The symposium is part of the Templeton Foundation’s Humble Approach
Initiative. The goal of the initiative is to bring about the discovery of new
spiritual information by furthering high-quality scientific research. The
“humble approach” is inherently interdisciplinary, sensitive to nuance,
and biased in favor of building linkages and connections. It assumes an
openness to new ideas and a willingness to experiment. Placing high
value upon patience and perseverance, it retains a sense of wondering
expectation because it recognizes, in Loren Eisley’s haunting phrase,
“a constant emergent novelty in nature that does not lie totally behind
us, or we would not be where we are.” A fundamental principle of the
Foundation, in the words of its founder, is that “humility is a gateway to
greater understanding and open[s] the doors to progress” in all endeavors.
Sir John Templeton believes that in their quest to comprehend foundational
realities, scientists, philosophers, and theologians have much to learn about
and from one another. The humble approach is intended as a corrective to
parochialism. It encourages discovery and seeks to accelerate its pace.
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