Bridging Science and Faith

The Bridging Science and Faith project creates a unique forum where prominent speakers with backgrounds in science, medicine, theology and philosophy can explore the role of religion, faith and spirituality in health and wellbeing, as well as the relationship between the mind, body and soul. By engaging physicians, scientists, leaders of faith, ethicists and theologians to help us bridge science and faith we can explore the anthropological and cultural dimensions of being human and look for areas of convergence between the humanities and the natural sciences. Discussions around the importance of empathy and compassion, ethics and artificial intelligence, as well as the anthropology of aging are a few of the many areas that will be explored at the Fifth International Vatican Conference and beyond. This project is made possible through the generous support of a grant from the John Templeton Foundation (JTF).

Hosts

H.Em. Cardinal Gianfranco  Ravasi

President, Pontifical Council for Culture

Robin L. Smith, MD

Founder, President and Chairman, Cura Foundation and Stem for Life,
and Vice President and Director,
Science and Faith (STOQ) Foundation

Monsignor Tomasz Trafny

Head of Science and Faith Department, Pontifical Council for Culture and
General Secretary, Science and Faith (STOQ) Foundation

Bridging Science and Faith Advisory Board

Professor of Biology and of Theology,
Providence College

CEO
ARC Technologies

John A. Creighton University Professor and
Chair, Department of Medical Humanities,
Creighton University

President, Arthur Vining Davis Foundations

Mahlon Powell Professor of Philosophy, Indiana University

President of Innovation and Research, Sanford Health

Founder, President and Chairman,
Cura Foundation and Stem for Life, and
Vice President and Director, Science and Faith (STOQ) Foundation

Head of Science and Faith Department,
Pontifical Council for Culture and
General Secretary, Science and Faith Foundation (STOQ)

President, Samaritan Health Initiatives and
Former Commissioner, U.S. Food and Drug Administration and
12th Director of the National Cancer Institute

Associate Vice President and Assistant Provost; Associate Teaching Professor, Department of Philosophy and Department of Information Technology, Analytics & Operations, University of Notre Dame

Participants

Senior Rabbi, Jewish Council of the Emirates and Association of Gulf Jewish Communities

Principal Deputy Commissioner,
U.S. Food and Drug Administration

President, Blueprint 1543; Honorary Professor of Theology and the Sciences, St. Andrews University, School of Divinity

Brooks and Suzanne Ragen Professor of Psychology,
Yale University

Founding Core Faculty and Lead, Wyss Institute, Harvard University; Professor of Genetics, Harvard Medical School; Professor of Health Sciences and Technology, Harvard and MIT

Craig-Weaver Professor of Pediatrics and Professor of Health Policy, Center for Biomedical Ethics and Society, Vanderbilt University Medical Center and Professor of Law, Vanderbilt Law School

Director,
U.S. National Institutes of Health

Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry and Founder and Director, Center for Healthy Minds, University of Wisconsin-Madison

Visiting Assistant Teaching Professor, Department of Theology,
University of Notre Dame

Moderator
John A. Creighton University Professor and
Chair, Department of Medical Humanities,
Creighton University

Chair in Epistemology, Modern and Contemporary Philosophy and Director of International Center for Philosophy and Center for Science and Thought, University of Bonn, Germany

Moderator
Senior Medical Correspondent,
CBS2 New York

Founder, the Jane Goodall Institute and UN Messenger of Peace

Professor Emeritus of Cognitive Sciences, University of California, Irvine

General Authority Seventy, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Chief Executive Officer,
AARP

President,
Compassion Institute

President, DEKA R&D;
Chairman, ARMI and
Founder, FIRST

Anchor and Journalist
MSNBC/NBC News 

Associate Dean for Neurosciences Initiatives and Interim Director of the Sanford Institute for Empathy and Compassion, Department of Neurosciences, University of California San Diego

Moderator
President,
Arthur Vining Davis Foundations

Associate Professor,
Rutgers University

Mahlon Powell Professor of Philosophy,
Indiana University

Moderator
Emmy® Award-Winning Host, “The Dr. Oz Show” and Cardiothoracic Surgeon, NewYork-Presbyterian/Columbia University Medical Center

Professor of Emergency Medicine, Bioethics and Medical Humanities, The Medical College of Wisconsin; Chairperson and Director, the Initiative on Islam and Medicine

Professor, MIT Media Lab; Chief Scientist and Chairman, Empatica

President, Science and Faith (STOQ) Foundation and President, Foundation for Heritage and Cultural and Artistic Activities of the Church

Professor of Emergency Medicine and Professor in the Division of Education and Bioethics, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Yeshiva University; Attending Physician, Montefiore Medical Center

Quorum of the Twelve Apostles,
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy, Villanova University;
Editor-in-chief, Social Epistemology

Head of Science and Faith Department,
Pontifical Council for Culture and
General Secretary, Science and Faith Foundation (STOQ)

Professor, Chair and Chief of Medicine, Cooper University Health Care, Cooper Medical School of Rowan University 

John L. Loeb and Frances Lehman Loeb Professor of Epidemiology in the Departments of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health; Director of the Human Flourishing Program, and Co-Director of the Initiative on Health, Religion and Spirituality, Harvard University

Moderator
Emmy® Award-Winning Host, Executive Producer and Anchor; Founder and CEO, Meredith Vieira Productions

Vice-Chancellor, Pontifical Academy of Sciences and Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences

President, Samaritan Health Initiatives and
Former Commissioner, U.S. Food and Drug Administration and
12th Director of the National Cancer Institute

Associate Vice President and Assistant Provost; Associate Teaching Professor, Department of Philosophy and Department of Information Technology, Analytics & Operations, University of Notre Dame

Chair, British Board of Scholars and Imams and Fellow, Royal College of Psychiatrists

Welcome by Monsignor Tomasz Trafny

Welcome by Monsignor Tomasz Trafny

Welcome by Monsignor Tomasz Trafny

Bridging Science and Faith Series

Human Enhancement Roundtable

Human Enhancement Roundtable

Human Uniqueness – What Makes Us Human?

Human Uniqueness – What Makes Us Human?

Human Enhancement Roundtable

Human Uniqueness – What Makes Us Human?

Science and Faith: More Consonance than Conflict

Science and Faith: More Consonance than Conflict

The Relationship Between Mind, Body and Soul Roundtable

The Relationship Between Mind, Body and Soul Roundtable

Science and Faith: More Consonance than Conflict

The Relationship Between Mind, Body and Soul Roundtable

Bridging Science and Faith Discussions

Reflections of Religious Leaders

Bridging Science and Faith by H.Em. Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi

Bridging Science and Faith by H.Em. Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi

Introduction and Reflections by Renato Poletti

Introduction and Reflections by Renato Poletti

Bridging Science and Faith by H.Em. Cardinal Gianfranco Ravasi

Introduction and Reflections by Renato Poletti

Remarks by H.Em. Cardinal Pietro Parolin

Remarks by H.Em. Cardinal Pietro Parolin

The Environment and Health

The Environment and Health

Remarks by H.Em. Cardinal Pietro Parolin

The Environment and Health

Religion, Spirituality and Health: The Importance of Dialogue

Religion, Spirituality and Health: The Importance of Dialogue

How Do You Define the Soul?

How Do You Define the Soul?

Religion, Spirituality and Health: The Importance of Dialogue

How Do You Define the Soul?

Is Love Finite or Unlimited?

Is Love Finite or Unlimited?

Humanity and Humility

Humanity and Humility

Is Love Finite or Unlimited?

Humanity and Humility

Religion and the Pandemic

Religion and the Pandemic

Religious Dietary Practices and Health

Religious Dietary Practices and Health

Religion and the Pandemic

Religious Dietary Practices and Health

Sessions and Insights and Perspectives

Francis S. Collins, MD, PhD: Bridging Science and Faith

Francis S. Collins, MD, PhD: Bridging Science and Faith

Andrew C. von Eschenbach, MD: The Importance of Bridging Science and Faith

Andrew C. von Eschenbach, MD: The Importance of Bridging Science and Faith

Francis S. Collins, MD, PhD: Bridging Science and Faith

Andrew C. von Eschenbach, MD: The Importance of Bridging Science and Faith

Donald Hoffman, PhD: A New Theory of Consciousness

Donald Hoffman, PhD: A New Theory of Consciousness

Rev. Terrence P. Ehrman, CSC, PhD: Ecological Citizenship: Uniting Creation and Redemption for Healthy Environments

Rev. Terrence P. Ehrman, CSC, PhD: Ecological Citizenship: Uniting Creation and Redemption for Healthy Environments

Donald Hoffman, PhD: A New Theory of Consciousness

Rev. Terrence P. Ehrman, CSC, PhD: Ecological Citizenship: Uniting Creation and Redemption for Healthy Environments

Healthy Aging with Dignity and Purpose

Healthy Aging with Dignity and Purpose

Elder William K. Jackson, MD: Improving Health Through Missionary Work

Elder William K. Jackson, MD: Improving Health Through Missionary Work

Healthy Aging with Dignity and Purpose

Elder William K. Jackson, MD: Improving Health Through Missionary Work

The Ethics of Data and AI

The Ethics of Data and AI

The Neuroscience of Empathy and Compassion

The Neuroscience of Empathy and Compassion

The Ethics of Data and AI

The Neuroscience of Empathy and Compassion

The Power of Selflessness

The Power of Selflessness

What Does it Mean to be Human?

What Does it Mean to be Human?

The Power of Selflessness

What Does it Mean to be Human?

Other

This project was made possible through the support of a grant from the John Templeton Foundation. The opinions expressed on this website are those of the hosts, authors and/or speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the John Templeton Foundation. Learn more about the grant.