In the United States, many internationally renowned Catholic scholars have joined forces to defend the harmony between faith and reason, thus fighting the growing atheism. A beautiful initiative that brings hope to an increasingly secular society.
Harvard’s reputation is solid: As the oldest institution of higher education in the United States – dating back to 1636 – Harvard is part of the ivy league;which includes the eight largest universities in the United States.
In the Shanghai ranking, it appears first and, in comparison, the first French university, Paris Saclayonly occupies the fourteenth place.
In this context, the recent speech by Karen Oberg, Professor of Astronomy and Director of Undergraduate Studies at Harvard University, did not go unnoticed in the scientific field.
Together with other equally well-known scientists, the researcher on January 13, 2023 participated in the opening Wonderland Conferencean initiative launched by word on firean organization that brings together many Catholic media in the United States each year for the purpose of apologetics and missionary.
Karen Oberg herself converted from atheism to Catholicism, and remembers that belief in God, far from being an obstacle to scientific research, is beneficial to the scientific process because of the “solid foundation” that belief in a Creator provides.
He said, “I think we must convince ourselves that the existence of an established philosophy and a true religion can facilitate the process that leads to new scientific discoveries, and not the other way around,” illustrating the role of Maritain’s “negative tendency.” Phrase – meaning protect – that faith plays in relation to science.
Referring to the discoveries of Father Georges Lemaitre, the distant father of the theory the great explosion– Karen Oberg adds: “One cannot imagine that his invention had nothing to do with the Catholicism with which he was imbued; he already knew, by faith, that the universe had a beginning. (…) Perhaps this is the reason why so many were Atheist scholars are very conservative in their reception of this first version of the theory the great explosion“.
According to the Harvard professor, the wonders that we see in the universe “should take us out of ourselves” and lead us to think about “not only the wonders themselves and the scientific facts they contain, but also the Creator, the ultimate end of all things.””.
the Wonderland Conferencewhich lasted for several years, grew out of the observation made by a large number of Catholics about the growth of atheism in the United States: “The supposed incompatibility between faith and science has led to an increase in the number of people who have no religious affiliation. This perception runs counter to the experience of the Catholic tradition, which conveys The beautiful harmony of faith and science,” states the organisers’ website.
