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United States
Science & Religion Discussion Group of Northwest Pennsylvania
Mercyhurst College
Erie and Meadville, Pennsylvania
The Science and Religion Discussion Group of Northwestern Pennsylvania consists of primarily three separate discussion groups. Each group meets monthly and ranges in size from 7 to 20 people. Moreover, each group is centered in one (or two) houses of worship in the Erie area. The intimate size of each group and the common religious background of group members have encouraged and facilitated individual participation by group members. The three discussion groups are: 1. The Unitarian Universalist Church of Erie, with the Temple Anshe Hesed; 2. First Presbyterian Church of the Covenant (Erie);
3. Mount Saint Benedict (Erie). These discussion groups meet jointly at larger venues throughout the year as well. During the 2004-2005 year the groups met collectively to hear noted speakers, watch science and religion movies, and to network with one another along common interests. Despite the busy schedules of participants, the society has attempted to maintain “regular” meeting times with each group. Attendees come with high levels of motivation and sophistication in discussing matters important to the science and religion debate. Groups meet to hear talks and explore readings and discussions on topics in contemporary science and faith considerations such as articles from Science and Nature; Haught’s Responses to 101 Questions on God and Evolution; overviews of contemporary works in Quantum physics. Public relations, which include announcements for our special events and for publicizing the meeting times of each group through the appropriate local news sources, are handled by the Director of Public Relation and Publications at Mercyhurst College. Matching funds are also provided by Mercyhurst College.