CFP: Data, Laws & Evidence: Philosophy of Science in Dialogue with religious Thought

This conference will explore how current philosophical understandings of data, natural laws, evidence, and explanation shape—and are shaped by—conversations with theology and religious studies. As scientific practice evolves in response to new methods, technologies, and conceptual frameworks, fresh opportunities arise for constructive engagement across disciplines. 

While abstracts on any relevant topic are invited, submissions may wish to engage one or more of the following key themes:

1. The Nature of Evidence: Scientific, Theological, and Interdisciplinary Perspectives

How do different disciplines understand what counts as “evidence”? Can theological or experiential forms of evidence be placed in dialogue with scientific standards? What challenges arise when evidence is mediated through models, simulations, or interpretive frameworks?

2. Laws of Nature, Causation, and Divine Action

How are natural laws conceived within contemporary philosophy of science, and what implications do these conceptions have for discussions of providence, miracle, agency, and divine action? Are scientific and theological accounts of causation compatible or fundamentally distinct?

3. Data‑Driven Science and Its Philosophical and Theological Implications

With the rise of big data, machine learning, and data‑intensive methods, how is scientific reasoning changing? How might theology respond to questions of inference, uncertainty, pattern recognition, and the role of human interpretation in data‑rich contexts?

4. Explanation, Understanding, and Meaning Across Disciplines

What makes an explanation satisfactory in science or religion? How do metaphysical commitments influence interpretive choices? Can scientific and theological explanations coexist, complement, or challenge one another in offering understanding of the world?

Abstracts are due midnight 30th September. Successful speakers will be notified by 19th October.