Religious Leadership in an Age of Science

In recent years, the subject of science and religion has moved from the classroom and the laboratory into the popular arena, generating a healthy and vigorous dialogue in secular culture as well as within religious communities. As ordinary religious believers become more aware of issues that arise at the interface of science and religion, they have increasingly turned to their religious leaders for insight and for answers. Unfortunately, few formal mechanisms have been established for exposing religious leaders either to science itself or to new scholarship in science and religion. Institutions that train religious leaders rarely have faculty who discuss such topics or coursework that covers them.

The Foundation's 2010 Funding Priority on "Religious Leadership in an Age of Science" is intended to help remedy this deficiency. The Foundation recently launched a program with this goal for religious leaders in Protestant communities in the United States and now seeks to fund similar endeavors by other religious organizations. This Funding Priority is open to all non-Protestant religious traditions in the U.S., as well as to all religious traditions, including Protestants, in other nations or regions of the world.

Applicants should represent organizations with convening power within a specific tradition and should be capable of developing programs and resources to reach large numbers of religious leaders. Proposals should describe points of tension or consonance between beliefs in a certain tradition (perhaps based on sacred texts) and the findings of science; indicate what structures exist to influence religious leaders and communities and identify what opportunities or challenges exist within those structures; and specify the resources (both persons and ideas) that are available to ensure quality in the engagement with the relevant scientific and religious content. (It is important to note that the Foundation generally does not support programs that include bioethical and environmental issues or religious perspectives that deny basic understandings in modern science.)

In their proposals, applicants should directly address one or more of the following Big Questions:

1. 1How is science relevant to the work of religious leaders in your community and to the vitality of local religious life?
2. 2What is the best way to overcome the fear of science among religious leaders in your community and to help them to gain a basic fluency in scientific subjects?
3. 3How can science (and scientists) be integrated into the ongoing activities of your community through educational programs or religious services?

Budget range and term for individual projects: From up to $100,000 and for up to two years. Requests for planning grants are encouraged.