Ruth Bancewicz, 14 Johnston Terrace, Edinburgh EH1 2PW. Tel: 0131 466 6827. ruthb@cis.org.uk no. 33

Caroline Berry, Secretary, 4 Sackville Close, Sevenoaks, Kent TN13 3QD. Tel: 01732 451 907. cberry@pncl.co.uk

CiS Conference, Saturday 1st October at

St Paul's, Robert Adam Street, London

A CHRISTIAN FRAMEWORK FOR SUSTAINABILITY

This year's London Conference was held jointly with the Victoria Institute and the John Ray Initiative. It centred around the Presidential Address of the Victoria Institute given by Sir John Houghton. He is also the Chairman of the John Ray Initiative (JRI), whose aims are to bring together scientific and Christian understanding of the environment to promote the twin themes of sustainable development and environmental stewardship. A Conference on A Christian Framework for Sustainability was thus central to the concerns of the JRI and highly relevant to the other two organizations.

The day opened with a presentation by the Rev Dave Bookless, Director of A Rocha UK, of A theology of sustainability. He contrasted the biocentric and anthropocentric approaches to our environment: is Creation given to us to use as we want or does it exist for God's glory (No prizes for the right answer)? He ranged from John Calvin to Matthew Fox, from ruddy ducks to Hebridean hedgehogs, from the convergence between biblical understanding and international agreements, from Brundtland and the Earth Summit. A major emphasis was that God is Sustainer as well as Creator; the God of Scripture is Trinitarian, not a distant and deist Unitarian.

Sir Ghillean Prance, current President of CiS, spoke on The Sustainability of the Non-Human World, drawing on his long-term involvement with South America, particularly the problems of deforestation and soil misuse but also presenting the challenges and opportunities of ecotourism. But he did not confine himself to South America: his examples ranged from Newfoundland cod to the Eden Project in Cornwall of which he is the scientific adviser.

Donald Hay, Dean of Social Sciences in the University of Oxford until the day before the Conference, explored Sustainable Economics in a much more hearer friendly way than is often the way of economists. He gave a masterly overview of the subject, combining traditional topics like the role of markets, internalisation of costs, misuse of the Commons, and discounting the future, with a regular punctuation of asking what is – or should be – the Christian response to such issues.

Sir Brian Heap, lately Foreign Secretary of the Royal Society, introduced the topic of Consumption and Happiness: Christian Values and an Approach toward Sustainability. This was probably the subject least familiar to participants. Happiness is not a subject which most Christians see as a goal in this life, but the consequences of over-consumption, greedy life-styles, aggressive practices of individuals or businesses regularly lead to tensions, social distress and failures of justice – particularly towards the weak. It is an area where science and technology meet family values and gospel patterns. Sustainable consumption is a subject about which we will hear increasingly over the next few years; Brian Heap himself is concerned with developing the agenda on both the national and international arenas. It is a topic on which CiS could well reach out to social scientists, to explore the proper use and limits of science and technology; it is an area where scientific advances in genetics and energy generation collide with traditional behaviours and assumptions.

Sir John Houghton's title was The Challenge of Sustainability. He built on the Prince Philip Lecture he gave earlier this year at the Royal Society of Arts, enlarging on his own speciality of climate change and its causes and probable consequences. The collaborative efforts of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (the Scientific Panel of which was chaired by Sir John until relatively recently) is an object lesson of scientists interacting together and forging a common mind; the well-publicised dissent of the few ought to be measured against the consensus of the majority of the experts. There are now very few refuseniks who deny that climate change as a result of human activity is a reality. Gales, drought and flood are affecting more and more of the world's population – and it is the poor who are the most at risk. John Houghton's message was stark: the longer we delay in taking action about our greenhouse emissions, the greater will be the cost – both in damage to communities and in the price to deal with the cause. We will never make poverty history if we do not also take care of the environment. Of all the topics covered during the day, this was the most urgent and the one which spelt out that global un-sustainability is not much below the horizon.

The second half of the afternoon was given over to discussion in small groups led by the main speakers on the subjects of their main addresses, plus three others. The emphasis in the "Sustainable Agriculture" group led by Professor John Wibberley was on the present continuous tense – a repeated usage in the Bible and essential if both land and those who work it are to survive and thrive. John Wibberley illustrated scriptural themes with two contrasting and well-referenced case-studies: conservation farming in Zambia and GM crops wherever they are grown. The take home message was that sustainable agriculture requires collective humility and repentance, followed by disciplined farming if there is to be åhealing to the landπ (2 Chron 7:14).

Disaster management was led by Marcus Oxley of Tearfund, the 6^th largest overseas aid agency. It works in more than 60 disaster prone countries. And Marcus is the director of disaster management. He explained that disasters generally happen when a hazard combines with a vulnerable situation, that the number of disasters are rising and that they have an enormous impact on development. He then went on to explain what can be done in terms of prevention which included building capacity in local communities. Marcus also underscored the importance of Turning adversity to opportunity, he explained that such events create an urgency to act as well as focusing a lot of media and political attention onto the vulnerable communities.

"Waste" was led by David Stafford. Our rapporteur noted that the problem of waste stretches from personal to global. Responsible use of resources is important (Restraint, Reuse, Recycle). Churches, especially evangelical ones, could do more to promote awareness, responsibility, and taking a lead. By volunteering to join a focus group our personal influence could be increased a hundredfold. Internationally, the Western nations must take their own actions; there are some encouraging signs that developing nations would then follow.

The day was splendidly rounded off with an Epilogue on the wonders of creation and our God-given responsibility for Creation care, taken by The Rev Margot Hodson, Chaplain of Jesus College, Oxford.

Overall attendance was around 150, which is well up on the usual numbers for the Conference. It was a day which seem to have been universally enjoyed and profited from. It is good to be able to thank all the speakers without reservation. The arrangements at the Conference were excellent, as always; and the bookstall did good trade. The hope is that the proceedings will be published as a book. It should be a valuable contribution to Christian understanding and action.

Prof RJ Berry

Future Conferences

A Rocha UK Conference for church leaders

Thursday 24^th November 2005, 9am - 4.30pm

St Michael's Church, Chester Square,

London SW1

For details go to http://en.arocha.org

_______________________________________

To Be or Not to Be?

Exploring the ethical implications

of embryo selection

The Scottish Council on Human Bioethics

The Ethics and Medicine Trust

Saturday 14^th January 2006, 10am - 3.45pm

Lister Institute, Edinburgh

Go to http://www.schb.org.uk/

or call 0131 447 6394 for further details

What have you been doing until now?

After science A-levels and a biology degree I took an office job. I soon realised that I missed science, and two years after leaving university I started a PhD in the genetics of high blood pressure. I now work at the Institute of Psychiatry developing methods to analyse data collected for genetic studies.

Who have been the most important role models in your life?

An old lady who lived in the village I grew up in who taught me (through her actions not her words) that it was God who mattered, not things at periphery of Christianity (e.g. denominational differences).

What challenges have you come across as a Christian and a scientist?

Science pushes the frontiers of technology and allows us to live in a world that in some ways is unrecognisable from the world in which the Bible was written. This means that we face issues that the Bible does not address, such as care of the dying, when we need to decide if/when to let someone die who is currently only alive due to the advances in modern medicine. We need to address these challenges by working out in community which Biblical principles apply and how they are to be interpreted.

In what ways have you engaged with the challenges that you have meet?

I have attended meetings and debates organised by groups such as British association of science and the Human Genetic commission. I have also responded to consultations on topics such as sex selection in IVF.

How has your faith helped you as a scientist, or vice versa?

My faith has motivated me to work hard as a scientist and I really enjoy the work that I do, I interact with lots of different people in different ways, from teaching groups and individuals to collaborating with a wide range of people on a variety of projects. As I attempt to develop new ways to analyse genetic data, I am continually stimulated and challenged to consider the complexity of the world and reflect upon how awesome the God who created it is.

What do you do for fun?

I like reading and going to the cinema. I also travel a fair bit with work, which I really enjoy.

What question would keep you debating till four in the morning?

None – I need my sleep!

Favourite luxury?

My house, where I live with my husband. It is quite spacious and in a nice area. We moved in over a year ago and are still decorating!

If you were organising a conference (or a committee away day!) where would it be?

Possibly somewhere in India. I have never been there and would like to go.

Favourite film? (and why!)

Dodgeball. It makes me laugh!

If you weren't a biologist what would you be?

I think I would like to have some kind of job working with a marginalised community, either working at grass roots to help people get accommodation etc. or lobbying the government to provide for people in need.

God @ Work: Faith in the Workplace. Events in November

Integrating Work & Life - Connecting Sunday faith to daily lives

Sat 26th Nov, 10:00 am – 3:30 p.m.

Wokingham Baptist Church, Wokingham. Berkshire.

Contact LICC, 0207 399 9555 or mail@licc.org.uk.

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Takeover by the Company? Finding Personal Wholeness in the Changing World of Work

Thurs 17th Nov 9.30 a.m.

St Paulπs Cathedral Crypt.

Contact 020 7489 1011 or institute@stpaulscathedral.org.uk .

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Faith at Work

Saturday 19 November 2005, 9:30am-4:00pm

Highfields Church, Cardiff

With special guest speakers: Mark Greene, Jill Garett and David Oliver.

Contact (029) 2033 7880 or visit www.cicc.org.uk

Free journal samples!

We still have some copies of the March 2005 issue of "Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith", the journal of the American Scientific Affiliation available free and post free - first come first served. This issue has an environmental theme.

Contact John Bausor at jandk.bausor@clara.net or 16 Walter Road, Wokingham, Berks. RG41 3JA

Education

News

Within the last few months, exam boards in England and Wales have starting training teachers for a new style GCSE in Science. This follows modifications in the Science National Curriculum (www.nc.uk.net). The new Science GCSE is an attempt at developing fresh, exciting and flexible teaching of science to 14-16 year olds in a way that is relevant to the 21^st century. The approaches of the different exam boards differ in detail, but the changes do present a new opportunity to innovate in the classroom.

Education Conference

CiS and the Stapleford Centre are holding an Education conference on the 29^th April 2006. It is hoped that CiS members will find the link between science and education stimulating and useful. The conference details are advertised in this issue of PreCiS.

To help explain to members the work of the Stapleford centre, Alison Farnell, director of the Stapleford centre has written the following:

The Stapleford Centre is a national Christian education charity based in Nottingham. The ministry at Stapleford aims to equip 21st century Christian teachers to apply their faith to transform education for the benefit of children in school. This is achieved through a range of initiatives such as conferences and training courses and producing school resources. Two such current initiatives centre around i) encouraging more Christians to enter the teaching profession and ii) equipping teachers of English literature with the necessary tools of Biblical and Christian understanding to get to grips with the texts that they are teaching.

More information about the Stapleford Centre may be found at www.stapleford-centre.org

New Developments

October marked the start of my second year of working for Christians in Science. I'm looking forward to revisiting some of the conferences that I went to last year, starting some new projects, and improving on things a bit more – I might start with my filing! I'd like to say a big thank you to everyone who has been so supportive during the last year, and helped to make my job so much easier, with lots of encouragement, advice, and practical help.

I spent the first week of September at Forum, the UCCF training conference for new Christian Union Leaders. For the students, it was a week of excellent teaching, practical workshops, and a chance to catch up with the UCCF staff and relay workers. I gave a seminar for science students, and spoke about the work of CiS. Splitting them into subject groups for discussion helped us to see the different issues that are raised, and how we can help tackle them. Science is also a subject that students are keen to address in evangelistic events.

September also saw me visiting a day conference at Uddingston High School, for about 120 pupils taking "Religious, Moral and Philosophical Studies". I gave a short workshop on "Understanding Creation and Evolution", and made the papers!

Reproduced with permission from the Hamilton Advertiser

This month I will be putting the final touches to the new website. If you would like some resources for publicising CiS at your church or workplace, (PowerPoint presentation, logo, leaflets, DVDs, journals etc.) let me know.

Ruth Bancewicz

CiS Development Officer

Future CiS Conferences

CiS Northern Conference 2006

Design and Purpose in the Universe

Christians often talk about evidence for a designer. Which design arguments are scientifically plausible? What is the biblical understanding of design?

Where do we go from here?

Saturday 18^th March, 10.30am – 5.00pm

St Nicolas Church, Durham

Revd Dr Rodney Holder: Design in Cosmology

Other speakers to be announced.

Booking form enclosed

Contact conferencebookings@cis.org.uk for further information when it becomes available.

____________________________________________

Christians in Science and the Stapleford Centre with the Association of Christian Teachers

Towards a Christian Framework

for Education

Saturday 29^th April 2006, 10.00am - 4.00pm

Christ Church, Herne Bay, Kent

Speakers:

Ann Holt: Doing the same things differently - bringing a Christian perspective to the task of teaching.

Nick Spencer: Thoughts on hidden liberal and libertarian challenges to the Christian message.

Martin Rogers: Science and Religion Project for Schools – progress in developing resources for Schools.

Tom Hartman: Feathery Dinosaurs. Evolution, the best explanation.

Discussion groups including:

Pete Moore: Science, Meaning and the Media

Tom Kempton: Science in the curriculum – Charis Science.

Booking form enclosed

____________________________________________

CiS London Conference 2006

Mind Machines and Majesty –

The Boundaries of humanity

Saturday 4^th November

____________________________________________

CiS Members in Action

Talks

Thurs 17^th November, York University Christian Union "hot potatoes" outreach event, "Science and Christianityv Rev Richard Dimery

Fri 18^th November, Outreach event "Evolution. Is God extinct?" Prof Bob White

Mon 21^st November, UWIC Christian Union, Cardiff, "Hasn't Science Displaced the Bible?"

Rev Dr Ernest Lucas

Sun 27^th November, Exeter Network Church, "Is Science out of Control?"π Prof John Bryant

Tues 29^th November, "Genetik" urban mission training course, Manchester, "Science and Christianity" Rev Dr Ernest Lucas

Fri 2^nd December, Watford Grammar School for Boys, "Genetics, Ethics and Eugenics"

Prof John Bryant

Wed 7^th December, Belfast, Workshop for Bioscience academics, "Teaching Ethics to Bioscience Students – Challenges old and new" Prof John Bryant

Books

"Designers of the future, who should make the decisions?" Professor Gareth Jones (Monarch Books, 2005, £9 from CiS booklist).

Book Review

Shanks, N. (2004). "God, the Devil, and Darwin. A Critique of Intelligent Design Theory". New York: Oxford University Press. 0-19-516199-8

A robust demolition of the assumptions and claims of ID by an academic philosopher. It is written wholly from a secular viewpoint (with a Foreword by Richard Dawkins); the author makes no religious claims and is concerned merely to examine the intellectual integrity of ID. Shanks finds the concept – which he calls "methodological supernaturalism" - woefully defective.

Prof RJ Berry

Please let us know of any events that you are involved in over the next few months.

Cambridge

The CiS-St. Edmund's College series:

"Does Science make Secularisation inevitable?"

Prof. David Martin,

Emeritus Professor of Sociology, London School of Economics

Thursday 3^rd November, 5:30 pm

Queen's Lecture Theatre

Emmanuel College, Cambridge

The lecture on 16^th Nov has been cancelled. http://www.st-edmunds.cam.ac.uk/cis/

Edinburgh

At the next CiS Edinburgh meeting, Dr Donald Bruce of the Church of Scotland Society, Religion and Technology Project will speak on Nanotechnology.

Tues 22^nd November, 7.30, at St Paul's and St George's Church flat, 40 York Place.

Contact Ruth Bancewicz at 0781 687 3515 or Cathel Kerr at clkerr@btopenworld.com for more details.

Nottingham

A discussion group meets on the first Tuesday of even numbered months. The next meeting is on Dec 6^th, looking at Intelligent Design.

Anybody who is interested can phone Geoff Bagley on 0115 925 8801 or email gbagley@ntlworld.com

CiS Central South group to be formed

A new branch of CiS is to be formed covering the central area of South England. The inaugural lecture will be in early 2006 with other lectures and discussions held regularly after that, initially in Southampton.

For further information contact Rob Heather (robandanneuk@yahoo.co.uk, tel 07889 753977) or Simon Kolstoe (S.E.KOLSTOE@soton.ac.uk, tel 07940 463805).

Oxford

The meeting on 17th October, was entitled "The Laws on Nature and Divine Providence: The God of the Whole, not the Gaps" with Professor Andrew Steane of the Oxford University Physics Department.

This was well received and attracted lots of new people. Total attendance was about 50 again, including a number of 6th formers from a School whose chaplain had recommended it. Quite a number of CiS leaflets went too. There is still a never-ending appetite for evolution, ID etc. We handed out a feedback form with suggestions for future meetings, and those again came top of the list.

Contact Diana Briggs to join the mailing list for future events (diana.briggs@gmail.com).

Forming Local Groups

There have always been local CiS groups meeting in various parts of the country who have organised activities for other CiS members and friends. Activities are as varied as the imagination and vision of the local organisers!

For example:

o Coffee/meal/prayer with friends or colleagues

o Informal discussion evenings

o Focused study group

o Termly open lectures

o Organising a group to travel to a conference

o A science evening/day in a local church

If you are interested in starting your own CiS local group, contact Ruth or Caroline (contact details on page 1) for a list of members in your area. You can also request a CiS speakers list.

A paper on forming local groups can be found at

http://cis.org.uk/for_members/getting_started.shtml, or a paper copy can be sent on request.

Submissions for February PrÈCiS

Items for the next PrÈCiS should be submitted to Caroline Berry at cberry@pncl.co.uk or

4 Sackville Close, Sevenoaks, Kent TN13 3QD

Change of address? Graduated?

New e-mail address?

If any of your details have changed, please contact Tom Moffat at:

The Manse, Culross, Dunfermline, Fife, KY12 8JD. Tel. 01383 880 231

e-mail: subscriptions@cis.org.uk