June 2024 Newsletter
In this Clergy Letter Project update you’ll find the following 18 items:
- The 20th Anniversary of Religion and Science Weekend;
- Across the Cosmos for June 2024: Reconnecting to the Night Sky;
- Extremism in Texas I;
- Extremism in Texas II;
- Extremism in Texas III;
- The Future of Answers in Genesis;
- Dangerous Climate Change Record I;
- Dangerous Climate Change Record II;
- Public Exhibits on Paleontology & Prehistoric Life;
- Are Scientific and Religious Explanations the Same?;
- The Challenge of Bringing Unsettled Science to the Church;
- We Are All Children of God;
- The Ark Encounter as Infotainment;
- Auschwitz and The Ark Encounter;
- Southern Baptists Oppose IVF;
- States Are Funding Religious Schools;
- Climate Denial in Florida Amid Record Flooding; and
- AI Update.
1. The 20th Anniversary of Religion and Science Weekend
This coming February will mark the 20th anniversary of Religion and Science Weekend, first as Evolution Sunday, then as Evolution Weekend, and finally, since 2023, as Religion and Science Weekend. To date, well over one million parishioners have participated in our annual activities and, because of your amazing efforts, we’ve raised the discussion of the compatibility of religion and science to new levels.
As I said last month, it's time to begin thinking about the theme of our 20th Weekend, perhaps something that looks retrospectively at this issue. Along these lines, I encourage you to take a look at how we presented our 10th Anniversary in 2015.
A number of members have already shared their ideas for a theme with me. Please take a look below at what they’ve submitted and please drop me an email with your suggestion. As we’ve done in the past, I’ll ask members to vote for a theme in a couple of months; for now, though, let’s get a robust list of options!
Themes suggested for Religion and Science Weekend 2025:
*Religion and Science: Stronger Together
*Finding Common Ground
*Pursuit of Truth—a Necessity in a Healthy Society
*Darwinian Revival
2. Across the Cosmos for June 2024: Reconnecting to the Night Sky
In this month’s essay, Grace Wolf-Chase, Senior Scientist and Senior Education & Communication Specialist at the Planetary Science Institute as well as a Clergy Letter Project consultant, does two things! First, she renames her column “Across the Cosmos” to better reflect the range of topics she brings to our attention. Second, she shows us how we can look skyward and see stars that with known exoplanets. Pretty amazing!
Beginning this month, the title of my monthly column will reflect a wider range of news from “across the cosmos.” The processes that have led (and are leading) to potentially life-friendly environments occur over enormous timescales and have been shaped by the physical and chemical evolution of the Universe. Our story on Earth is part of the Universe’s story. Regrettably (and ironically), the technology that has made possible the incredible discoveries that help us tell this story can sometimes make us feel disconnected from nature’s wonders, so this month I’d like to suggest one exciting way to combat “nature deficit”(1) by reconnecting to the night sky.
Have you ever wondered whether some of the stars with known planets(2) are actually visible in the night sky? The answer is “yes,” although most are pretty dim. Go to NASA’s Exoplanet Archive to view a table with all currently-known exoplanets and their stars.(3) You need to know something about the brightness scale used in Astronomy to determine which of the listed stars you might be able to see. Scroll across the columns to find one labeled “V (Johnson) Magnitude.” Contrary to what you might expect, a larger “magnitude” corresponds to a dimmer star. The dimmest stars visible to the human eye under very dark sky conditions have a magnitude of about 6.
The table allows you to apply various “filters” to the list. For example, typing “<4” in the box under the “V (Johnson) Magnitude” column heading shows there are 30 stars brighter than 4th magnitude that have known planets. Typing “<3” indicates 6 of these stars are brighter than 3rd magnitude. One of these is Beta Ursae Minoris (also known as “Kochab”) in the cup of the Little Dipper.(4) The “RA” and “Dec” columns in the table give the sky coordinates of all stars known to have planets. If you have a night sky app(5) installed on your phone, you should be able to see which stars hosting planets are visible from your location and time.
If you type “Kepler” under “Planet Name” in the table (don’t filter by magnitude!), you’ll see that 2,752 of the currently-known 5,638 (at the time of this writing) exoplanets were discovered by the Kepler Observatory. Although none of these stars is visible to the naked eye, the field of view on the sky where these exoplanets were discovered is easily found (without an app!) in the prominent northern hemisphere summer constellation Cygnus (“The Northern Cross”).(6)
So I encourage you to go outside, look up, and consider that somewhere among those stars there may be beings wondering whether the star we call “Sol” (our Sun) harbors a planet with life!
Until next month,
Grace
Grace Wolf-Chase (she/her/hers) (gwolfchase@gmail.com)
Senior Scientist & Senior Education & Communication Specialist, Planetary Science Institute (www.psi.edu/about/staffpage/gwchase)
Vice President, Center for Advanced Study in Religion and Science (CASIRAS: www.casiras.org)1. https://connect.mayoclinic.org/event/video-qa-about-nature-deficit/
2. “Planet” and “exoplanet” are often used interchangeably, even though planets orbiting other stars are known as “exoplanets.”
3. https://exoplanetarchive.ipac.caltech.edu/cgi-bin/TblView/nph-tblView?app=ExoTbls&config=PSCompPars
4. https://skyandtelescope.org/observing/meet-kochab-guardian-pole/
5. e.g.,https://www.space.com/best-stargazing-apps
6. https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2009/07/189566main_kepler_mission.pdf
3. Extremism in Texas I
There’s a great deal of truly troubling news coming out of Texas this month. This item and the next two, provide a flavor of what’s happening.
The Conroe, Texas Independent School District board of trustees voted to remove three items from the biology curriculum for the district. Here, according to an article in Community Impact, are the items that were removed:
• A section regarding primate evolution
• An item with material such as a disproportionately large carbon footprint for the U.S., which could be considered "anti-American" or "anti-Texas," according to discussion at the meeting
• A unit that does not include intelligent design but which publishers said will be included in a future edition of the book
4. Extremism in Texas II
An article in the Texas Tribune explains how a heavily Christian curriculum is heading toward public-school classrooms in Texas – and notes that not everyone is on board. Here’s how the article opens: “Texas education officials and Republican lawmakers say proposed elementary school lessons that incorporate extensive biblical references will boost student achievement and save teachers time from developing their own curriculum. But some Texas school district leaders, parents and education advocates aren’t convinced things are so clear cut.”
5. Extremism in Texas III
As this article in the Texas Tribune discusses, the Republican Convention in Texas in May called for “spiritual warfare” and promoted an extreme view of Christian Nationalism. Do take a look at the frightening vision that is presented for Texas and the United States.
6. The Future of Answers in Genesis
Paul Braterman, emeritus professor of chemistry and a member of The Clergy Letter Project’s list of scientific consultants, has written a review of Who Am I by Martyn Iles. As Paul notes, “Martyn Iles, as many readers will know, was managing Director of the Australian Christian Lobby until sacked by the Board in February 2023, was appointed Chief Ministry Officer of Answers in Genesis in May of that year, and in November was promoted to Executive CEO, working alongside Ken Ham, who remains as Founding CEO.” According to Paul, Iles argues that “men should take responsibility, women should be meek (his word), and it's wrong to worry about overpopulation or global warming.” Given that Iles is now in charge of the world’s leading young-Earth creationist organization, it’s well worth learning what he believes and what he’s promoting.
7. Dangerous Climate Change Record I
May 2024 was the warmest May on record, marking the 12th consecutive month in which the global average temperature reached a record value for the corresponding month. Take a look at this astounding graph here.
8. Dangerous Climate Change Record II
Even after the summer of 2023 set records for the warmest summer in recorded history, this year is set to be even hotter. Here’s a gift article from The Washington Post discussing the heat dome that set records earlier this month.
9. Public Exhibits on Paleontology & Prehistoric Life
As he explains in the attached note, the Reverend Ken Olson, a member of The Clergy Letter Project and a Research Associate in Paleontology with The Museum of the Rockies at Montana State University, approached his local library about creating “a series of interpretive exhibits dealing with paleontology, showing fossils of major life-forms from different geological periods.” The staff responded enthusiastically, and Ken created a monthly exhibit, largely based on fossils he personally recovered, from January through August. He notes that “Evolution has been implied throughout with labels concerning tens and hundreds of millions of years, and nothing brings out issues of science and religion more than the discoveries in paleontology.” School groups regularly come to view the exhibits and the reviews have been overwhelmingly positive. Enjoy what Ken has to say and his pictures and please join me in thanking him for his important outreach efforts.
10. Are Scientific and Religious Explanations the Same?
Our good friends at Sinai and Synapses published an essay with the intriguing title, “Are Scientific and Religious Explanations the Same?” Dr. Beverly Emanuel, a human geneticist, does a wonderful job of exploring this relationship, historically and in the present. She notes, “The relationship between science and religion has frequently been characterized as one of conflict, especially on the topic of origins of life (creationism vs. evolution). The historical reality is that science and religion have often been complementary to each other, and the relationship has been dynamic.” Take a look at the full article; I suspect you won’t be disappointed.
11. The Challenge of Bringing Unsettled Science to the Church
As you well know, science is a search for the truth, a process via which we are always learning more and, not infrequently, discovering that what we thought we knew was actually not fully correct – or even, at times, wrong. Our friends at Science for the Church, have published an essay exploring how to bring scientific knowledge, knowledge that may evolve and change into congregations. The article provides useful advice.
12. We Are All Children of God
Like the last item, here’s another great essay published by our friends at Science for the Church. It is entitled “We Are All Children of God” and it address Black theology and the science of race. Here’s a flavor of the piece: “The troubling concept of racial superiority in our present social fabric stems from flawed biblical and scientific interpretations that create an illusory sense of propriety that justifies white supremacy, slavery, and other manifestations of the sin of racism.” The entire article is well worth reading.
13. The Ark Encounter as Infotainment
Paul Braterman, see item 6 above, shared a bit of humor about Answers in Genesis’s theme park, Ark Encounter. His blog post is entitled “Toilet Train Your Tyrannosaur” and discusses “problems” with “how the Ark Encounter describes the lives and lifestyles of Noah and his family on board.” Discussed are how the animals on the ark were trained to follow orders and to use chamber pots – and much more, including some serious biblical inaccuracies.
14. Auschwitz and The Ark Encounter
I offer this item in case you enjoyed the previous one a tad too much! William Trollinger is assistant professor of history at Messiah College and he recently published an article with Righting America: A forum for scholarly conversation about Christianity, culture, and politics in the US. The piece is entitled “The Zone of Interest, Auschwitz and Ark Encounter,” and in the piece Trollinger draws comparisons between Auschwitz commandant Rudolf Höss and Noah. If nothing else, this article should release you from the levity you may have enjoyed in the previous item!
15. Southern Baptists Oppose IVF
According to an article published by Religion News Service, “the chief ethicist for the nation’s largest Protestant denomination wants the federal government to clamp down on in-vitro fertilization, saying it causes harm to children and their mothers.” The article provides a good summary of the situation including the history of attacks on IVF.
16. States Are Funding Religious Schools
The two-tiered headline of this Washington Post story explains the situation nicely: “Billions in taxpayer dollars now go to religious schools via vouchers – The rapid expansion of state voucher programs follows court decisions that have eroded the separation between church and state.” Here’s a gift link to this article.
17. Climate Denial in Florida Amid Record Flooding
When storm Invest 90L hit southern Florida in mid-June it dumped massive amounts of rain which led to historic levels of flooding. Despite the storm displaying all earmarks associated with anthropogenic climate change – warmer temperatures allowing clouds to hold significantly more water – Governor Ron DeSantis asserted that there was nothing out of the ordinary – and thus there was nothing to do or to worry about. Indeed, just last month, the Florida legislature passed a bill that the governor signed, removing most references to climate change in state law. This is dangerous behavior, and not just for Florida residents. You can read more about the situation in this gift article from The Washington Post.
18. AI Update
The June issue of Covalence provides an update on the quickly changing field of artificial intelligence. As editor Susan Barreto, commenting on the original use of ChatGPT in 2022, notes, “many prayers have reportedly been composed with the application. Including this one: ‘Help us to recognize that the pursuit of knowledge is a sacred endeavor, leading us closer to Your and to a deeper understanding of the universe You have fashioned.’” You can access the issue here.
Concluding Thoughts
As you all know, the intersection of religion and science can take many forms and arise in many situations. Increasingly the two have come into conflict with respect to education and climate change. It is for that reason that this month’s newsletter might appear heavily tilted toward events in Texas and toward heat records. These are critically important issues that have serious implications for science, for religion, and for the health of our society. Thank you for all you’re doing to spread the word about these topics.
Finally, as I do every month, I urge you to take one simple action. Please share this month’s Newsletter with a colleague or two (or post a link via any social media platform you use) and ask them to add their voices to those promoting a deep and meaningful understanding between religion and science. They can add their signatures to one of our Clergy Letters simply by dropping me a note at mz@theclergyletterproject.org. Spread the word; change the world. Together we are making a difference.
Michael
Michael Zimmerman
Founder and Executive Director
The Clergy Letter Project
www.theclergyletterproject.org
mz@theclergyletterproject.org