Discussion 1: Science and Religion: Cultural Traditions and Contemporary World Views

In many traditions—both monotheistic and polytheistic—that have arisen in the last 10,000 years, gods and goddesses have been anthropomorphized into human form. Yet, despite their physical and emotional similarities to humans, these gods are often relegated to realms above and below the earth. In this way, humans project their own understanding of the world upon their deities, yet maintain a well-defined separation from them in order to preserve the unknowable nature of the Divine. In the conclusion of his book, Dr. Sharpe seeks to step past this separation. He raises the concept of seeing the world as a whole as a spiritual entity and science as a way of coming to know that entity better. Through this lens, he ceases to see a conflict between the two subjects of Science and Spirituality.