The Sacred Depths of Nature

Rating:
Summary: There is wonder aplenty in nature and science
Review: "But there must be something more" is a common refrain among those who believe that science robs the world of its meaning; those who cannot countenance that we are ultimately elaborate biochemical reactions, that life emerged from non-life, that stars are nuclear furnaces, that the universe began with a Big Bang. Ursula Goodenough answers this refrain with compassion, patience, poetry, and above all, a command of science and a gift for communicating its achievements and its excitement. In "The Sacred Depths of Nature", Ursula Goodenough, a research biologist, presents a series of meditations on the mysteries of nature. She argues passionately that there are mysteries aplenty within us and about us, and that we needn't invent a supernatural realm. How can one contemplate the exquisite workings of a signal transduction cascade within a living cell, or the grandeur of stellar evolution, or the complexity of biological evolution without a sense of awe? As Carl Sagan was fond of pointing out, these stories have far greater richness and beauty than do any religious myths, no matter how richly embellished.

As Ms. Goodenough amply demonstrates in this unique little book, science needn't be devoid of awe; its language needn't be dry and unpoetic; its students needn't be deprived of feeling. In fact, quite the contrary. The intricacy and grandeur or nature, as revealed by science, is every bit as awe-inspiring as the greatest religious myths; indeed, even more so. Ms. Goodenough argues that understanding life is like understanding a Mozart sonata. As she puts it, "The biochemistry and biophysics are the notes of life; they conspire, collectively, to generate the real unit of life, the organism."

Building on this theme, each chapter explores some aspect of biology, embracing the intrinsic beauty of some complex process, never shying away from accurate terminology, and always employing apt metaphors and analogies that make the concepts accessible to virtually anyone. For example, as Ms. Goodenough explains, "Patterns of gene expression are to organisms as melodies and harmonies are to sonatas. It's all about which sets of proteins appear in a cell at the same time (the chords) and which sets come before or after other sets (the themes) and at what rate they appear (the tempos) and how they modulate one another (the developments and transitions)." Each chapter ends with "reflections", in which the author grants herself greater poetic license to interpret the lessons of the chapter in a personal way, and to explore common intuitions about life, even as they have been sanctified in religious rituals. In one such reflection, Ms. Goodenough's declares "I have come to understand that the self, my self, is inherently sacred. By virtue of its own improbability, its own miracle, its own emergence."

Even if the reader does not come away with the same sense of awe at the workings of nature as the author, there is one observation that will surely be impressed upon him/her; that it is indeed possible for a scientist, a reductionist, a non-believer, to be filled with wonder, gratitude, and awe. These things are not antithetical to science; for some, they are integral to science. Those of us who are scientists typically have appreciated this fact in some way since childhood, although perhaps not as poetically or poignantly as Ms. Goodenough. For those who insist that there must be something more, Ms. Goodenough's reflections may begin to persuade you that there is wonder enough within a single cell to rival any liturgy, and any cathedral. How can anyone who even begins to grasp their inner workings ask for more?

I highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to appreciate the poetry and awe of science. It takes a small but significant step toward bridging a chasm between science, which is too often perceived as suffocatingly impersonal and dispassionate, and the sacred, which is mistaken for the exclusive domain of religion. My hat is off to Ursula Goodenough. I suspect that she will help to bring a good many talented young people into science who may not have otherwise ventured to go there, and just as importantly, help to remove some of the stigma associated with science and its practitioners.

Rating:
Summary: Fine book, but disagree with physical-only premise
Review: "The Sacred Depths of Nature" is a metaphysical meditation on the implications of what science has uncovered about life by a biologist who cites as her purpose for writing this fine book the need for a planetary ethic. To the author, this ethic, this unity, is not to be obtained through a unification of the sundry religious traditions, a merging of their commonalities. She feels that there is no need to resolve these differences; to her, there are simply part of the Mystery of existence. To her the unity we can feel, a reverence for life, can emerge from realizing that all physical life is made from the same basic building blocks, that life has emerged and developed in basically the same patterns throughout evolution; again, physical evolution. Thus most of the book consists of explanations of the emergence of the basic building blocks of physical life and how life works.

I was very impressed with the author's humility before the larger questions of life, and what she describes as the "epiphany" she got when she realized that she did not need to uncover answers to the Big Questions, the seeming meaningless of life that scientists such as Steven Weinberg have stated they perceive, ironically as they claim to understand more of the Universe. Her humility and reverence are indeed true religious emotions, whatever her feelings about Deism, the Creator of the Universe - she deliberately does not take a position on whether or not there is a Creator, however. Her comments about empathy and compassion are also, to me, very indicative of a religious mind, whatever her context.

I was equally impressed with the clarity and simplicity of her explanations of the origins and development of life, sex, sexuality, multicellularity, and death. These chapters make the book worth reading, regardless of how the reader feels about her metaphysic, the philosophy towards life that she has developed from her work as a biologist.

Yet personally I cannot agree with her basic premise, because I feel that physical life is just a shadow of something far greater and more vast, Spirit, and whether the existence of this deeper Force can be "proven" by science is irrelevant to me. Physical life is a miracle, but it's quite temporary, and it feeds off itself in the most bizarre way. There is to me a rather profound paradox, that nothing can live unless something dies for the former's consumption. I can in no way just dismiss Mysteries such as the latter and death simply as Mysteries beyond anything we can prove, explain, or try to comprehend. I need a different metaphysic, one that expands my consciousness beyond the limitations of the physical.

Rating:
Summary: Beautiful..........
Review: .....that is how I describe Ursula Goodenough's ability to explain science and her ideas to readers of all levels of scientific background (or lack of). The focus of this book is not only to introduce readers to some basic science (from the Big Bang to the origins of life to modern genetics to an analysis of our emotions), but to present the info in such a way as to intrigue the reader and to help him or her see the pure beauty of the subject she has dedicated her life to. One of Ms. Goodenough's theses is that most people are put off by science because they feel it violates what they feel is special and sacred about life and our world. This, she seems to say, often stems from a misunderstanding of the beauty of science and a lack of acknowledgement that our scientific understandings of nature are as beautiful as earlier, non-scientific explanations of the origins of the world and ourselves. She puts forth an approach she calls "religious naturalism" which reflects her belief that one can evoke a "religious" response in readers by explaining nature using our knowledge of science. She feels that this can be a unifying force in our world because of the way it honors nature and retains the view of humans as special. Truly a compelling read!

Rating:
Summary: a splendid book
Review: After a second reading of Goodenough's Sacred Depths of Nature I wrote on the flyleaf: This, the Book of Ursula,may in future be considered like the Book of J,said by Harold Bloom of Yale to have been written by a woman and seminal to the Old Testament. Ursula's Book may be seminal to the new (our)testament. I think a coherent response to our world can be built about this core text.

Rating:
Summary: Amazing book!
Review: As a Washington University student, I had the honor of taking Ursula Goodenough's course. At the end of the course, I thought she is an amazing teacher. But after reading her book, I think that in addition of being a great teacher, she is a great writer! She has made all complicated scientific details simple. Also, the subject of the book is unique and interesting. I recommend everyone to read the book!

Rating:
Summary: Religious Naturalism: A Basis for a New World Religion?
Review: As courageous as it may be for a scientist to write of her feelings of awe in the face of life's mechanisms, the book failed to illuminate the key question: What causes some people, when presented with the same scientific facts, to proclaim the universe absurd and meaningless, while others (through grace?) proclaim it sacred and Holy? How specifically did the author come to this latter attitude?

I also found the absence of grappling with current philosophical and theological issues to critically weaken the book's value. William James is the most recent scholar cited, and yet didn't Julian Huxley and Margaret Isherwood propose religions based on the notion of "evolution as immanent divinity" many decades ago? And wouldn't the inclusion of a modern existentialist theology from such as John Macquarrie have shown the dichotomy of theism vs non-theism to be a false one?

As to using the "myth of evolutionary microbiology" as the foundation for a new religion, I think Matthew Fox comes closer to portraying the mystical sacredness of creation. Summary box score: Biology, good enough; reflections, good enough; theology, not good enough.

Rating:
Summary: Disappointing, nothing new here
Review: Disappointing, nothing really new here. A good basic presentation of cell biology rates 2 stars. Otherwise this is another "your life and consciousness are a biochemical reaction"[ho hum] with generous handfulls of "nature is wonderful"[yes,but we already know that].Try Thomas Troward or The Kybalion for much older but more useful descriptions of the origins of consciousness in the Universe.

Rating:
Summary: Religious Naturalism
Review: Famous astrophysicist Fred Hoyle once said: "I have always thought it curious that, while most scientists claim to eschew religion, it actually dominates their thoughts more than it does the clergy." Ursula Goodenought is certainly amongst them! She is an international recognized cell biologist. Her book "The Sacred Depths of Nature," is a positive constructive contribution to the dialogue between science and religion, a bridge that brings reason and faith together. Using a simple (crash course in life sciences), direct style, and beautiful metaphors she explains the origins of live, evolution, sex, sexuality, cosmos, consciousness and death. Each chapter is divided into two sections: first, she stretches scientific explanations as far as she can possible go, and then she goes into a metaphysical meditation, into the Mystery of existence. Mystery is the realm beyond science, the home of emotions, wonder, gratitude, joy and awe, elicited by the beauty of nature, by Mozart's music, by hymns, prayers, and liturgy. The beauty of Goodenough is that she rejects nihilism, her scientifc mind answers "What," without bothering to answer "Why!" She emancipates herself by means of a "covenant with Mystery," whereby scientific knowledge brings hope and solace.

This is indeed a most beautiful approach to both science and metaphysics, an attempt to work in unison in the quest to understand the Mystery. The mathematical quest to understand infinity parallels mystical attempts to understand God. There is no claim to supplant existent traditions but a plight for coexistence between science and religion. Many universities and theological institutions now offer courses interfacing science and religion. As Stephen Jay (President of AAAS - American Association for the Advancement of Science) said: "Science and religion should be equal, mutually respecting partners, each the master of its own domain and each domain vital to human life in a different way."

Goodenough touches on the concept of planetary ethic rooted in a universal religion based on scientific knowledge. It is a utopian concept in a world characterized by significant social and economical differences and where only a tiny minority has access to advanced levels of education. But merit goes to her, for having brought some light at the end of the tunnel!

Rating:
Summary: Religious Naturalism
Review: Famous astrophysicist Fred Hoyle once said: "I have always thought it curious that, while most scientists claim to eschew religion, it actually dominates their thoughts more than it does the clergy." Ursula Goodenought is certainly amongst them! She is an international recognized cell biologist. Her book "The Sacred Depths of Nature," is a positive constructive contribution to the dialogue between science and religion, a bridge that brings reason and faith together. Using a simple (crash course in life sciences), direct style, and beautiful metaphors she explains the origins of live, evolution, sex, sexuality, cosmos, consciousness and death. Each chapter is divided into two sections: first, she stretches scientific explanations as far as she can possible go, and then she goes into a metaphysical meditation, into the Mystery of existence. Mystery is the realm beyond science, the home of emotions, wonder, gratitude, joy and awe, elicited by the beauty of nature, by Mozart's music, by hymns, prayers, and liturgy. The beauty of Goodenough is that she rejects nihilism, her scientifc mind answers "What," without bothering to answer "Why!" She emancipates herself by means of a "covenant with Mystery," whereby scientific knowledge brings hope and solace.

This is indeed a most beautiful approach to both science and metaphysics, an attempt to work in unison in the quest to understand the Mystery. The mathematical quest to understand infinity parallels mystical attempts to understand God. There is no claim to supplant existent traditions but a plight for coexistence between science and religion. Many universities and theological institutions now offer courses interfacing science and religion. As Stephen Jay (President of AAAS - American Association for the Advancement of Science) said: "Science and religion should be equal, mutually respecting partners, each the master of its own domain and each domain vital to human life in a different way."

Goodenough touches on the concept of planetary ethic rooted in a universal religion based on scientific knowledge. It is a utopian concept in a world characterized by significant social and economical differences and where only a tiny minority has access to advanced levels of education. But merit goes to her, for having brought some light at the end of the tunnel!

Rating:
Summary: Religious Naturalism
Review: Famous astrophysicist Fred Hoyle once said: "I have always thought it curious that, while most scientists claim to eschew religion, it actually dominates their thoughts more than it does the clergy." Ursula Goodenought is certainly amongst them! She is an international recognized cell biologist. Her book "The Sacred Depths of Nature," is a positive constructive contribution to the dialogue between science and religion, a bridge that brings reason and faith together. Using a simple (crash course in life sciences), direct style, and beautiful metaphors she explains the origins of live, evolution, sex, sexuality, cosmos, consciousness and death. Each chapter is divided into two sections: first, she stretches scientific explanations as far as she can possible go, and then she goes into a metaphysical meditation, into the Mystery of existence. Mystery is the realm beyond science, the home of emotions, wonder, gratitude, joy and awe, elicited by the beauty of nature, by Mozart's music, by hymns, prayers, and liturgy. The beauty of Goodenough is that she rejects nihilism, her scientifc mind answers "What," without bothering to answer "Why!" She emancipates herself by means of a "covenant with Mystery," whereby scientific knowledge brings hope and solace.

This is indeed a most beautiful approach to both science and metaphysics, an attempt to work in unison in the quest to understand the Mystery. The mathematical quest to understand infinity parallels mystical attempts to understand God. There is no claim to supplant existent traditions but a plight for coexistence between science and religion. Many universities and theological institutions now offer courses interfacing science and religion. As Stephen Jay (President of AAAS - American Association for the Advancement of Science) said: "Science and religion should be equal, mutually respecting partners, each the master of its own domain and each domain vital to human life in a different way."

Goodenough touches on the concept of planetary ethic rooted in a universal religion based on scientific knowledge. It is a utopian concept in a world characterized by significant social and economical differences and where only a tiny minority has access to advanced levels of education. But merit goes to her, for having brought some light at the end of the tunnel!