A Scientific Defense of Spiritual and Religious Faith
Hey all – I realize this is a very perspectival observation, but when I look at that subject line it sounds like spiritual and religious faith requires defending. To be clear, I think those things are a personal choice, and no defense is required. Having said that, we’ve been dipping in and out of various takes on this intersection of science, faith, spirituality and belief for a while now so when I ran across this particular presentation I was struck by how relevant it seemed in that context. The internet being what it is, we have access to “guests” that would otherwise be completely unavailable to us, and this week we’re going to take full advantage of that by taking in a presentation with the same title as the subject line.
Our virtual guest will be Dr. Tony Jack. He has a BA in Psychology and Philosophy from Oxford University, and a PhD in Experimental Psychology from University College London. He continued his training in Cognitive Neuroscience at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience, UCL, London and the Dept. of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis Medical School. Since 2007 he has been leading the Brain, Mind and Consciousness lab at Case Western Reserve University. In 2014 Dr Jack also became the Research Director of the Inamori International Center for Ethics and Excellence. Also, he is one of the most low-key presenters I’ve encountered in a while; not a “high brow” academic at all.
Video Link: https://youtu.be/BihT0XrPVP8?si=fRq7v-kSdBhFmaGs
See what I mean? Big budget megachurches, eat your heart out. 🙂 This Sunday, in the basement of VA Cafe, those of us who are able to be present will hear a deeply researched and (in my opinion) very well-reasoned presentation about a confluence of influences that we may find complicated. If your experience of this is anything like mine, Dr. Jack’s presentation will provide an accessible framework for your future consideration of how science and faith can not only co-exist, but work together to serve humans well.
This is an alt.Sunday with Kids Table on the agenda as well, so come one, come all.
I’ll see you on Sunday. (10:45 am. 171 McDermot Ave)
Peace,