RT Article
T1 The Scientific Character of Philip Hefner's “Created Co-Creator”
JF Zygon
VO 52
IS 3
SP 726
OP 746
A1 Lorrimar, Victoria 1986-
LA English
PB Wiley-Blackwell
YR 2017
UL https://www.ixtheo.de/Record/1567560776
AB Philip Hefner's understanding of humans as “created co-creators” has played a key role in the science and religion field, particularly as scholars consider the implications of emerging technologies for the human future. Hefner articulates his “created co-creator” framework in the form of scientifically testable hypotheses supporting his core understanding of human nature, adopting the structure of Imre Lakatos's scientific research programme. This article provides a brief exposition of Hefner's model, examines his hypotheses in order to assess their scientific character, and evaluates them against the relevant findings of contemporary science. While Hefner's model is largely commensurate with contemporary science, he at times makes claims that cannot be scientifically falsified or corroborated. Hefner's accomplishments in demonstrating the scientific compatibility of many theological notions is admirable; however, his overall position would be strengthened with a more tacit acknowledgment of the limitations of scientific knowledge. His anthropology draws also from extrascientific commitments and is all the richer for it.
K1 Co-creation
K1 Imre Lakatos
K1 Philip Hefner
K1 Scientific Method
DO 10.1111/zygo.12362