Abstract
Resonance is a ubiquitous phenomenon in the world of physics and biology, emerging from energy exchanges between interrelated but distinct systems. Resonance experiences, by contrast, are widespread in the human and animal world but not ubiquitous. This essay discusses theological and ethical aspects of resonance theory, particularly pertaining to everyday human experiences of resonance in relation to the more-than-human world. Consistently, resonance experiences intersect the human and the non-human world, and the phenomenon of resonance may thus serve as a bridging concept between science and theology. I argue that while the ubiquitous feature of physical resonance is particularly helpful for reformulating a contemporary creation theology, human resonance experiences are a source for religious experience, hence highly informative for theology and ethics. Resonance theory thus challenges the widespread view that nature is primarily mute, indifferent, or even hostile to human concerns.
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Notes
- 1.
An earlier version of this essay was presented in a seminar during my Interface Lectures at Regent College, Vancouver, March 29–31, 2022. I thank Professor David Robinson for his invitation and for subsequent discussions.
- 2.
Mikkel Gabriel Christoffersen and I have made a comparative analysis of Gerd Theissen’s and Hartmut Rosa’s views on resonance (Christoffersen and Gregersen 2019). On a personal note: From 1978 to 1981, Theissen was professor of New Testament Studies at the Faculty of Theology, University of Copenhagen. My own interest in resonance goes back to Theissen’s teaching at UCph, and to reading his 1978 book, Argumente für einen kritischen Glauben, when I was a student.
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Gregersen, N.H. (2024). Resonance: From Physics to Theology. In: Runehov, A., Fuller, M. (eds) Science, Religion, the Humanities and Hope. Issues in Science and Religion: Publications of the European Society for the Study of Science and Theology, vol 8. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-52292-5_2
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