Abstract
This case study explores the relationship between science and religion through a hypothetical discussion between four students in a general education introductory astronomy course. One student questions the scientifically accepted age of the universe of 13.8 billion years based on their religious belief, which prompts the other three students to share their differing views of how science and religion interact. These views, taken from Ian Barbour’s book “When Science Meets Religion,” are conflict, independence, dialog, and integration. Conflict states that science and religion make contradictory claims and can’t both be right. Independence states that science and religion have their own language and deal with different types of questions. Dialog states that science and religion share some characteristics and can benefit each other with collaboration. Integration states that science and religion can be unified in a single worldview. The case offers instructors and students a respectful framework to address an important topic seldom considered in a science classroom. Originally written for a history of science course, the case is ideally suited for an introductory survey astronomy course but could also be used in a variety of general science courses.