Remembering John Polkinghorne: a vision of one world, and one culture

A personal recollection of gratitude reports on the way that the writings of John Polkinghorne inspired and guided the author’s own thinking in science and theology since meeting him as a graduate student. Themes of both agreement and disagreement are selected from the many to be found in Polkinghorne’s corpus. Closer attention is paid to two of his books, Science and Christian Belief and Faith, Science and Understanding. A running theme is the creative tension of a ‘bottom-up thinker’, one of whose salient and influential arguments was that of ‘top-down causation’. Although there is disagreement over Polkinghorne’s exegesis of divine character in Job, thinking the argument through did bear fruit.

Following the Footsteps of John Polkinghorne: In Search of Divine Action in the World

John Polkinghorne was, undoubtedly, one of the most influential authors in the dialogue between science and religion. His attitude is characterized by a focus on the concept of kenosis in response to the ontological orientation of process philosophy and theology. God’s omnipotence implies the possibility that God created the universe as an evolutionary and autonomous world, which is not predetermined but has been created for openness. According to Polkinghorne, the position of this openness may be in the uncertainty associated with the world of quantum and chaotic phenomena. God’s self-limitation of his own omnipotence can thus be understood as an effort to respect the autonomy of natural processes and human freedom. Such an image of God is compatible with the current state of scientific knowledge, which itself becomes the starting point for thinking about God and his relationship to the world. Thus, despite the problems of some parts of its concept, Polkinghorne creates a comprehensive integrative approach to the dialogue between science and religion.

Conclusion

In concluding this study of Troeltsch’s eschatological Absolute, two possible applications of his theology are discussed. First, Troeltsch can lead the way in working out an eschatology that is adequate for engagement with scientific research on the eventual death of the universe. Work by John Polkinghorne and Kathryn Tanner is exemplary and offers a point of contact between current work and Troeltsch’s key insights. Second, the idea of the eschatological Absolute offers a promising possibility of rapprochement between the liberal theological tradition and apocalyptic theology. Although these two traditions of modern theology are probably not fully amenable to one another, there is significant room for a recognition of common ground, and for learning to occur between them.

Science and Theology in John Polkinghorne’s Thought

Английский физик и богослов Дж. Полкинхорн является одним из ярчайших пред ставителей западно христианской апологетики конца XX - нач. XXI века, чьё насле дие требует внимательного изучения. В статье рассматриваются основные подходы Дж. Полкинхорна к осуществлению диалога между христианским богословием и науч ной мыслью. Представлен анализ методологии критического реализма и его примене ния в науке и богословии, специфика нового естественного богословия Полкинхорна и в его контексте проблематика богословия творения, показана необходимость бого словской преданности для осуществления диалога между богословием и наукой. The British physicist and theologian John Polkinghorne is a bright late 20th - early 21st century Western Christian apologist, whose thought should be studied carefully. This article seeks to explore into Polkinghorne’s key approaches to the dialogue between Christian theology and scientific thought. The author analyzes the critical realist method as applicable in science and theology and reviews Polkinghorne’s new natural theology as a setting for a theology of creation. The author also validates the need for theological loyalty as a pretext for a dialogue between theology and science.

You can’t live a divided life

In this the third autobiographical chapter, Hans Halvorson (H.H.) comments on his experience. Brought up in the USA, H.H. recounts the divided nature of American culture, in which science is all but worshipped by some, and regarded with deep suspicion by others. Emerging from the latter subculture, H.H. found himself mathematically capable and drawn to physics, but needing ‘permission’ to engage more fully with science. This he found in the work of John Polkinghorne and Thomas Torrance, and by this route finally landed in academia in the philosophy of science. The freedom to bring together his commitments, values, and interests into a coherent whole has been a deeply appreciated freedom.