Table of Contents

List of contributors; Preface; 1. Introduction Thomas Dixon; Part I. Categories: 2. 'Science' and 'religion': constructing the boundaries Peter Harrison; 3. Science and religion in postmodern perspective: the case of Bruno Latour Jan Golinski; Part II. Narratives: 4. Religion and the changing historiography of the Scientific Revolution Margaret J. Osler; 5. The late-Victorian conflict of science and religion as an event in nineteenth-century intellectual and cultural history Frank M. Turner; 6. Islam, Christianity and the conflict thesis B. Harun Küçük; Part III. Evolution and Creationism: 7. Evolution and creationism in the Islamic world Salman Hameed; 8. Understanding creationism and evolution in America and Europe Bronislaw Szerszynski; Part IV. The Politics of Publishing: 9. A global history of science and religion Sujit Sivasundaram; 10. The Scopes trial beyond science and religion Adam R. Shapiro; 11. Science, religion, and the history of the book Jonathan R. Topham; Part V. Ways Forward: 12. Sciences and religions: what it means to take historical perspectives seriously Noah Efron; 13. Simplifying complexity: patterns in the history of science and religion Ronald L. Numbers; 14. What shall we do with the 'Conflict Thesis'? Geoffrey Cantor; Select bibliography; Index.

Promotional Information

Leading historians explore the complex and contingent histories of religious engagements with science, and challenge the famous 'conflict thesis'.

Reviews

'Every student of science and religion will find this book informative, useful, and stimulating.' Theological Book Review

'… there is a great deal here to interest and stimulate the general reader as well as the academic specialist.' The Expository Times

'These days, whenever the words 'science' and 'religion' are brought together, they are likely to conjure up other words like 'debate', 'conflict', and 'inevitable'. That set of associations, real or imagined, is the underlying subject of this remarkable book. It distills an enormous amount of scholarship relating to a fascinating set of subjects of contemporary importance in the form of well-researched and nicely written set of essays brought together in honor of the British historian John Hedley Brooke. It celebrates his work in redefining, one might almost say, defining away, the notion of conflict between science and religion.' Science and Education