49th ABS Annual Conference

What are the implications for discourse that the Revelation of Bahá’u’lláh is “scientific in its method”? To promote discourse, can we draw on the concept of an evolving conceptual framework in a mode of learning? What role might spiritual virtues play in doing science? How do we engage our academic and professional peers in meaningful discourse on the ‘problems afflicting humanity’? In this seminar we will explore these questions by studying selected passages from the Bahá’í writings on the harmony of science and religion and the concept of the Revelation being ‘scientific in its method’, the need for ‘a humble posture of learning’, and the concept of an evolving conceptual framework for action and scholarship. Participants will be sent material in advance which they will be expected to have read before the start of the seminar. The objective of this seminar is to explore the coherence between science and religion, which provides a counter-balance to materialism and reductionism within academic discourse, within the professions, and in the wider world of thought.