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Theological and Natural Science
Theological and Natural Science
148 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2001
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About the author
Thomas F. Torrance
99 books77 followersThomas Forsyth Torrance, MBE FRSE (30 August 1913 – 2 December 2007), commonly referred to as T. F. Torrance, was a Scottish Protestant theologian. Torrance served for 27 years as Professor of Christian Dogmatics at New College, Edinburgh in the University of Edinburgh. He is best known for his pioneering work in the study of science and theology, but he is equally respected for his work in systematic theology. While he wrote many books and articles advancing his own study of theology, he also edited the translation of several hundred theological writings into English from other languages, including the English translation of the thirteen-volume, six-million-word Church Dogmatics of Swiss theologian Karl Barth, as well as John Calvin's New Testament Commentaries. He was also a member of the famed Torrance family of theologians.
Torrance has been acknowledged as one of the most significant English-speaking theologians of the twentieth century, and in 1978, he received the prestigious Templeton Foundation Prize for Progress in Religion.[1] Torrance remained a dedicated churchman throughout his life, serving as an ordained minister in the Church of Scotland. He was instrumental in the development of the historic agreement between the Reformed and Eastern Orthodox Churches on the doctrine of the Trinity when a joint statement of agreement on that doctrine was issued between the World Alliance of Reformed Churches and the Orthodox Church on 13 March 1991.[2] He retired from the University of Edinburgh in 1979, but continued to lecture and to publish extensively. Several influential books on the Trinity were published after his retirement: The Trinitarian Faith: The Evangelical Theology of the Ancient Catholic Church (1988); Trinitarian Perspectives: Toward Doctrinal Agreement (1994); and The Christian Doctrine of God, One Being Three Persons (1996).
Torrance has been acknowledged as one of the most significant English-speaking theologians of the twentieth century, and in 1978, he received the prestigious Templeton Foundation Prize for Progress in Religion.[1] Torrance remained a dedicated churchman throughout his life, serving as an ordained minister in the Church of Scotland. He was instrumental in the development of the historic agreement between the Reformed and Eastern Orthodox Churches on the doctrine of the Trinity when a joint statement of agreement on that doctrine was issued between the World Alliance of Reformed Churches and the Orthodox Church on 13 March 1991.[2] He retired from the University of Edinburgh in 1979, but continued to lecture and to publish extensively. Several influential books on the Trinity were published after his retirement: The Trinitarian Faith: The Evangelical Theology of the Ancient Catholic Church (1988); Trinitarian Perspectives: Toward Doctrinal Agreement (1994); and The Christian Doctrine of God, One Being Three Persons (1996).
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May 8, 2025
“The great Patristic theology of Alexandria from the fourth to the sixth century may well be the most relevant theology for our modern scientific world.”
“The foundations of modern science were laid down during the first six centuries through the preaching of the Gospel and the teaching of the Holy Scriptures about the creation of the world out of nothing and the redemptive incarnation of the Word of God in space and time in Jesus Christ.”
“Rigorous scientific method was worked out by Christian theologians in Alexandria from the second to the fifth centuries in the face of Aristotelian, Neoplatonic, and Skeptical philosophers. Careful thinking in theology and science alike proceeds strictly in accordance with the nature or objective reality of what is being investigated and/or interpreted, that is in accordance with what it really is.”
This book collects various lectures, articles, and essays that Torrance gave on the mutually formative relationship between theology and science. The lectures and articles do overlap in content at times and it can become quite repetitive, but I did not find this to be a problem in this case due to the dense and rich nature of Torrance’s writing. It warrants repetition! Torrance lays out his scientific and theological method, desiring to escape from an Aristotelian or Newtonian view of the world as mechanistic and determinative. Instead, relying on ancient Christian voices such as Athanasius, Cyril, and John Philoponos, as well as modern voices of James Clerk Maxwell, Albert Einstein, and Michael Polanyi, Torrance desires to show the unitary, dynamic, and open nature of theology. He also wants to show the dynamic and realist nature of theological and scientific method. Also of interest in this book is Torrance’s nuanced view of natural theology where he views such theology as in service to God’s revelation of himself. A great read for anyone interested in Torrance, the relationship between theology and science, or the value of ancient patristic sources for contemporary scientific thinking!
“Scientific investigation is thinking God’s thoughts after him.”
“The foundations of modern science were laid down during the first six centuries through the preaching of the Gospel and the teaching of the Holy Scriptures about the creation of the world out of nothing and the redemptive incarnation of the Word of God in space and time in Jesus Christ.”
“Rigorous scientific method was worked out by Christian theologians in Alexandria from the second to the fifth centuries in the face of Aristotelian, Neoplatonic, and Skeptical philosophers. Careful thinking in theology and science alike proceeds strictly in accordance with the nature or objective reality of what is being investigated and/or interpreted, that is in accordance with what it really is.”
This book collects various lectures, articles, and essays that Torrance gave on the mutually formative relationship between theology and science. The lectures and articles do overlap in content at times and it can become quite repetitive, but I did not find this to be a problem in this case due to the dense and rich nature of Torrance’s writing. It warrants repetition! Torrance lays out his scientific and theological method, desiring to escape from an Aristotelian or Newtonian view of the world as mechanistic and determinative. Instead, relying on ancient Christian voices such as Athanasius, Cyril, and John Philoponos, as well as modern voices of James Clerk Maxwell, Albert Einstein, and Michael Polanyi, Torrance desires to show the unitary, dynamic, and open nature of theology. He also wants to show the dynamic and realist nature of theological and scientific method. Also of interest in this book is Torrance’s nuanced view of natural theology where he views such theology as in service to God’s revelation of himself. A great read for anyone interested in Torrance, the relationship between theology and science, or the value of ancient patristic sources for contemporary scientific thinking!
“Scientific investigation is thinking God’s thoughts after him.”
Displaying 1 of 1 review