Many youth today, and thinking adults too, find the Bible ‘weird,’ since several discoveries of science apparently make more sense to the modern mind. A fundamentalist version of Creation, Adam and Eve, etc., is no longer tenable. On the other hand, many scientific achievements in fields like medicine, astronomy, etc., can only redound to the glory of our Creator. So, faith and science “complement each other,” as Popes Francis, Benedict XVI and St John Paul II are clearly teaching.
So this new book by Dr Fio Mascarenhas SJ is both timely and attractive. His expertise in the biblical domain enables him to treat urgent topics like “Original Sin,” “Genesis and Science,” “Don’t blame God for our problems,” etc., with both ease and delicacy. As the world continues to reel from the pandemic and its resultant suffering, the author challenges us to unpack the deep relationship of Christian faith and science so as to “reassure the faithful, and especially young people, that their Church sees this relationship as one of complementarity and mutual stimulus” (St John Paul II).
Two of my favorite Chapters are ‘Faith and Science’ and ‘Eco-spirituality.’ The author treats these topics very lucidly:“We cannot say: creation or evolution. The exact formula is creation and evolution, because both respond to two different questions,” and “Faith and reason are like two wings on which the human spirit rises to the contemplation of truth…” (Fides et Ratio). My other favorite is Eco-Spirituality as it overlaps with my day job – the world of finance. In true Ignatian style, Fr Fio briefly introduces us, and then lets us reflect on the deep link between ‘original sin,’ ‘original selfishness,’ ‘survival of the fittest,’ ‘exploitation of the weak,’ and the ‘plundering of the planet.’ This brilliant book will surely “broaden the horizons of our minds” for its readers.
Royston Braganza
Title: Broadening the Horizons of our Minds: Reflections on Faith and Science
Author: Fiorello Mascarenhas, SJ
Publication: ATC Publishers, Bangalore
Pages: 104
Price: Rs.150
