Science and Religion, 400 BC to AD 1550

by Edward Grant, Richard G. Olson (editor)

Many people believe that during the Middle Ages, Christianity was actively hostile toward science (then known as natural philosophy) and impeded its progress. This comprehensive survey of science and religion during the period between the lives of Aristotle and Copernicus demonstrates how this was not the case. Medieval theologians were not hostile to learning natural philosophy, but embraced it. Had they had not done so, the science that developed during the Scientific Revolution would not―and could not―have occurred. Students and lay readers will learn how the roots of much of the scientific culture of today originated with the religious thinkers of the Middle Ages.

Science and Religion, 400 B.C. to A.D. 1550 thoroughly covers the relationship between science and religion in the medieval period, and provides many resources for the student or lay reader. The book discusses how the influx of Greek and Arabic science in the 12th and 13th centuries― especially the works of Aristotle in logic and natural philosophy―dramatically changed how science was viewed in Western Europe. The volume demonstrates how medieval universities and their teachers disseminated a positive attitude toward rational inquiry and made it possible for Western Europe to become oriented toward science.

Genres: History, Science, History Of Science, Religion, Philosophy, Nonfiction

336 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Edward Grant is an American historian of medieval science. He was named a Distinguished Professor in 1983. Other honors include the 1992 George Sarton Medal, for "a lifetime scholarly achievement" as an historian of science.

Reviews

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

The main reason I give this book three stars is that it felt like too much of an overview, and while it is difficult to do anything else in a book that covers 1150 years, he could have focused on a few topics in a little more detail instead of surveying everything. But I learned a lot from reading this book, especially how complex theological topics (like the Eucharist or angels) began being analyzed through mathematical and logical means, representing almost exactly what modern science would later do with non-theological topics (like gravity).

[John Barlo · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good one

[Breck · Rating 4 out of 5]

great book on a topic i love