Modern Physics and Ancient Faith: Stephen M. Barr Ph.D

We all ought to be a little concerned with the idea that religious experience can be reduced to physics or psychology.  The human capacity for religous faith and relationship with God is rooted in the realities that science investigates, but is not limited thereto. Physics is not going to explain why miracles happen given the limitations on that discipline at this time. Psychology (any and all of the 45 different schools of thought) might offer insight into our capacity to relate to God, but not the fact of our faith. Dr. Stephen Barr's book is a survey of some recent issues and misperceptions raised by science and scientism. Science invites into wonder at the beauty of the world and its complexity. Scientism is a belief system that reduces human wonder to an illusion. Dr. Barr is a Catholic believer and it shows throughout the book. He is also a dedicated physicist and believer in the scientific method. That also is on display in this fine book. 

Dr. Stephen M. Barr is a Catholic and a physicist at the University of Delaware. "His notable work includes co-discovering the much studied  flipped SU(5) scheme of unification, identifying the Barr–Zee diagram as an important source of electric  dipole moment for basic particles such as the electron and neutron in many theories, and proposing the so-called Nelson–Barr mechanism as a solution to the  strong CP problem. He is the author of the article on  Grand Unified Theories for the Encyclopedia of Physics." Wikipedia article.  This book is much more understanable than this quote concerning Dr. Barr's primary work. In my opinon, Dr. Barr does an excellent job in this book of explaining complicated material in a digestible format. 

God’s existence
This book is a challenging, but informative read. My conclusion is that science can't prove that God doesn't exist because God by definition is beyond the material phenomenon that comprise the subject of scientific inquiry. Neither, I think, can believers use physical phenomenon to prove the existence of God for the very same reason. Instead, I think the question, if formulated thus, 

"Is our understanding of the physical universe consistent with or inconsistent with the existence of God?" 

That question can lead to an intelligent discussion. The end result of that discussion, in my opinon, is the strong probability of God's existence. Faith and absolute certainty are different kinds of things. Obviously my conclusion is that, on the whole ( and these issues must be decided on the whole) God’s existence is the best answer to the question why anything exists and why we can understand anything at all. 

The Soul and Body: One reality
Of special interest is Dr. Barr's discussion of body and soul.  Dr. Barr comments, quoting the Catechism, reminding us of the unity of the body and the soul, that is, not two, but one reality:

The Catechism of the Catholic Church, for example, rejects it (dualism) explicitly: “The unity of soul and body is so profound that one has to consider the soul to be the ‘form’ of the body.… Spirit and matter, in man, are not two natures united, but rather their union forms a single nature.”  Barr, Stephen M.. Modern Physics and Ancient Faith (p. 173). University of Notre Dame Press. Kindle Edition. 

Dualism, as used by Dr. Barr, is the belief that the soul and body exist separately. The phrase that has been used to lampoon this belief is, "the ghost in the machine." How our mental and spiritual faculties interact with our bodies is not well understood, but our ability to comprehend science and theology depend on it. This of course begs the issue of 'free will' and why we can understand the world around us. Reductionists, those that say we are just complex physical reactions with no meaning, have trouble accounting for our ability to comprehend.  

Barr's learning is helpful here. He notes

The great mathematician and scientist Hermann Weyl, reflecting upon the implications of quantum theory in 1931, made the following observations, which remain valid today:

"We may say that there exists a world, causally closed and determined by precise laws, but … the new insight which modern [quantum] physics affords … opens several ways of reconciling personal freedom with natural law. It would be premature, however, to propose a definite and complete solution of the problem. One of the great differences between the scientist and the impatient philosopher is that the scientist bides his time. We must await the further development of science, perhaps for centuries, perhaps for thousands of years, before we can design a true and detailed picture of the interwoven texture of Matter, Life, and Soul. But the old classical determinism of Hobbes and Laplace need not oppress us longer." Barr, Stephen M.. Modern Physics and Ancient Faith (p. 184). University of Notre Dame Press. Kindle Edition. 

Determinists ( are those who think there is no free will) those that maintain that we are nothing but atoms, cells, organs and physicial interactions, must rely on something that escapes their physicalist explanation to do science at all.  Again, quoting Barr, 

"However, we do not have to infer the existence of our minds. We experience them directly in the process of using them. We do not infer the existence of our minds, rather we infer the existence of everything else with our minds. To put it another way: the brain does not infer the existence of the mind, the mind infers the existence of the brain. We may doubt our inferences about external things, but it is madness to doubt the reality of the mind itself and the reality of its basic powers." Barr, Stephen M.. Modern Physics and Ancient Faith (p. 188). University of Notre Dame Press. Kindle Edition. 

If these few quotes sound intriguing, you might enjoy this book. This review is a little disjointed, but I can't even offer a comprehensive explanation of how my soul and body interact. I just know that they do. This book is also available on Audible.com, although you might want the physical copy also to review some of the more intriguing points. I hope these samplings from Dr. Barr's book are helpful.