Edited by Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti, Philip Larrey and Alberto Strumìa



Interdisciplinary Documentation

Interdisciplinary Encyclopedia

INTERS Catalogue

Instructions for the Readers

Interdisciplinary Encyclopaedia of Religion and Science

	Agnosticism
	Analogy
	Anthropic Principle
	Astronautics
	Atheism
	Autonomy
	Bethlehem, Star of
	Beauty
	Bioethics
	Cinema
	Cosmology
	Creation
	Culture
	Death

	Determinism/ Indeterminism
	Dialogue, Science and Theology
	Ecology
	Epistemology
	Evolution
	Experience
	Extraterrestrial life
	Fideism
	Finalism
	Geology
	God
	Gospels

	Human embryo
	Idealism
	Infinity
	Information
	Intelligence, artificial
	Jesus Christ, Incarnation and doctrine of Logos
	Laws of Nature
	Magisterium of Catholic Church
	Man, origin and nature
	Materialism
	Matter
	Mechanics

	Medicine
	Mind-Body Relationship
	Miracle
	Mystery
	Myth
	Nature
	Natural sciences, in the work of theologians
	New Age
	Pantheism
	Pontifical Academy of Sciences
	Positivism
	Progress
	Quantum Mechanics

	Realism
	Reductionism
	Relativity
	Resurrection
	Sacred Scripture
	Science and Theology, Parallelisms
	Sky
	Shroud of Turin
	Soul
	Spirit
	Technology
	Time
	Truth
	Unity of Knowledge
	Universe

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Determinism/Indeterminism
by Alberto Strumia, Department of Mathematics, University of Bari, Italy

By «determinism» we usually mean that «once we know the laws governing the universe, or a particular system of it, and the associated initial conditions, those laws are such to "determine" in a fixed and absolute way the entire the temporal evolution of the system»...

Dialogue, Science and Theology
by Robert J. Russell, The Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences, Berkeley - CA

It is fitting to commence this essay with these words from John Paul II: «The church and the scientific community will inevitably interact; their options do not include isolation. Science can purify religion from error and superstition; religion can purify science from idolatry and false absolutes. Each can draw the other into a wider world, a world in which both can flourish. We need each other to be what we must be, what we are called to be»...

Ecology
by Fiorenzo Facchini, Department of Evolutionary Biology, University of Bologna

The problem of the environment and its preservation arose in the last decades particularly because of the great acceleration of technology in the most developed countries...

Epistemology
by Gualberto Gismondi, Faculty of Theology, Pontifical Gregorian University, Rome

The term «epistemology» derives from joining two Greek words, episteme (science) and logos (discourse). From an etymological point of view, it means a “discourse about science”. According to its contemporary meaning, by epistemology we indicate a philosophical discipline which reflects upon the positive knowledge and the scientific theories proper to a given epoch...

Evolution
by Ludovico Galleni, Department of Zoology, University of Pisa, Italy

Although the term is universally known and used in both scientific culture and everyday speech, when we speak of «evolution» a number of useful clarifications are needed; in fact, precisely because of its widely usage some terminological confusion can easily arise...

Experience
by Rafael Martínez, Faculty of Philosophy, Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, Rome

The concept of «experience» has many different meanings difficult to codify in a complete way. In any case, it shows two clear dimensions. On one side, experience is the starting point of our knowledge, because it offers the “data” that our theories will try to understand and explain; on the other hand, experience is invoked as the “criterium of validity” for our knowledge as such...

Extraterrestrial life
by Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti, Faculty of Theology, Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, Rome

The sight of the starry sky has always given rise to profound questions. Among these, the question about the possibility that other planets may be inhabited by some form of life has been one of the most common and exciting...

Fideism
by Paul Poupard, President of the Pontifical Council for Culture

By the notion of «fideism» (fr. fideisme) we mainly indicate a theological movement of the 19th century according to which the capabilities of our reason to know moral and religious truths are so limited, that we can know them only by faith...

Finalism
by Philippe Dalleur, Faculty of Philosophy, Pontificial University of the Holy Cross, Rome

Natural finalism answers metaphysical questions such us: why do the natural forms appear as they do? Are there any natural goal-seeking processes? Finalism has been linked to determinism as natural laws often relate causality to the prediction of final states. Modern science, however, added much indeterminism: quantum physics, chaos, random mutations, etc. …

Geology
by Francesco Abbona, Department of Earth Sciences, University of Turin

Geology is the discipline which studies the composition, the structure and the state of the earth, as well as the various phenomena that occur on its surface, or on its layers to which our experience can have access...

God
by Giuseppe Tanzella-Nitti, Faculty of Theology, Pontifical University of the Holy Cross, Rome

During the historical development of culture, human reason has confronted two main questions that demanded an explanation: why does the world exist, and why does the human creature appear so different from the rest of visible nature...

Gospels
by Francesco Lambiasi, formerly professor of Fundamental theology at the Pontifical Gregorian University

Born within the Hebrew religious tradition, Christianity has its founder in Jesus of Nazareth. His teachings and works were proclaimed by his disciples and constitute what we call the Gospel, or the “Good News”. This message, centered around the paschal mystery of his death and resurrection, contains what his disciples heard and saw, but also the witness of the gradual insight they acquired reflecting upon the living acquaintance and intimacy they experienced with their Master...

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