MATHEMATICIANS AND THEIR GODS. INTERACTIONS BETWEEN MATHEMATICS AND RELIGIOUS BELIEFS

•An engaging book on mathematics and religion, with 'stand-alone' chapters on topics.
•Leading scholars from Europe and US have contributed to this book
•Covering diverse subjects, from the belief that mathematical study can improve piety to mathematical proof of the existence of God.
•Covering wide historical period, from Plato to the 20th century.

To open a newspaper or turn on the television it would appear that science and religion are polar opposites - mutually exclusive bedfellows competing for hearts and minds. There is little indication of the rich interaction between religion and science throughout history, much of which continues today. From ancient to modern times, mathematicians have played a key role in this interaction.

This is a book on the relationship between mathematics and religious beliefs. It aims to show that, throughout scientific history, mathematics has been used to make sense of the 'big' questions of life, and that religious beliefs sometimes drove mathematicians to mathematics to help them make sense of the world.

Containing contributions from a wide array of scholars in the fields of philosophy, history of science and history of mathematics, this book shows that the intersection between mathematics and theism is rich in both culture and character. Chapters cover a fascinating range of topics including the Sect of the Pythagoreans, Newton's views on the apocalypse, Charles Dodgson's Anglican faith and Gödel's proof of the existence of God.

Authors
•Snezana Lawrence, Senior Lecturer in Mathematics Education, Bath Spa University.
Snezana Lawrence is a Senior Lecturer in Mathematics Education at Bath Spa University. She has been involved with a number of national and international initiatives to promote the use of the history of mathematics in mathematics education. Snezana is on the Advisory Board of the History and Pedagogy of Mathematics Group (an affiliate of the International Commission on Mathematics Instruction), and is Mathematics Programme Director of the Prince's Teaching Institute Schools' Programme. She in on the Editorial Boards of BSHM Bulletin (as Associate Editor from January 2013) and Mathematics Today. Her website mathsisgoodforyou.com has attracted more than 4 million visitors since its launch in 2005.
•Mark McCartney, Senior Lecturer in Mathematics, University of Ulster.
Mark McCartney is a Senior Lecturer in mathematics at the University of Ulster. His research and scholarly interests include nonlinear dynamics, mathematical modelling and the history of science. He is the editor (with Andrew Whitaker) of Physicists of Ireland (IOP, 2003) and (with Andrew Whitaker and Raymond Flood) of Kelvin - Life, Labours and Legacy (OUP, 2008) and James Clerk Maxwell - Perspectives on His Life and Work (OUP, 2014).

Contents
1: Mark McCartney: Introduction
2: Andrew Gregory: The Pythagoreans: Number and Numerology
3: Allan Chapman: Divine light
4: Owen Gingerich: Kepler and his Trinitarian Cosmology
5: Robin Wilson and John Fauvel: The Lull before the storm: combinatorics in the Renaissance
6: Jean-Pierre Brach: Mystical Arithmetic in the Renaissance: From Biblical Hermeneutics to a Philosophical Tool
7: Rob Iliffe: Newton, God, and the mathematics of the Two Books
8: Massimo Mazzotti: Maria Gaetana Agnesi, mathematician of God
9: Snezana Lawrence: Capital G for Geometry: Masonic lore and the history of geometry
10: Mark Richards: Charles Dodgeson's Work for God
11: Elizabeth Lewis: P. G. Tait, Balfour Stewart and The Unseen Universe
12: Melanie Bayley: Faith and Flatland
13: C Anthony Anderson: Gödel's "proof" for the existence of God