Sem01 (2024-2025) Science and Religion: Harmony and Discord

Course details

• Practical information

  Academic year
  2024-2025

  Semester
  1

  Period
  1&2

  Day(s)
  Mondays

  Time
  18.00-20.00 (meetings 1-11)
  18.00-21.00 (meeting 12 and 13)

  Number of meetings
  13

  Dates of all meetings
  2, 9, 16, 23, 30 September
  7, 14, 28 October
  4, 11, 18, 25 November
  2 December

  Location
  Vrije Universiteit, De Boelelaan 1105, 1081 HV Amsterdam

  Room
  BV-1H50

  Credits
  6

  Coordinator & Lecturers

  • Prof.dr.ir Fokko Jan Dijksterhuis (Faculty of Humanities VU) coordinator of this course
  • Dr. Ab Flipse (Faculty of Humanities VU)
  • Prof.dr. Frans van Lunteren (Faculty of Sciences VU)
  • Dr. Ahab Bdaiwi (University of Leiden)
  • Eva van Urk, MA (Faculty of Religion and Theology VU)
  • Prof.dr. Eric Jorink (ING Huygens Institute/University of Leiden)

• Learning objectives

  After completing this course:Students have a broad overview of the changing relations between science and religion from antiquity to the present.

  • Students have a broad overview of the changing relations between science and religion from antiquity to the present.
  • Students understand the key developments in the science-religion debate, such as the scientific revolution, and the debates about the theories of Galileo and Darwin, within their socio-cultural context.
  • Students have developed their own critical stance towards historiography surrounding these specific debates.
  • Students are aware of the various models put forward over the centuries to explain the relationship between science and religion, especially the question of how the vision of harmony could prevail for such a long time, and why the idea of a fundamental conflict has become dominant since the late 19th century onwards.
  • Students are able to understand and analyze a science-religion case study in the past by using the methodological tools from current science-religion historiography

• Working formats & structure

  • Lectures and discussions
  • Individual oral presentations by students, based on preliminary version of final essay (meetings 12 and 13)
  • Individual final essay (3000-4000 words)

• Assessment methods

  • Weekly assignments and participation counts for 20% of the final grade.
  • Individual oral presentation counts for 10%
  • Written essay counts for 70%

• Study materials

  • Research articles and other readings
  • Primary sources