135 - The Promise of Science and the Power of Faith

The Promise of Science and the Power of Faith
By M. Holmes Hartshorne
143 pp. Philadelphia, The Westminster Press, 1958. $3.00.

This book, by Dr. Hartshorne, professor of philosophy and religion at Colgate University, is an exceptionally sensitive and discerning exposition of certain historical and systematic problems of Christianity and science. While many aspects are suggestive rather than fully developed, it is the kind of book from which one learns both through what is said and what is suggested, and even by the questions which one would like to put to what has been said.

While the title of the book could lead one to assume that this is another one of those books which laments scientism and asks men to believe instead, nothing could be further from the truth. Mr. Hartshorne is aware of the degree to which the illicit use of evolutionary science with respect to cultural and social issues fed historical hopes which could not be fulfilled. More important, however, is the interpretive illumination which Mr. Hartshorne brings to the history since the Renaissance. Much has recently been written to support the contention that science as we know it is the product of, or was made possible only on, Christian soil. Much of this literature is wishful rather than accurate in its interpretation.

Mr. Hartshorne, by contrast, has dealt with this issue with careful and wise historical judgment. For the Greeks the question was whether the order of the cosmos applied either to the realm of nature or history. Under the impact of Christianity, history had a meaning which was derived from a particular history, and nature was given a positive valuation which in turn made it possible to discern and discover regularities within it. The demonic disruptive forces of nature had been made subject to the sovereign power of a God who had overcome them. The fear of spirits or demons had thus been overcome. Such an outlook was thoroughly accepted in the medieval period at its best. In the disintegration of the medieval world, magic and witchcraft again became prominent because was no longer readily believed that the demonic powers had been over-

136 - The Promise of Science and the Power of Faith

come. In the Renaissance, there is a simultaneous belief in the tremendous capacity and power of man under God, and yet in his subjection to forces in nature which must still be overcome. What we in the modern world call science came directly out of this Renaissance urge to control the forces of nature. The science of the Renaissance period is a kind of combination of demonical and natural magic. The natural finally overcomes the demonic, though considerably later, and in the modern world, it became a kind of rational magic. Those for whom science is a sacred word will of course object to the word magic; nevertheless, Mr. Hartshorne has convincingly and tellingly indicated the proper sense in which this is true.

In its initial stages the victory of modern science came through a combination of mathematical, philosophical faith, and empirical observation. Mr. Hartshorne maintains that the philosophical side led to a basic approach to life in which nature became more significant than history, in which history was understood in terms of nature. Its impact on wide areas of thought led to the dissolution of the Christian understanding in its more classical sense. This could be documented, though perhaps not in the confines of this volume. As it is, Mr. Hartshorne takes us from the Reformation to Liberalism and Fundamentalism without filling in the interval except by an occasional reference.

Mr. Hartshorne is keenly aware of mistakes within the Christian community. Both Liberalism and Fundamentalism are factual and literal minded, differing only in that which is to be rejected or accepted. In the first, the full dimensions of faith could not come through; in the latter, they were distorted because they were incorrectly conceived. In both cases, they were led astray by an incorrect view of natural science.

Mr. Hartshorne is convinced that a proper delineation of science and of religion means that the two have absolutely nothing to do with each other. They are independent realms. "Science does not contradict the truth of religion; it never deals with it" (p. 116). Or again, "Scientific knowledge is limited to cause and effect; it cannot encompass freedom and historical meaning" (p. 132). Basically, this is correct. The warfare between religion and science was illegitimately conceived because of pretensions in both areas; the unity between the two was often spurious because of the reductionist views accepted by both. Nor are we to fill the gaps of science with theological answers. But having said that, the question still remains whether what is affirmed in one area does not con ceivably have implications for the way in which statements are made in the other. Simply drawing a line between the two realms encourages the return of old orthodoxies. There is, for example, altogether too much rejoicing that the new science makes old views of miracles possible precisely in the way in which they had previously been held.

137 - The Promise of Science and the Power of Faith

Mr. Hartshorne, of course, does not subscribe to such views on miracles. But here, too, there are difficulties. Again one can agree with him in his basic contention. Miracles are not discerned through sight and sound, but are visible only to the hearts which they touch (p. 95). Further the basic miracle is the nature and reception of God's love. When he comes to the delineation of actual miracles, his principle is not so instructive. For example, the "feeding of the five thousand" is spiritualized beyond recognition when it is declared: "Such is the nature of God's grace: it is apparently nothing, yet when men accept it, their lives are made full and there is as much and more left for all to share" (p. 98). Such an interpretation may be theologically feasible, but the story probably needs interpretation in the light of the expected Messianic banquet. The miracle of "Christ calming the wind and the waves" is interpreted as Christ stilling the storm within the disciples. The lake itself is not considered large enough to be a genuine danger in an actual storm (pp. 104-106). Those who know Palestine do not agree. In any case, the interpretation is a bit of existentializing which will not do.

It would be unfair, however, to think of these differences of opinion as in any way an adverse comment upon the book. My opinion of the book as a whole is exactly as indicated in the opening paragraph of this review.

John Dillenberger
Drew University
Madison, New Jersey