John Polkinghorne Quotes

Powerful John Polkinghorne for Daily Growth

About John Polkinghorne

John Polkinghorne (1930-2021) was a renowned physicist, Anglican priest, and prolific author who bridged the gap between science and religion with intellectual rigor and spiritual depth. Born in Hammersmith, London on August 24, 1930, he grew up during World War II, which ignited his fascination with physics and mathematics. He attended Cambridge University, where he studied theoretical physics and earned a Ph.D. in 1956. His academic career began at the University of Manchester, where he made significant contributions to quantum theory and particle physics. In 1967, Polkinghorne shifted his focus to experimental physics, working on projects related to cosmology and elementary particles. However, a profound experience during a hospital stay in 1970 led him to reassess the meaning of life and the relationship between science and faith. He left academia to train for the priesthood and was ordained an Anglican priest in 1982. Throughout his ministry, Polkinghorne continued to engage with scientific theories and philosophical questions, seeking to reconcile the insights of science with the teachings of Christianity. His major works include "Science and Creation" (1986), which explores the compatibility between the Big Bang theory and the biblical account of creation, and "Quantum Physics and Theology: An Unexpected Kinship" (2005). Polkinghorne was a fellow of the Royal Society, a member of the European Academy of Sciences, and held positions at several universities. He received numerous awards for his contributions to science, religion, and interdisciplinary dialogue. In 2014, he became a life peer in the House of Lords as Baron Polkinghorne of Hammersmith, London. Until his death on February 7, 2021, John Polkinghorne remained a pioneering figure in the pursuit of understanding the universe from both scientific and spiritual perspectives.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"Science does ask an important kind of question, but not the whole range of questions that can be asked."

This quote by John Polkinghorne suggests that while science is powerful in answering questions about the physical world and its natural phenomena, it falls short in addressing some fundamental questions about existence, meaning, morality, and purpose - questions often referred to as philosophical or spiritual. In essence, he implies that science represents one important perspective, but not the only, or even complete, understanding of reality.

"Faith seeks understanding and understanding deepens faith."

This quote by John Polkinghorne illustrates the symbiotic relationship between faith and understanding. It suggests that one's faith encourages the pursuit of knowledge (understanding) to better grasp spiritual or religious concepts, and this acquired understanding in turn strengthens and deepens one's faith, creating a cycle of growth and enlightenment. The quote implies that genuine faith is not antithetical to reason and knowledge but rather fosters intellectual curiosity to further validate and solidify its foundations.

"The universe is not a machine to be watched, it is a living text to be read."

This quote emphasizes that the universe should not be considered as an inanimate mechanical system to be passively observed, but rather as a dynamic, living narrative to be actively understood. It suggests we should approach the universe with curiosity and engage with it intellectually, spiritually, and emotionally, seeking to decipher its meaning and purpose as one would read a book.

"Religion is concerned with ultimate meaning and purpose, science with empirical regularities in the temporal realm."

This quote by John Polkinghorne suggests that religion and science serve different but complementary functions. Religion deals with questions of ultimate meaning and purpose in life – the why of existence, which is often considered to be beyond the empirical or observable realm. Science, on the other hand, investigates the regularities and patterns within the physical world we experience over time – the how things work. In essence, religion provides a framework for understanding the ultimate questions of life, while science explains the temporal, empirical aspects of reality.

"In the dialogue between science and religion there are many things on which they have much to say to each other."

This quote highlights the notion that science and religion, despite often being viewed as separate or contradictory spheres, can engage in a fruitful dialog and benefit from each other's perspectives. Science provides an empirical understanding of the physical world, while religion offers insights into the meaning, purpose, and spiritual dimensions of existence. By engaging in open dialogue, both can deepen our overall comprehension of reality, as they address different but complementary aspects of human knowledge and experience.

People, and especially theologians, should try to familiarize themselves with scientific ideas. Of course, science is technical in many respects, but there are some very good books that try to set out some of the conceptual structure of science.

- John Polkinghorne

Some, Very, Theologians, Many Respects

At present, too much theological thinking is very human-centered.

- John Polkinghorne

Too Much, Very, Too, Theological

Of course, nobody would deny the importance of human beings for theological thinking, but the time span of history that theologians think about is a few thousand years of human culture rather than the fifteen billion years of the history of the universe.

- John Polkinghorne

Rather, About, Theologians, Theological

Theologians have a great problem because they're seeking to speak about God. Since God is the ground of everything that is, there's a sense in which every human inquiry is grist to the theological mill. Obviously, no theologian can know everything.

- John Polkinghorne

About, Which, Theologians, Theological

Yes, I was a parish priest for five years. I was a curate in a large working class parish in Bristol and the Vicar of a village in Kent.

- John Polkinghorne

Yes, Large, Working Class, Parish

However, as the Eastern churches have always maintained, through Christ creation is intended eventually to share in the life of God, the life of divine nature.

- John Polkinghorne

Through, Always, However, Churches

I also think we need to maintain distinctions - the doctrine of creation is different from a scientific cosmology, and we should resist the temptation, which sometimes scientists give in to, to try to assimilate the concepts of theology to the concepts of science.

- John Polkinghorne

Think, Give, Which, Cosmology

I very much enjoyed my career in science. I didn't leave science because I was disillusioned, but felt I'd done my bit for it after about twenty-five years.

- John Polkinghorne

Career, Very, Felt, Disillusioned

Nevertheless, all of us who work in quantum physics believe in the reality of a quantum world, and the reality of quantum entities like protons and electrons.

- John Polkinghorne

Work, Like, Nevertheless, Electron

Chance doesn't mean meaningless randomness, but historical contingency. This happens rather than that, and that's the way that novelty, new things, come about.

- John Polkinghorne

Chance, New Things, New, Contingency

So Whitehead's metaphysics doesn't fit very well on to physics as we understand the process of the world.

- John Polkinghorne

Process, Fit, Very, Metaphysics

Well, it's because I gladly acknowledge some ideas that are part of process theology, but which I think are not tied to all the details of process thought, and are very illuminating and helpful.

- John Polkinghorne

Think, Some, Which, Gladly

Of course, Einstein was a very great scientist indeed, and I have enormous respect for him, and great admiration for the discoveries he made. But he was very committed to a view of the objectivity of the physical world.

- John Polkinghorne

Committed, Very, Scientist, Einstein

Science cannot tell theology how to construct a doctrine of creation, but you can't construct a doctrine of creation without taking account of the age of the universe and the evolutionary character of cosmic history.

- John Polkinghorne

Tell, Theology, Cosmic, Doctrine

Those theologians who are beginning to take the doctrine of creation very seriously should pay some attention to science's story.

- John Polkinghorne

Some, Very, Theologians, Doctrine

I was very much on the mathematical side, where you probably do your best work before you're forty-five. Having passed that significant date, I thought I would do something else.

- John Polkinghorne

Date, Very, Side, Best Work

Quantum theory also tells us that the world is not simply objective; somehow it's something more subtle than that. In some sense it is veiled from us, but it has a structure that we can understand.

- John Polkinghorne

Understand, More, Some, Structure

I think it's very important to maintain the classical Christian distinction between the Creator and creation.

- John Polkinghorne

Think, Creator, Very, Creation

The physical fabric of the world had to be such as to enable that ten billion year preliminary evolution to produce the raw materials of life. Without it there would not have been the chemical materials to allow life to evolve here on earth.

- John Polkinghorne

Here, Been, Allow, Enable

Evolution, of course, is not something that simply applies to life here on earth; it applies to the whole universe.

- John Polkinghorne

Universe, Earth, Here, Simply

After all, the universe required ten billion years of evolution before life was even possible; the evolution of the stars and the evolving of new chemical elements in the nuclear furnaces of the stars were indispensable prerequisites for the generation of life.

- John Polkinghorne

Generation, New, Before, Evolving

It is the faithfulness of God that allows epistemology to model ontology.

- John Polkinghorne

Faithfulness, Epistemology, Model

I'm a very passionate believer in the unity of knowledge. There is one world of reality - one world of our experience that we're seeking to describe.

- John Polkinghorne

Experience, Passionate, Very, Seeking

If the experience of science teaches anything, it's that the world is very strange and surprising. The many revolutions in science have certainly shown that.

- John Polkinghorne

Experience, Very, Certainly, Revolutions

Bottom up thinkers try to start from experience and move from experience to understanding. They don't start with certain general principles they think beforehand are likely to be true; they just hope to find out what reality is like.

- John Polkinghorne

Hope, Experience, Out, Thinkers

Whitehead reacted strongly against the idea of God as a cosmic tyrant, one who brings about everything.

- John Polkinghorne

Against, Idea, Cosmic, Tyrant

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