This piece is part of an on-going blog series called Plurality 2.0 (watch video here). Full schedule of guest authors throughout April and May is available here.
Br. Jason Welle is a Franciscan Friar of the Assumption BVM Province, centered in Wisconsin. After growing up in a small town in Central Minnesota, he completed a BA in English, Religion, and Middle Eastern Studies at St. Olaf College (’01) and an MTS in Systematic Theology at the University of Notre Dame (’03). He will complete his MDiv at the Catholic Theological Union in May and be ordained a deacon in June. He currently resides in Chicago and eagerly awaits a full-time pastoral assignment for his deaconate.
When I pondered the series title, “Plurality 2.0,” I found myself wondering, as have other bloggers, “what was Plurality 1.0?” Our Franciscan order celebrates 800 years this year since Pope Innocent III gave oral approval to our way of life in 1209, so I wondered if Saint Francis of Assisi might be an example of Plurality 1.0. We often laud Francis as an example of openness and tolerance during a time of violence, animosity, and theological contempt between different races and religions. He traveled to Egypt during the fifth crusade and crossed the battle lines unarmed, asking to speak to the Sultan, an encounter enshrined in the minds of friars interested in interreligious dialogue. Having received the hospitality of the Sultan, Francis returned to Italy a changed man and we see these changes in our rule of life.
On the broader topic of science and religion, many atheists believe that religion is inherently bad and that there is no place in the world for religion. This is simply not true. Here’s my view on science and religion:
Two weeks ago, under a dark Southern California sky, I found myself walking on a gravel road out to a small observatory at the University of California, Irvine. It was a rare opening to the public, and a small crowd had gathered on this windswept hilltop, improbably located above the twinkling lights of sprawling Orange County. As I approached, I saw that an amateur stargazer had set up a hefty telescope on the dirt behind his truck. He invited me to take a look, so I leaned in to position my eyeball in just the right spot. I peered in and suddenly, I stopped breathing.
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