Saturday February 6
Mass at 8:00 AM
Conference begins at 9:00 AM

St. Paul Parish/Newman Center is Sponsoring Catholicism and Modern Science: A Rediscovered Heritage feat. Dr. Chris Baglow.

The Cost is free to students and $10 for all others. The costs helps cover the speaker and lunch.

Dr. Christopher T. Baglow is from New Orleans, LA. He has a B.A. in Theology from Franciscan University of Steubenville, an M.A. in Theology from the University of Dallas and a Ph.D. in Theology from Duquesne University.
Catholicism and Modern Science: A Rediscovered Heritage

A. Belief Under Assault: Scientific Atheism and the Assault on Reason and Faith – Certain thinkers such as Richard Dawkins claim that religious faith is an outdated form of scientific ignorance and that science has disproved the existence of God. This introductory presentation examines this position and raises a new possibility: that modern science has actually strengthened the credibility of the Christian Faith, which is itself an affirmation of a scientific approach to the universe.

B. The ‘Big Bang’ About Creation: Is Sacred Scripture Anti-Science? - Much of the controversy surrounding the relationship between faith and science centers around the biblical creation accounts and the proper interpretation of Sacred Scripture. Through a detailed examination of the Catholic approach to Scripture and a close investigation of the message and the shape of the First Creation Account in Genesis 1, this talk reveals that Sacred Scripture is not only compatible with science, but that it fosters it and offers it a transcendent goal.

C. Patroness or Persecutor? The Catholic Church and Scientific Discovery – It is a common misconception that the Catholic Church is the arch-nemesis of the spirit of scientific inquiry and discovery that made modern science possible. Through an investigation of the Church’s teaching and history (including an honest examination of the Galileo Affair), the Church’s patronage of the sciences and her role in stimulating the growth of modern science is revealed. The presentation concludes by introducing the many priest-scientists who have made pioneering scientific contributions throughout the ages.

D. The Twist in the Tale: Modern Science vs. Scientific Atheism - From the time of Copernicus up until the end of the nineteenth century, the trend of scientific discoveries had seemed to some people to be leading away from the traditional Christian conception of the universe. But in the twentieth century, science began saying things that were totally unanticipated. In this presentation, we will look at three “twists” in the tale of scientific discovery that have occurred since Einstein’s great breakthroughs, particularly in the areas of cosmology and physics, that point compellingly toward the existence of God and the truth of the Christian doctrine of creation.