Is this the Holy Grail?

	Book review on Science & Religion at the Cross Roads by Frank Parkinson Reviewed by Max Payne, 2009 published in Network Review No 100
	(order this book from amazon.co.uk)

For many members of the SMN the Holy Grail of philosophy is some vision of the unity of science and spirituality. In this book Frank Parkinson aims to provide it. The crossroads in the book's title refers to his belief that both science and religion are at the end of their current paradigms and facing disjunctions which perfectly exemplify the thesis of Thomas Kuhn that paradigm change is traumatic. Readers are likely to differ widely about Parkinson's thesis that after the change is made, science and religion will become not just harmonious but symbiotic.

The vital beginning for both theology and science is self-awareness. Theologians should become aware of the historical evolution of doctrines they thought eternal. In that way they may be released from rigid dogmatism. Scientists should become self-aware of the creative process of scientific discovery, and that way become sceptical of the equally rigid dogmas of materialism. Both can then begin an open inquiry into spirituality. The direction of the inquiry may be given by religion, but the methods have to be the open self-critical ways of science.

It is easiest for theologians to begin with other religions than their own. Christians do not find it difficult to discern elements in Islam which come less from a revelation from God, and more from the cultural limitations of mediaeval Arabia. They can be a little disdainful about the way in which the agnostic scepticism of primitive Buddhism transmuted into the exuberantly complex metaphysics of the Mahayana. Then, if they have the nerve for it, they can read John Hick's 'The Myth of God Incarnate' . After reading that, it is difficult for anyone to recite the Creed on a Sunday in church with a straight face and honest belief. And yet, despite the words that are no longer valid, the worshipper yet knows that collective worship in a community of faith is somehow profoundly valuable. Self-awareness leads religion to towards spirituality.

Can an equally honest scientist be led to acknowledge the spiritual dimensions of reality by questioning the foundations of science in the same way? Frank Parkinson has no difficulty in showing that Richard Dawkins' militant atheism is unscientific, but can self questioning lead science any further? He suggests that a key issue is the 'Big Bang'. According to current cosmology our universe emerged in a vast explosion from an infinitely tiny particle of energy. At this point all quantum theory and all science stops. Was it due to a wobble in a cosmic zero quantum state? Was it just one of many splurts from a multidimensional multiverse? We do not know. Since mind cannot be reduced to matter, and as all consciousness as well as all matter was contained within the primal particle, it is argued that the initial impulse behind the Big Bang has to be a conscious purpose. Frank Parkinson is chary of using the word 'God'. The central issue here is whether mind really is the irreducible surd which cannot be reduced to material energy. This is the key issue, and the honest scientist may choose to stop at this point.

Dark matter and dark energy show that we do not know the full range of the properties of matter. The need for an open quest into spirituality suggests that we do not know the full range of the properties of mind either. In what way can this be carried forward? After extreme austerity and the achievement of exceptional sanctity Saints, mystics and yogis have had experiences of the transcendent. However this is an uncertain way for an elite few. To make the inquiry more open to more people the idea of using mind altering chemicals is toyed with, but the obvious dangers are admitted. Another route is that inquiry into the spiritual dimensions of reality should not depend upon the dramatic insights of the few, but rather on the gradual advance of the many. Insight into spirituality is something that may be gradually achieved by communities of people living in harmony with each other and the environment, and striving after enlightenment while undertaking works of unselfish compassion. The first stage in the open inquiry into spirituality is the achievement of wisdom. The Beatific vision comes later.

Does this book provide the Holy Grail of the unity of science and religion in an encompassing spiritual vision? The answer has to be 'no', but it is pointing in the right direction.

(order this book from amazon.co.uk)