Author: V.V. Raman
Publication: Science & Theology
News
Date:
URL: http://www.stnews.org/articles.php?article_id=163&category=books
God & Science: Divine Causation
and the Laws of Nature.
Though the majority of science-and-religion
books are Judeo-Christian in nature, there has been a recent surge of spokespeople
from other traditions - namely, Buddhism, Islam and Hinduism - publishing
about the harmony of their beliefs with modern science.
God & Science is mathematician
Richard Thompson's well-written collection of essays, showing the connection
between science-and-religion and Hinduism. Through the book, Thompson proves
himself to be a thoughtful writer with a solid mathematics and physics
background. Furthermore, he shows a clear understanding of Hindu and other
religious texts and a devotional sympathy for the Vaishnavism, a metaphysically
sophisticated form of Hinduism dedicated to the worship of Vishnu, a major
Hindu god. Thompson clearly argues that the myths surrounding Vaishnava
literature can be meaningfully interpreted in terms of current science
- in conjunction with the many-worlds theory, geological time scales or
evolution.
The book's chapter themes range
from cosmology to consciousness. It discusses rational mythology; the 1995
milk miracle, in which Hindu statues began "drinking" milk offered to them;
the advanced astronomy in works on Hindu sacred history and much more.
In the process, God & Science explains, in laymen's terms, some of
the complex ideas of current physics.
Most technical physicists wouldn't
concur with efforts to harness physics into a God-centered worldview, but
this book will open readers' eyes to the richness and multiplicity in human
culture. For those who take God as the substratum of the universe, this
Vaishnavite version of that conviction will prove both interesting and
insightful.
V. V. Raman is an emeritus professor
at the Rochester Institute of Technology.
