Criticism of Christianity: Encyclopedia II - Criticism of Christianity - Criticisms regarding Christianity and science

Criticism of Christianity - Criticisms regarding Christianity and science

Christianity has sometimes had an antagonistic relationship with science. According to American religious scholar Kaufmann Kohler, the resulting Christian orthodoxy from the 4th century onward "emphasised faith, produced a thinking that deprecated learning, as was shown by Draper ("History of the Conflict between Science and Religion") and by White ("History of the Warfare of Science with Theology"), a reliance on the miraculous and supernatural, under the from old pagan forms of belief. In the name of the Christian faith reason and research were condemned, Greek philosophy and literature were exterminated, and free thinking was suppressed."

Perhaps the best known example of this is when Galileo Galilei (who has been referred to as the "father of science"), was opposed by the Roman Catholic Church, even though Galileo asserted himself as devout Catholic. Galileo, for popularising Copernicus's Heliocentrism, which is now understood to be correct, was persecuted. According to Professor Andrew Dickson White, in A History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom (III.iii), 1896, Galileo's experiences demonstrate a classic case of a scholar forced to recant his scientific insight.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "Criticisms regarding Christianity and science", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki