مجله پژوهش های علم و دین
سال پانزدهم شماره 1 (بهار و تابستان 1403)

This paper is about the condemnation of 1277 that was issued by the bishop of Paris (Etienne Tempier) against the Aristotelian, Thomistic and Averroist theological teachings. This condemnation was initially aimed at protecting the doctrine of God's absolute power and critique of the philosophical and theological reasoning about God, but later it led to new developments that were outside of the initial goals of its founders and were in conflict with it. This research, using an analytical approach, tries to provide an analysis of the backgrounds and philosophical and theological disagreements that led to the condemnation of 1277, and to present a map of its conceptual scope. Then, we have discussed some of the epistemological and theological implications of this condemnation, among which the doctrine of God's absolute power is the most prominent and one of the main goals of this condemnation. But we have also raised and analyzed the long-term implications such as nominalism, secularism, and the development of modern science and its departure from the Platonic perspective, and it has shown that these are hidden implications that were not only unintended by the founders of the condemnation but also in conflict with their main lines of thought.

Some historians of science believe that alchemy is a part of religious practice and rituals, and as a result, its history is cited under the history of religions. Along with this belief, the psychologist Carl Gustav Jung believes that alchemy is part of the history of psychology, which aims to discovery the complex and deep structure of the human psyche. Critics of these two approaches claim that religious and psychological concepts have not been used as much as material and experimental (laboratory) actions and practices have been used in alchemy, so it cannot be considered as a part of history of religions or psychology. In these historiographical approaches, there are many indications and references to the alchemical theories of the Greco-Egyptian period, one of the most important and perhaps the most documented of them is the theoretical framework of Zosimos, which is called "spiritual alchemy". Reviewing this framework shows that Zosimos' alchemical theories can be somewhat controversial for all three approaches. In this article, while looking at the basic concepts in this alchemical framework, the relationship between nature (matter) and supernatural powers and the interactions of matter-human-divinity have been studied.

This article, in a descriptive and analytical way, has investigated the concept and characteristics of Mana and the sacred in Marett's intellectual system. He, who primarily focuses on the anthropology of religion, emphasized emotion and feeling as the basic principle of analytical psychology of mind and human personality and the psychological components of religious belief, and instead of Tyler's animism, he offered pre-animism or animatism (the experience of Mana) as the first and the original religious experience. Marett interprets the subject of religious consciousness as Mana or sacred. The feeling of Mana is the feeling of the presence of a wonderful and mysterious power or force that forms the essence of primitive religion. Basically, religion was formed in response to the feeling of awe and in connection with it. The feeling of Mana is a mixture of fear, wonder and attraction that creates awe in humans. His minimal definition of religion includes the taboo-Mana formula, where taboo is the negative aspect of a sacred or supernatural entity, which "should not be approached without restraint." In its positive aspect, it is named Mana. Things that have Mana are also taboo. Marett's Mana, unlike Codrington's, is not power, but is entirely supernatural, i.e. religious and the core of religion.

In order to examine the rationality of the belief in the “disparity in the relationship between science and religion in the cases of evolutionary biology and cosmology,” this article focuses on evolutionary biology, cosmology, and religion (theology) from the perspective of epistemic entities. Accordingly, the disparity between these epistemic entities refers to the difference in the way they logically align with each other. Initially, the approach and assumptions accepted for establishing this argument are explained. In this section, it is clarified that the approach of this article is to present an evidential argument, and its most important assumption is the epistemic independence of evolutionary biology and cosmology from each other. Additionally, it is explained that by religion, the belief in the existence of a concept of God that implies the purposiveness of divine action is meant. Subsequently, the main middle term of this argument, which is the analysis of the implications of evolutionary biology and cosmology for purposiveness, is discussed in detail. In this discussion, purposiveness is precisely defined, and the content of existing and conventional theories and models in evolutionary biology and cosmology is considered, rather than the philosophical debates of biology or cosmology or philosophical interpretations of theories. Thus, the content of the premises of the argument is obtained, and its conclusion is presented at the end of this section. However, due to the fundamental nature of this claim, the logical-formal structure of the argument used to support the claim is explained further. This formal structure, which is explained based on the logic of probabilities, clarifies the degree of validity of the conclusion and the type of relationship between it and the premises. Following this, some of the important implications of this conclusion are mentioned.

This paper examines the ethical agency of artificial general intelligence (AGI). In many studies, the ethical agency of AGI is divided into four categories: 1) Ethical-impact agents, 2) Implicit ethical agents, 3) Explicit ethical agents, and 4) Full ethical agents. This paper will deploy a critical-analytical method to examine the fourth category, namely full ethical agents in AGI. If AGI is possible, such intelligence would have many capabilities, and therefore, there would be many ethical concerns. This categorization of ethical agency has been repeatedly used by researchers, and there is a need for re-examination. The results of this study show that if AGI is possible, it should be placed in the category of a full ethical agent. However, such a full ethical agent has two characteristics: first, this agent can learn human ethical principles or infer other ethical principles from them; however, it should not be assumed that it considers human ethical principles to be its ethical principles; and second, this agent can form its own goals and ethical principles, and these principles may be different from or contrary to human ethical principles.

Scientific explanations of religious experience are a serious challenge for religious experience. In the second half of the 20th century, cognitive science has involved itself with the issue of religion. Among the approaches of this knowledge, the conceptual metaphor approach of Lakoff and Johnson has a special place; Especially the claim of the thinkers of this field that the mind is basically physical and abstract concepts are mostly metaphorical is a very serious challenge for religious experience. In examining the critical view of the approach of conceptual metaphors, we will notice the results that are in favor of the approach of religious experience; Due to the religious experience, the generalization and convergence of the central metaphor is degraded. On the other hand, religious experience makes us believe that even with lived experience, religious matters are not basic or objective categories that do not require metaphors. On the other hand, by examining the religious experience, we are convinced to believe that man, as a being who has the ability to perceive metaphysical matters, inevitably has a non-physical essence; Because the understanding of metaphysical matters requires dimensions beyond the physical dimension. In this research, the aim is to examine the view of this approach to religious experience and against those who defend religious experience.

Method and material:

The research was done with descriptive research method. First, conceptual metaphors have been examined with the approach of George Lakoff and Mark Johnson, and then known religious experiences have been discussed. In the next step, a critical look at conceptual metaphors for religious experience and possible answers from philosophers of religion is included.The view of the metaphor-oriented approach in science or cognitive sciences is an experimental view, the aim of which is to deal with the cognitive aspect of language. The mentioned approach in cognitive linguistics is also called empirical realism. The study course of this linguistic approach is interdisciplinary; In this way, by studying the language, he intends to respond to the ontological and epistemological developments in dealing with the relationship between religious experience and language. If the basis of this approach is the above view, this view in dealing with religious experience will lead to a multi-directional interaction, which in the view of philosophers and thinkers, the metaphor-oriented approach will end in physical experience and physicality view. In this chapter, while dealing with the main and secondary issues, the author's main goal, which is to investigate the role of conceptual metaphors in explaining religious knowledge, is clarified.

The results of this research indicate that conceptual metaphors are not 100% applicable to the issue of experience and religious experiences and the language of reporting the aforementioned experiences, and since there are possibilities of disconfirming the rule of metaphorical language, it cannot be accepted. Although the main representatives of conceptual metaphors approach believe that this approach (metaphor-based approach) has self-evident principles, but on the other hand, they do not know it completely and without exception that this self-sewing issue is self-evident and indisputable.

It does not seem that the philosophers of the metaphor-oriented approach are in the direction of developing a better interaction between science and religion, or that they want to consider the interaction between conceptual metaphors in scientific knowledge and the problem of religious experience. ; Rather, with the attitude that especially the philosophers of the metaphor-oriented approach have taken, they intend to show that the examples of knowledge of religious experience are abstract things that the human mind simulates on the basis of empirical and tangible things. And in a sense, religious experiences are made from empirical facts, and for this purpose, the mind attributes imaginary schemas from physical objects to metaphysical and extrasensory matters; At the same time, this relationship is completely virtual and metaphorical. Based on the ontological results of this approach, it cannot be assumed that the religious experience indicates and observes the truth in recognizing the examples of religion, and hence the language that is used to give meaning to religious propositions. It has been purely unreal and virtual.

In this article, inspired by the theories presented in the methodology of science and the philosophy of science, the process of changing religious beliefs in the study of religions is explained. Accordingly, Popper's falsifications view is similar to the common view of theologians and rationalists, who consider religious discussions and debates the main and effective factor in changing people's beliefs. In contrast to this view and relying on historical evidence, the change in the worldview of religious people has been considered similar to the change in the scientific paradigms of scientists from the perspective of Thomas Kuhn. In this way, it has been shown that, contrary to the traditional view of theologians, people do not change their beliefs (religion and sect) solely through theoretical discussions and theological proofs and refutations but are influenced by various social and psychological factors. It has also been shown that different religions and sects have incomparable worldviews, and, as a result, theological disputes are considered polemical debates between the two parties. Accordingly, in religious studies, Kuhn's perspective can be used to explain how individuals' religious attitudes change. Also, within the framework of faithism in the philosophy of religion, the question is answered: How do individuals choose their fait?

The advances of artificial intelligence have led to widespread developments in the social and religious dimensions of societies. This article examines the potential and actual effects of artificial intelligence on social structures and religious values. Given the unique features of artificial intelligence, such as the ability to learn and adaptability, this technology is rapidly integrating with different aspects of everyday life and has raised concerns and challenges in ethical and spiritual areas. In the first part of the article, the analysis of social challenges associated with artificial intelligence, including its impact on human identity and social relations. Then, the consequences of artificial intelligence for religious values ​​and ethics, such as rethinking traditional concepts such as authority and will, are examined. Also, the necessity of reviewing the role of religion in a society where artificial intelligence is gradually changing is referred to. The article concludes that despite the numerous benefits of artificial intelligence, the need for ethical supervision and strategies to guide this technology is felt to preserve social and religious values.

The issue of this article is whether it is possible to regulate users' behavior without referring to ethics, and solely based on the architecture of virtual space? In this regard, three approaches are examined: 1- Adequacy of cyberspace architecture without the need for ethics 2- Compliance of the code with the principles of ethics 3- Necessity of hard ethics (before cyberspace architecture) and soft ethics (after architecture). In this context, the views of Lawrence Lessig (first approach), Richard Spinello (second approach) and Luciano Floridi (third approach) are discussed. In order to evaluate the aforementioned approaches, two criteria of "theoretical acceptability" (the requirement that the preferred view must be defensible based on the moral theories) and "technological acceptability" (the requirement that preferred view must be executable from the engineering point of view). Therefore a combinatory view is defended, which is operationally based on the architecture (code) of cyberspace, but from the theoretical aspect, it also depends on Ethical principles (hard ethics) and rely on case-by-case ethical judgments of experts (soft ethics).

The requirement for intelligent planning for the future of human sciences is to have a picture of how their characteristics will be formed in the future world; Islamic humanities are subject to changes in several ways; first, the topics discussed in this knowledge change in accordance with the conditions of the time, the issues of the day, and the questions that are asked; second, the methods used in Islamic humanities are not unrelated to methodological developments in other sciences. On the other hand, it is necessary to mention the developments that occur in the use of publishing and distributing science and its achievements. Regardless of the global perspective on the changes in Islamic humanities, the approach of the study in this article is related to the internal environment of this knowledge in Iran and will consider the trends of globalization of sciences and the rapid movement of sciences towards humanities only as macro-effects of the knowledge environment. This article attempts to examine the status of this knowledge in four scenarios: "The end of humanities and war in the cloud", "Herd safety and defensive strategies", "Specialization", and "Generalization of Islamic knowledge".