Gould: Science, religion can co-exist

The Scopes Monkey Trial brought the battle between science and religion to a fevered pitch in Dayton, Tenn., in 1925.

After biology teacher John Scopes faced a trial for teaching the theory of evolution to high school students, unprecedented press coverage and heated debate raged beyond that small, hot courtroom.

It moved to legislatures, churches and even the Supreme Court. Some people say the conflict between science and religion still continues today.

Stephen Jay Gould is not one of those people.

Gould, a professor of geology at Harvard University and an internationally recognized scholar on the theory of evolution, said in a speech yesterday at Rackham Auditorium that the conflict is an aberration, not the emotional conflict it once was during the first half of his lecture, "The Non-Conflict of Science and Religion."

Gould told a packed auditorium that he believes the authorities in the two fields have come to an understanding, agreeing that they are mutually necessary in people's lives.

"We have a great desire to find some great synthesis that brings things together," Gould said, adding that there are too many people out there who refuse to meet in the middle.

"Even this summer there have been conferences about their meeting," Gould said. "Others believe there can only be warfare between the two."

Audience members questioned Gould on his theories after the 90-minute lecture, but most seemed to agree with his general point.

"Dr. Gould made some interesting points about whether science properly has a normative role in society," said LSA senior Jason Stansbury, noting Gould's statement that science cannot answer all of life's questions.

Geological Sciences Assistant Prof. Carolina Lithgow-Bertelloni also agreed with Gould.

"It was a very interesting and quite deep discussion of the misconception that there is a war between the two," Lithgow-Bertelloni said.

Gould told the crowd that hundreds of years of research and attempts at explanation have not yet shown a clear link between the two, but they do play a vital role in society.

"Life's tough. Life's hard. We'll grasp at any straw to give it meaning," Gould said. "Science can't give you answers to questions of meaning anyway."

The talk was the latest in the William W. Cook Lectures on American Institutions, a series that dates back to 1944. Law School Dean Jeffrey Lehman, the chair of the Cook selection committee, said the series is designed to address the place of institutions in American life and Gould's "bold, original and controversial" ideas make him and "extraordinary" speaker.

"He brings a breadth of education to bear on the large questions of institutional tension between science and religion," Lehman said.

Gould finished his talk with a preview of today's second part of the lecture series. He discussed the specific American experience with regard to the topic, citing the Scopes trial as the climax of that experience.

Lehman said he expects today's lecture to "move from the general to specific" and highlight specific events in American history.

"Disrespect for religion from science and disrespect for science from religion can lead to social conflict that will be played out in the courtroom, and that has been the American experience," Lehman said.

Gould will speak again today at 4 p.m. in the Rackham Auditorium.

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