Christianity: Details about 'List Of Christian Thinkers In Science'

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This list concerns the issue of The relationship between religion and science, but is specific to Christian history. As such it is strictly limited to scientists who contributed to theology or religious history. As a list this is only supplementary to the issue as lists are by themselves not equipped to answer questions on this topic. The purpose is to act as a guide on this issue. The names, annotations, and or links are to provide use for further study on this topic.

Main article: List of Christians

1 Color code
2 Edict of Milan to the Edict of Nantes
3 Ratio Studiorum to French Revolution
4 Napoleonic Wars to the modern era
5 Living
6 See also
7 External links

Color code

Key:	Roman Catholic Church	Eastern Christianity	Anglicanism	Protestant	Other or Unspecified

Edict of Milan to the Edict of Nantes

In 313 the Edict of Milan ended Christian persecution in the Roman Empire. Although this is not the start of Christianity it may well be the start of Christians recorded achievements in many pursuits, including science.

The Edict of Nantes was an important event in allowing religious toleration among Christians. Hence this increased the ability of different kind of Christians to work in science among other things.

Name	Reason for inclusion	Sources
Roger Bacon	He was an English philosopher who emphasized empiricism and has been presented as one of the earliest advocates of the modern scientific method.	Catholic Encyclopedia
Thomas Bradwardine	He was an English archbishop, often called "the Profound Doctor". He developed studies as one of the Oxford Calculators, of Merton College, Oxford University. These studies would lead to important developments in mechanics.
Jean Buridan	He was a Catholic priest who sowed the seeds of religious scepticism in Europe. He developed the theory of impetus, that was the first step toward the modern concept of inertia.	Catholic Encyclopedia
Laurentius Paulinus Gothus	A professor of astronomy and Archbishop of Uppsala. He wrote on astronomy and theology.
Robert Grosseteste	A Catholic bishop. A.C. Crombie calls him "the real founder of the tradition of scientific thought in mediaeval Oxford, and in some ways, of the modern English intellectual tradition".	Catholic Encyclopedia
Albertus Magnus	Patron saint of scientists in Catholicism, may have been the first to isolate arsenic.	Catholic Encyclopedia
Nicholas of Cusa	Catholic cardinal and theologian who made contributions to the field of mathematics by developing the concepts of the infinitesimal and of relative motion. His philosophical speculations also anticipated Copernicus’ heliocentric world-view.	and Catholic Encyclopedia
Nicolas Oresme	A theologian and Bishop of Lisieux, he was one of the principal founders and popularizers of modern sciences, and probably the most original thinker of the 14th century.	Catholic Encyclopedia
John Philoponus	His criticism of Aristotelian physics was important to Medieval science. He also theorized about the nature of light and the stars. He was also called John of Alexandria, hence the picture. As a theologian he rejected the Council of Chalcedon so was a figure in the Monophysitism minority of Eastern Christianity.	Cornell University and Stanford University
Michael Stifel	Led to the development of Logarithms, hence the picture. He was also among Martin Luther's earlier followers and wrote on Biblical prophecies.	, , and
Pope Sylvester II	He influenced the teaching of math and astronomy in church-ran schools.	and an article by William Wallace, O.P. Visiting Professor, Philosophy and History, Committee on History and Philosophy and Science at University of Maryland, College Park

Ratio Studiorum to French Revolution

The Ratio Studiorum was crucial in the establishment of

Jesuit education in 1599. Many of the Catholic scientists in this section were Jesuits or influenced by Jesuit education. Further Jesuit education and science was an influence outside the Catholic world as well through scholarly communication.

This section goes on to the French Revolution which led to the first major de-Christianization attempts in Europe to occur in many centuries. This culminated in the Cult of the Supreme Being. The period thus saw Christianity in transition and eventually conflict.

Name	Reason for inclusion	Sources
Maria Gaetana Agnesi	A mathematician appointed to a position by Pope Benedict XIV. After her father died she devoted her life to religious studies, charity, and ultimately became a nun.	Catholic Encyclopedia and
Antoine Arnauld	Jansenist theologian who wrote New Elements of Geometry and was compared to Euclid.	and the 11th edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica
Isaac Barrow	English divine, scientist, and mathematician. He wrote Expositions of the Creed, The Lord's Prayer, Decalogue, and Sacraments and Lectiones Opticae et Geometricae.	A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature and
Robert Boyle	Scientist and theologian who argued that the study of science could improve glorification of God.	and Stanford University
Juan Caramuel y Lobkowitz	Cistercian monk who once tried to solve theological problems by mathematical rules.
Humphry Ditton	He published, Discourse on the Resurrection of Jesus Christ and wrote on fluxions. He also was elected mathematical master at Christ's Hospital, although the painting shows it as it was 55 years after his death.
Johan Ernst Gunnerus	He was a Church of Norway bishop and botanist. The plant genus Gunnera is named for him, he researched sea creatures as well as birds, and he helped found The Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters. He also was a professor of theology at the University of Copenhagen.	Norwegian University of Science and Technology
Athanasius Kircher	Jesuit who had a theory seen as one of the antecedents to germ theory and helped rebuild a shrine to Mother Mary. The picture is of Kircher's model of the Earth's internal fires, from Mundus Subterraneus.
Colin Maclaurin	Briefly a Divinity student, had a Christian institute named for him.
Marin Mersenne	For four years he devoted himself to theology writing Quaestiones celeberrimae in Genesim (1623) and L'Impieté des déistes (1624). These were theological essays against atheism and deism. He is more remembered for the work he did corresponding with mathematicians and concerning Mersenne primes.	MacTutor archive and the Catholic Encyclopedia
Isaac Newton	He wrote Observations upon the Prophecies of Daniel and the Apocalypse of St. John(Nontrinitarianism)
Blaise Pascal	Convert to Jansenism known for Pascal's law(physics), Pascal's theorem(math), and Pascal's Wager(theology)
Joseph Priestley	Nontrinitarianism clergyman who wrote the controversial work History of the Corruptions of Christianity. He is also credited with discovering oxygen. (Although Carl Wilhelm Scheele did so years before)
John Ray	An English botanist who wrote The Wisdom of God manifested in the Works of the Creation. (1691) The of Environment and Christianity is also named for him.	University of California, Berkeley and
Anton Maria Schyrleus of Rheita	Capuchin astronomer. He dedicated one of his astronomy books to Jesus Christ, a "theo-astronomy" work was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary, and he wondered if beings on other planets were "cursed by original sin like humans are."	and
Nicolas Steno	Lutheran convert to Catholicism, his Beatification in that faith occurred in 1987.	and
Emanuel Swedenborg	His writing is the basis of the Swedenborgianism religion and several of his theological works contained some science hypotheses.
Samuel Vince	Cambridge astronomer and clergyman. He wrote Observations on the Theory of the Motion and Resistance of Fluids and The credibility of Christianity vindicated, in answer to Mr. Hume’s objections. He won the Copley Medal in 1780, before the period dealt with here ended.	and

Napoleonic Wars to the modern era

The Napoleonic wars increased secularism in the rest of Europe. The era led

to other challenges and issues for Christians in science as well. The first major one being theories of evolution discussed early on by Lamarck in Philosophie Zoologique and culminating in The Origin of Species. Christians in science in this period dealt with this in a variety of ways ranging from total rejection to a measured support.

In the twentieth century new areas of physics, like the Big Bang or Quantum mechanics, have arisen. These have created new areas of Christian philosophy and thought concerning science. The Catholic priest Georges Lemaître in particular proved important to the history of the Big Bang theory although he did not do enough cross-disciplinary work to be in the list itself.

Name	Reason for inclusion	Sources
Charles Babbage	The Difference Engine and the Ninth Bridgewater Treatise.	and Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University
Ernest William Barnes	Theologian and mathematician. He was Bishop of Birmingham from 1924 to 1953. His The Rise of Christianity angered Anglo-Catholics due to its Modernist outlook. In math he is linked to the Barnes G-function and wrote 29 papers before 1910.
Francesco Faà di Bruno	An Italian mathematician most linked to Turin. He is known for Faà di Bruno's formula and being a spiritual writer beatified in 1988.	and the Catholic Encyclopedia
William Buckland	Anglican priest/geologist who wrote Vindiciae Geologiae; or the Connexion of Geology with Religion explained. He was born in 1784, but his scientific life did not begin before the period discussed herein.	University of Oxford site.
Georg Cantor	Lutheran who wrote on religious topics and had an interest in Medieval theology.	IUPUI
Teilhard de Chardin	A member of the Society of Jesus, a Paleontologist linked to the finding of Peking Man, and a philosopher linked to the Omega Point idea.	Fairfield University
Temple Chevallier	Priest and astronomer who did Of the proofs of the divine power and wisdom derived from the study of astronomy.
Charles Coulson	Methodist who wrote Science and Christian Belief in 1955.
Pierre Duhem	He worked on Thermodynamic potentials and wrote histories advocating that the Roman Catholic Church helped advance science.	and Scientist and Catholic: Pierre Duhem by Stanley Jaki
Henry Eyring	Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints member whose interactions with LDS President Joseph Fielding Smith on science and faith are a part of LDS history.	National Academy of Sciences
Michael Faraday	A Glasite church elder for a time, he discussed the relationship of science to religion in a lecture opposing Spiritualism.	BBC and
Pavel Florensky	Russian Orthodox saint who wrote a book on Dielectrics and wrote of imaginary numbers having a relationship to the Kingdom of God.	Second paragraph of Page 26 in a paper from Middlesex University
Philip Henry Gosse	Marine biologist who wrote Aquarium (1854), and A Manual of Marine Zoology (1855-56). He is more famous, or infamous, as a Christian Fundamentalist who coined the idea of Omphalos (theology).	University of Houston hosted article.
Asa Gray	His Gray's Manual remains a pivotal work in botany. His Darwiniana has sections titled "Natural selection not inconsistent with Natural theology", "Evolution and theology", and "Evolutionary teleology." The preface indicates his adherence to the Nicene Creed in concerning these religious issues.	and
Edward Hitchcock	Geologist, paleontologist, and Congregationalist pastor. He worked on Natural theology and was third President of Amherst College, it's seal is pictured.(Born in 1793, but the work by him was done in the nineteenth century.	and Amherst College
Lord Kelvin	He gave a famous address to the Christian Evidence Society. In science he won the Copley Medal, the Royal Medal, and was important in Thermodynamics.	Institute of Physics and his own article.
Lars Levi Læstadius	A botanist who started a revival movement within Lutheranism called Laestadianism. This movement is among the strictest forms of Lutheranism. As a botanist he has the author citation Laest and discovered four species.
Gregor Mendel	Augustinian Abbot who argued in favor of his monastery during a taxation dispute.	Catholic Encyclopedia.
Michael Polanyi	He was born Jewish, but became a Tolstoyan and was also married in a Roman Catholic Church. In 1946 he wrote Science, Faith, and Society ISBN 0226672905 (Merton College, where he had a fellowship, is pictured)	and
George Stokes	A minister's son, he wrote a book on Natural Theology. He was also one of the Presidents of the Royal Society and made contributions to Fluid dynamics.	Gifford Lectures site.
Henry Baker Tristram	A founding member of the British Ornithologists' Union. His publications included The Natural History of the Bible (1867) and The Fauna and Flora of Palestine (1884).
William Whewell	A professor of mineralogy and moral philosophy. He wrote An Elementary Treatise on Mechanics in 1819 and Astronomy and General Physics considered with reference to Natural Theology in 1833.	and
E. T. Whittaker	Converted to Catholicism in 1930 and member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences. His 1946 Donnellan Lecture was entitled on Space and Spirit. Theories of the Universe and the Arguments for the Existence of God. He also received the Copley Medal and had written on Mathematical physics before conversion.

Living

As suggested this section concerns significant Christian thinkers in science who are alive today. Those who lead organizations of Christians in science or who write works concerning how Christians of today respond to science. Interest in this has increased in recent decades due to continued controversies and recognition from awards like the Templeton Prize.

Name	Reason for inclusion	Sources
Ian Barbour	A graduate of Duke University, their logo is seen in the preceding image, who wrote Christianity and the Scientists in 1960, and When Science Meets Religion ISBN 006060381X in 2000.	Templeton Prize site.
R.J. Berry	He is a former president of both the Linnean Society of London and the Christians in Science group. He also wrote God and the Biologist: Personal Exploration of Science and Faith (Apollos 1996) ISBN 0851114466	and
Guy Consolmagno	Jesuit who works at the Vatican Observatory and wrote Brother Astronomer on being a Catholic clergyman in science.(Image is of the VATT Popescope)	A link from the Vatican Observatory
George Coyne	Jesuit, Director of Vatican Observatory	Baltimore Sun and Vatican Observatory.
Laurance Doyle	A scientist at SETI who argues that his faith, Christian Science, encouraged a scientific revolution.	and
Owen Gingerich	Mennonite who has written about people of faith in science history.	Space.com and Cambridge Christians in Science.
John T. Houghton	He is the co-chair of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and won a gold medal from the Royal Astronomical Society. He's also former Vice President of Christians in Science.
Stanley Jaki	Benedictine who won a Templeton Prize and advocates the idea modern science could only have arisen in a Christian society.	Seton Hall University site.
Donald Knuth	(Lutheran) The Art of Computer Programming and 3:16 Bible Texts Illuminated (1991), ISBN 0895792524	His website.
Kenneth R. Miller	A biology professor at Brown University who wrote Finding Darwin's God ISBN 0060930497	St. Petersburg Times
Arthur Peacocke	Anglican priest and biochemist, whose ideas may have influenced Anglican and Lutheran views of evolution.	Society of Ordained Scientists' website
John Polkinghorne	Anglican priest who wrote Science and the Trinity (2004) ISBN 0300104456	His own website.
Charles Townes	In 1964 he won the Nobel Prize in Physics and in 1966 he wrote The Convergence of Science and Religion.	University of California, Berkeley and Templeton Prize's site.

Christianity: Details about 'List Of Christian Thinkers In Science'

Contents

Color code

Edict of Milan to the Edict of Nantes

Ratio Studiorum to French Revolution

Napoleonic Wars to the modern era

Living

See also

Neutral links

Skeptical or hostile links on the topic