GCRI - Nancey Murphy
Nancey Murphy - Did My Neurons Make Me Do It?
On Wednesday August 17th Tabor Adelaide’s chapel was packed with approximately 100 people who had come to hear Professor Nancey Murphy, Professor of Christian Philosophy at Fuller Theological Seminary, California, speaking on the topic “Did My Neurons Make Me Do It?” Introducing her public lecture, co-hosted by Tabor’s new Graeme Clark Research Institute and the Southern Cross Bioethics Institute, Professor Murphy challenged the body-soul dualism which is so prevalent in some Christian circles. Throughout her talk she developed her understanding of a physicalism that was consistent with biblical Christianity, pointing out that physicalism does not necessarily imply reductionism, a thesis that all human thought and behaviour are determined by the laws of neurobiology. Professor Murphy led the gathered assembly through a scholarly presentation, noting along the way that neurobiological determinism fails to allow for rational thought, a problem for all who engage in philosophical and theological discourse! She put forward a view of human beings, with their immense neural complexity, and enmeshed in an immensely complex cultural environment, as complex dynamical systems, using the example of ant colonies as an illustration of emergent, holistic systems thinking. A lively Q&A followed, as Professor Murphy responded to a range of questions from the audience.
