1967 Geloof en Wetenschap : Orgaan van de Christelijke vereeniging van natuur- en geneeskundigen in Nederland - pagina 87

ESSAY CONCERNING CHRISTIAN UNDERSTANDING*) BY

WILLEM

KUYK

Introduction For the Christian it is impossible to ignore the problems which arise from the development of modern science as they bear upon the present-day Church. Perhaps we could better say: the problems of those modern scientists who have a position in the Church. Many churchmen claim that problems of that kind should not exist. They maintain that if a scientist in the Church has a problem arising from his research or from his changing scientific mind, then it is his privilege to solve that question within the context of the theology his denomination stands for. Others admit that there is a universal problem regarding the Creation story of the Bible, a solution to which should be found; but they may add that this is precisely as far as one may go, because further reflection on the Bible will destroy its revelational character. In the other extreme we encounter Christians who, observing that the traditional logical dead-locks of theology do not meet much understanding by men outside the Church, believe that a radical demythologization of theological dogma may pave the way to a renewed Church that may be acceptable to modern man again. In this renewed Church, they argue, the modern mind will not be offended any more by stories of miracles, the virginal b i r t h , . . . , and in short by those Biblical data that are incomprehensable by the senses or by new scientific insight. This article is an attempt to throw some light on this situation and an effort is made to come to an understanding of the concrete task of Christian scientists in connection with these issues, necessarily in a bird's-eye view.

*) Adapted notes of a talk for the Christian Association of Alumni of Dutch and North American Universities in Toronto January 1966. The word „science" means almost everywhere natural science, throughout the paper.

Deze tekst is geautomatiseerd gemaakt en kan nog fouten bevatten. Digibron werkt voortdurend aan correctie. Klik voor het origineel door naar de pdf. Voor opmerkingen, vragen, informatie: contact.

Op Digibron -en alle daarin opgenomen content- is het databankrecht van toepassing. Gebruiksvoorwaarden. Data protection law applies to Digibron and the content of this database. Terms of use.

Printen