Voting Station

Stanely Jaki

Please vote to return to collections.

Religious Figure

The Resume

    (August 17, 1924-April 7, 2009)
    Born in Gyor, Hungary
    Catholic priest, author, physicist, and philosopher
    Authority on and author of many books on the relationship between science and faith
    Wrote or contributed to over fifty books and 350 scholarly articles
    Books titled included; 'The Relevance of Physics' (1966), 'The Paradox of Olber's Paradox' (1969), 'Planets and Planetarians: A History of Theories of the Origins of Planetary Systems' (1978), 'Cosmos and Creators' (1980), 'Chesterton, A Seer of Science' (1986), 'Miracles and Physics' ((1989), 'Scientist and Catholic, An Essay on Pierre Dunhem (1996), 'Christ and Science' (2000), 'Praying the Psalms, A Commentary' (2001), 'Hail Mary, full of Grace: A Commentary' (2008)
    PhD in Theology from the Pontifical Institute of San Anselmo in Rome (1950) and PhD in Physics from Fordham University in New York City
    Winner of the 1978 Templeton Prize
    He believed that science's 'viable birth' in Western Europe was due to the Catholic Church and failed elsewhere because after studying '...seven great civilizations; Arabic, Babylonian, Chinese, Egyptian, Greek, Hindu and Mayan; he concluded that science had suffered a 'stillbirth' because of their respective conceptions of the universe and their lack of beliefs in a transcendental creator who endured creation with consistent physical laws'
    Autobiography' 'A Mind's Worth: An Intellectual Autobiography'
    Taught at Seton Hall University from 1965 until his death in 2009 and was a visiting professor at many other college and universities including the University of Edinburgh where he was honored with the title of 'Distinguished University Professor'

Why he might be annoying:

    He looked a little bit like Andy Rooney but with even bushier eyebrows.
    Despite earning doctorates in Theology and Physics, his studies and writings were really more concerned with Philosophy and History.
    He was quite dismissive of beliefs systems other than orthodox Catholicism.
    Although officially a Benedictine monk, he only spent a few years living in a Benedictine monastery and spent the rest of his life teaching abroad in (often secular) universities.
    He authorized only one book, 'Creation and Scientific Creativity: A Study in the Thought of S. L. Jaki' (1991) about him and his work in his lifetime.
    He didn't examine Judaism and its effect on the history of science although Jewish scientists have been a huge part of scientific history.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was absolutely brilliant.
    He detested Immanual Kant and his works, especially the attempts by some 20th Century philosophers to reconcile his thought with that of Saint Thomas Aquinas.
    He spoke and wrote in a half a dozen languages.
    Both of his brothers were inspired by him to join the same monastery as he did and become monks.
    He had to flee communist Hungary to pursue his work and education and didn't return until after the fall of communism.
    He dedicated his life to the worthy cause of reconciling science and religion and did a pretty good job of it.
    During his teens and early twenties he lived through; a Nazi invasion, WWII, a Communist invasion and subsequent Cold War.
    His opponents in and out of the Catholic Church tried to suppress and ignore him and his work and succeeded so well that the Episcopalian Archbishop of New York had to correct his poison pen obituary in the NY Times.

Credit: tom_jeffords


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 5 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 6 Votes: 16.67% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 7 Votes: 85.71% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 8 Votes: 62.50% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 6 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 21 Votes: 42.86% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 9 Votes: 55.56% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 19 Votes: 52.63% Annoying