Science and the Soul Seminar - Science for Seminaries Resources

Science and the Soul Seminar

“Maimonides says religious people who have no awareness of science — he talks about astronomy in particular — are like people walking around the palace of the king who can’t find the gate. You really need science to enter the gate.”
—Howard Smith, senior astrophysicist at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center

Dr. Smith was one of many science presenters at the Rabbinical School of Hebrew College’s winter seminar January 23- 26, 2017. The seminar, “Science and the Soul,” was a unique collaboration between the rabbinical school AAAS. As DoSER Associate Program Director Se Kim explained, “The science for Rabbinical Training is an extension of DoSER’s science for seminaries effort, which arose in response to the recognition that many people look to their religious leaders for guidance on the societal and contemporary issues brought by forefront scientific discoveries.”

Rabbi Dan Judson, Director of Professional Development and Placement at the rabbinical school, developed the program with a group of rabbinical students and viewed the seminar “as a unique opportunity for students to learn from scientists who are working in fields which have a direct bearing on the work that rabbis do. Be it an astrophysicist discussing the latest developments in cosmology and the impact that may have on theology; or an epigeneticist presenting on the latest research regarding how trauma is passed through generations which will impact an understanding of pastoral care, this seminar is sure to enlarge and enliven our understanding of the world. ”

Program – follow links to event videos

Honesty in an On-Line Age
Judith Donath

How Many Magisteria? Cause and Effect in Biology and Theology
Andrew Berry, Jonah Steinberg

Playing Dice with the Universe: Quantum Mechanics, Talmud, and Indeterminacy
Ben Dreyfus

Epigenetics and Pastoral care
Rachel Yehuda

Understanding Religion Through Neuroscience
Jonathan Morgan

Nuclear Weapons: Technology and Ethics
Laura Grego

Cosmology Today – Spiritual Insights, Ethical Imperatives
Ta Chazei

View From Outer Space
Jeffrey Hoffman

Metrics of Fairness
Moon Duchin

Meditations’ Effects on Physiology and Health
John Denninger

  • Course Categories: General Theology

  • Science Topics: Earth Science & Environment, History & Philosophy of Science, Life Sciences, Neuroscience, Brain, & Mind, Physics and Cosmos

  • Tags:
    physiology, science and the soul, neuroscience, cosmology, astronomy, physics, ethics, health, Science Engagement in Rabbinic Training, technology, quantum mechanics, epigenetics, nuclear weapons

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In furtherance of the AAAS mission of advancing science in service to society, AAAS|DoSER’s role in the Science for Seminaries project is to support efforts to integrate science into seminary education. AAAS|DoSER does not advise on or endorse the theological content of the participating seminaries.