Father Robert Spitzer, S.J., a philosopher of science, president of the Magis Center of Reason and Faith and celebrated author, will speak on Wednesday, March 28, at the University of St. Thomas.
The event will be held at 7:30 p.m. in O’Shaughnessy Educational Center auditorium. Admission is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be served following the discussion.
Spitzer, former president of Gonzaga University, 1998-2009, and a leader in the current national discussion of science and religion, will present remarkable new developments in physics and mathematics that imply that the universe must have had a Super Intellect bring it into existence.
He also will address what is called the “Big Bang Theory,” the current consensus among physicists of how the universe began about 13.7 billion years ago, and how alternative theories also entail a beginning and creation. Finally, he will show the complementarity between the new physics, philosophy and theology, and he will take questions from the audience.
Spitzer’s educational background:
- Ph.D., Catholic University of America, 1984-88. Philosophy, summa cum laude. Dissertation: “A Study of Objectively Real Time.”
- Th.M., Weston School (Cambridge), 1983-84. Theology (Scripture), summa cum laude. Thesis: “The Depth Grammar of ‘Pneuma’ and ‘En Christo’ in 1 Corinthians: 12.”
- M.Div., Gregorian University (Rome), 1980-83. Theology, summa cum laude. Thesis: “Early Christo, Logical Hymns.”
- M.A., St. Louis University, 1976-78. Philosophy (Research), magna cum laude. Thesis: “The Metaphysical Proof of God’s Existence in the De Ente Et Essentia of St. Thomas Aquinas.”
- B.B.A., Gonzaga University, 1970-74. Public accounting and finance., magna cum laude.
Spitzer has published five books and is working on three more. His most recent published work is New Proofs for the Existence of God: Contributions of Contemporary Physics and Philosophy (Eerdmans, 2010), which won a Catholic Press Association Award for best book in faith and science.
This presentation is sponsored by the University of St. Thomas Departments of Theology, Catholic Studies, Philosophy, Physics, Engineering, and the St. Paul Seminary School of Divinity, as well as by the Science and Theology Network.
An event poster can be viewed here.