if you don't mind hunting for them. But at some 347 pages long, I dare say that most people won't press forward to the end of the book looking for the gems.

In conclusion, Brooke is very knowledgeable, but unfortunately does not convey his ideas in a clear and concise manner in this book. It does not rise to the level of other books on science and religion, such as "Science and Religion" (by Ferngren) and "Religion and Science" (by Barbour). I can highly recommend these two books.

3 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very good introduction to the subject, May 2, 2006

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N. Nevatia "Neeraj Nevatia" (India) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Science and Religion: Some Historical Perspectives (Cambridge Studies in the History of Science) (Paperback)

I think John Hedley Brooke brings out some very interesting material in this book. Various theses, interpretations and topics are analysed. The text serves as a primer for students of history of science and theology...