A “very welcome volume” of essays questioning the presumption of irreconcilable conflict between science and religion (British Journal for the History of Science). The “conflict thesis”—the idea that an inevitable, irreconcilable conflict exists between science and religion—has long been part of the popular imagination. The Warfare between Science and Religion assembles a group of distinguished historians who explore the origin of the thesis, its reception, the responses it drew from various faith traditions, and its continued prominence in public discourse. Several essays examine the personal circumstances and theological idiosyncrasies of important intellectuals, including John William Draper and Andrew Dickson White, who through their polemical writings championed the conflict thesis relentlessly. Others consider what the thesis meant to different religious communities, including evangelicals, liberal Protestants, Roman Catholics, Eastern Orthodox Christians, Jews, and Muslims. Finally, essays both historical and sociological explore the place of the conflict thesis in popular culture and intellectual discourse today. Based on original research and written in an accessible style, the essays in The Warfare between Science and Religion take an interdisciplinary approach to question the historical relationship between science and religion, and bring much-needed perspective to an often-bitter controversy. Contributors include: Thomas H. Aechtner, Ronald A. Binzley, John Hedley Brooke, Elaine Howard Ecklund, Noah Efron, John H. Evans, Maurice A. Finocchiaro, Frederick Gregory, Bradley J. Gundlach, Monte Harrell Hampton, Jeff Hardin, Peter Harrison, Bernard Lightman, David N. Livingstone, David Mislin, Efthymios Nicolaidis, Mark A. Noll, Ronald L. Numbers, Lawrence M. Principe, Jon H. Roberts, Christopher P. Scheitle, M. Alper Yalçinkaya

Delve into the longstanding conflict between science and religion with Andrew Dickson White's "History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom." This seminal work explores the tumultuous relationship between religious beliefs and scientific discoveries, shedding light on the challenges and breakthroughs that have shaped the course of human knowledge. White's in-depth analysis offers a balanced perspective on the interplay between faith and reason, making it a valuable resource for scholars, theologians, and anyone interested in the evolution of thought.

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The battle between science and religion in American popular life is as old as America itself. By the late 19th century, it had reached a fever pitch, culminating in the two-volume 1896 work A History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom. The result of thirty years of research by historian and educator ANDREW DICKSON WHITE (1832-1918), a founder of Cornell University, this is White's attack on intellectually stifling religious dogma and his explication of the "conflict thesis" of outright warfare between science and religion. While scholars today generally see the situation as more nuanced, the conflict thesis remains a popular metaphor in the mind of the general public, and White's work continues to speak to us today. H.L. Mencken called this "one of the noblest monuments of American scholarship," and it will fascinate anyone who is troubled by the ongoing influence by religious authorities into secular science. In Volume I, White looks at the transformation of our understanding of the world from a primarily religious one of divine creation to a primarily scientific one informed by evolution, astronomy, and biology.