For the past 50 years, the Canadian Scientific and Christian Affiliation has facilitated discussions about science and Christian faith in Canada. As part of our 50th-anniversary celebrations, we asked 50 CSCA members to comment on their personal connections to science, scripture, and Canadian scenery. We will share these contributions throughout 2023 in the hope that you will find them engaging and encouraging.
CSCA member of the week: Robert J. Dean, Associate Professor of Theology and Ethics at Providence Theological Seminary.
1. Why did you choose your scientific discipline?
I like to think that my discipline chose me. After studying biological and health sciences as an undergraduate student and completing teacher’s college, I discerned a call to vocational ministry. The intersection of the life of the mind, the work of the body, and the compelling beauty of the Lord have been a consuming interest for me ever since.
2. What is one of your favourite Bible verses and why?
“Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your minds, so that you may discern what is the will of God – what is good and acceptable and perfect.“
—Romans 12:2
I have become increasingly fascinated by the role of imagination in the Christian life and the way imagination serves as the vehicle through which we engage our world. As Garrett Green has written, “To save sinners, God seizes them by the imagination.”
3. Which Canadian city or landscape do you love exploring and why?
Since moving to Manitoba five years ago, I have been gradually developing an increasing appreciation for the rugged beauty of the Canadian prairies. That being said, I grew up across the street from a small ski hill in Ontario. As a result, I am missing hills and trees.