Sem01 (2026-2027) Science and Religion: Harmony and Discord

Course details

• Practical information

  Academic year
  2026-2027

  Semester
  1

  Period
  1, 2

  Day(s)
  Mondays, and one excursion on a Wednesday

  Time
  18.00-20.00
  18.00-21.00 (last meeting in November and one in December)

  Number of meetings
  14 (incl. one excursion)

  Dates of all meetings
  7, 14, 21, 28 September
  5, 12, 26 October
  Excursion  (on a Wednesday - date to be determined)
  2, 9, 16, 23, 30 November
  7 December

  Location
  Vrije Universiteit, De Boelelaan 1105, 1081 HV Amsterdam

  Room
  Tbd

  Credits
  6

  Coordinator & Lecturer

  • Prof.dr.ir Fokko Jan Dijksterhuis (Faculty of Humanities VU)

  Lecturers

  • Dr. Ab Flipse (Faculty of Humanities VU)
  • Prof.dr. Frans van Lunteren (Faculty of Sciences VU)
  • Dr. Ahab Bdaiwi (University of Leiden)
  • 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 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%

  Fraud and Plagiarism
  With regard to fraud and plagiarism, the VU Student Charter (Chapter 10) and the rules and regulations of the Examination Board of the faculty that offers the course, apply. This will be monitored carefully. Upon suspicion of fraud or plagiarism the Examinations Board will be informed.

• Attendance expectations

  Be present at all lectures and work groups. Make sure to inform your teacher as soon as possible if you cannot attend a class due to special circumstances. If you are absent for two lectures and/or work groups, or over 15 % of all meetings, the teacher can assign an additional task or deny further participation.

  Active participation in the seminars and class discussions plays a crucial role in student learning in the course, and in the student’s ability to reach the course objectives: attendance, preparation, and active in-class participation will therefore form part of the course assessment.

• Study materials

  • Research articles and other readings
  • Primary sources