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The Colorado College Fifty Year Club
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Colorado SpringsThursday, February 16, 2006 Parking is readily available in
the Mathias lot. Please RSVP to the Alumni Office with
check or credit card by Monday, February 13th.
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DenverThursday, April 20, 2006 Free University Club parking is available at the lot at 16th and Sherman Streets. Enter lot on 16th Street and ask attendant to direct you to the University Club parking spaces. Please RSVP to the Alumni Office with check or credit card by Monday, April 17. |
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Questions?
Please contact the CC Alumni & Parent Relations at (719) 389-6776
or (800) 852-6519. The famed former paleontologist,
evolutionary biologist and historian of science from Harvard, Stephen
Jay Gould, wrote this regarding the relationship between the human enterprises
known as science and religion: "Each has its own legitimate magisterium,
or domain of teaching authority, and these magisterium do not overlap."
The attitude Gould appears to recommend is one of mutual respect: let
practitioners of science promote their theories and do their work, and
let practitioners of religion do the same. Since the jurisdictions of
the two disciplines are distinct, there is no need to quibble about
who has got "things right" because they are essentially talking
about different things, about apples and oranges. The philosopher Ken
Wilbur expresses a similar view: "Science is clearly one of the
most profound methods that humans have devised for discovering truth,
while religion remains the single greatest force for generating meaning."
While I think we can all recognize the potential peace making power
of taking a stance supportive of such a division of labor, it is also
possible to challenge this perspective in the hopes of seeking some
common ground. What common ground might we ever conceive? We will take as just one of our
starting points the current hot topic of Intelligent Design (ID). While
there exist very clear divisions over whether it is appropriate to consider
ID theory to be scientific, I would like to try to take one step beyond
this debate – one for which I think which Gould’s perspective
is valuable – toward a consideration of what we believe to be
the larger roles of religion and science as human enterprises. Why are
both “sides” so concerned with getting their stories accepted?
And toward what end do we as human communities tell such larger than
life stories, such “global narratives,” anyway? David Gardiner teaches courses in the Religion department focusing on Buddhism and the religions of China and Japan. He received his doctorate from Stanford University, has traveled widely throughout Asia, and lived more than five years in Japan. His research and publications are mainly on the early history of Buddhism in Japan. |
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