Botond Gaál, Opening Up a Closed World, with an appendix by Kálmán Kérdõ, "Nature, Description of Nature and Mathematics" (Debrecen, Hungary: The István Hatvani Theological Research Centre, Debrecen University of Reformed Theology, 2007)
Gaál, Botond. Opening Up a Closed World. With an Appendix: Kálmán Kérdõ, "Nature, Description of Nature and Mathematics." Debrecen, Hungary: The István Hatvani Theological Research Centre, Debrecen University of Reformed Theology, 2007
Title page verso: Translated by Dávid Pándy-Szekeres, Lehel Deák. Technical editors: Áron Pótor, Botond Gaál, Jr.
Dedication: "With deep appreciation to my Alma Maters: the Debrecen University and the Debrecen Reformed Theological University, which belong together."
Dedication page verso:
"The author of this book established the István Hatvani Theological Research Center in 1993. The aim of this Center is to help all of the professors and students at the Debrecen University in examining and better understanding the relationship between natural sciences and Christian theology in order to promote progress in all fields of the human culture. István Hatvani (1718-1786) was an outstanding physicist, mathematician, chemist, physician, philosopher and Calvinist theologian who, as a professor of the Reformed College of Debrecen, embodied a European standard in teaching science and theology."
"This publication was supported by the Regional Center of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences in Debrecen and a grant from the Global Perspectives on Science and Spirituality Research Program of the Elon University, North Carolina, USA, and Université Interdisciplinaire de Paris, funded by the John Templeton Foundation."
The appendix has separate pagination, 1-32.
- Foreword, p. 9
- Introduction, p. 11
- The religious situation of the ancient world in the Middle East, p. 15
- The significance of the Jewish people: a new religious perspective, p. 16
- The significance of the early Greeks: new perspectives in the field of sciences, p. 29
- The Greek more geometrico period, p. 39
- Postulates, p. 51
- Axioms, p. 52
- Jewish monotheism and the christian trinitarian perspective, p. 55
- Ptolemy closes, Copernicus opens, p. 61
- Europe establishes a new mathematics, p. 65
- "Out of nothing I have created a new and different world," p. 73
- Axiomatization and the upward opening infinite world, p. 85
- A mathematician offers religions a change of perception, p. 91
- Theology and a new more geometrico perception, p. 99
- The continuous and discrete world, p. 107
- At which points can closed worlds be opened? p. 115
- Systems of Church doctrine, p. 116
- Church organization, p. 120
- The openness and closeness of political systems, p. 123
- The openness originating from man's freedom, p. 125
- The openness of universities, p. 127
- Bibliography, p. 129
- Index, p. 137
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