Science & Faith Forum

منتدى العلم والإيمان

Exploring the intersection of scientific advancement and ontological discourse

FH

Dr. Firas Hamade

Presenter — Science & Faith Forum
First Roundtable Discussion

🔬 Science 🕌 Faith 💬 Dialogue

Is Evolution God's Plan for Creation?

First Roundtable — Bint Jebail Cultural Center, Dearborn, Michigan — January 2, 2026

  • Science is a method, not a worldview. It asks how, not why — and should not be treated as a competing belief system.
  • Evolution is well-supported science. Natural selection, genetics, fossils, and DNA all converge on a coherent story of biological diversity.
  • What science does NOT claim. It does not define meaning, deny God, or provide moral purpose.
  • The Theistic Perspective holds that creation is purposeful, God works through natural laws, and evolution is a tool of creation.
  • Scripture and meaning. Creation accounts can be read symbolically — focused on why we exist, not as a mechanistic description of how life developed.
  • The Naturalistic Perspective argues that nature explains itself and meaning is human-constructed.
  • The real tension: Science asks how. Faith asks why. Confusion between these two types of questions creates most of the apparent conflict.
  • Closing synthesis: "Evolution is creation in motion. The emergence of consciousness marks creation becoming aware of itself."
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Dr. Ibrahim Duhaini

Presenter — Science & Faith Forum
First Roundtable Discussion

PhD, MHM, FIOMP, FIUPESM, DIMPCB
Sr. Medical Physicist
Karmanos Cancer Institute
Flint, Michigan, USA

🧬 Evolution 📖 Qur'an ⚖️ Physics

Theistic Evolution Perspective

First Roundtable — Bint Jebail Cultural Center, Dearborn, Michigan — January 2, 2026

  • What is Theistic Evolution? God-guided evolution — God creates through natural laws including evolution.
  • Core Beliefs: God is the primary cause; evolution and natural processes are secondary causes under His guidance.
  • Harmonizing Science and Faith: The Earth is ~4.54 billion years old; the universe began ~13.8 billion years ago.
  • Qur'anic Support: "He created you in stages" (Nuh 71:14). "Travel through the earth and observe how creation began" (Al-Ankabut 29:20).
  • Human Uniqueness: Humans share biological ancestry with primates but are distinguished by reasoning, moral agency, and receive the soul: "He breathed into him from His Spirit" (Al-Sajdah 32:9).
  • Science explains HOW. Faith explains WHY. Islam answers purpose: "We did not create the heavens and earth without purpose" (Sad 38:27).
  • Closing Takeaway: "Creation has a system and a purpose. Science reveals the system. Faith reveals the purpose."
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Dr. Amel Durakovic

Featured Speaker — Science & Faith Forum
Second Roundtable Discussion

Assistant Professor, University of Sarajevo
PhD — Niels Bohr Institute
University of Copenhagen, Denmark
Postdoc — CEICO, Czech Academy of Sciences

🌌 Cosmology 🌞 Astrophysics 📊 CMB

Does the Big Bang Provide a Natural Explanation for the Universe's Origin?

Second Roundtable — Bint Jebail Cultural Center, Dearborn, Michigan — July 3, 2026

  • Cosmology as a science. Physical cosmology is less than a century old — an empirical discipline informed by observation and guided by advances in astronomy, physics, and instrumentation.
  • From geocentric to cosmological principle. Our understanding of our location evolved from Earth at the centre, to the Sun at the centre, to no preferred centre — the universe looks the same from any point.
  • Newton to Einstein. Newtonian gravity unified terrestrial and celestial motion. General relativity extended this, encoding gravity as the curvature of space-time rather than a force.
  • The expanding universe. Hubble's observations showed galaxies receding, with the more distant ones receding faster — the Hubble-Lemaître law. Space itself is expanding.
  • The Big Bang model. Running the expansion backwards implies a hot, dense origin roughly 13.8 billion years ago. The Cosmic Microwave Background (CMB) is the afterglow of this early epoch.
  • The cosmological constant. Einstein introduced Λ to maintain a static universe, then abandoned it when expansion was confirmed. It has since been revived to explain the universe's observed accelerating expansion.
  • What the Big Bang does NOT explain. The model describes the evolution of the universe from its earliest moments — but the question of what caused or preceded the singularity remains outside the scope of current physics.
  • Open frontiers. Modified Newtonian Dynamics (MOND), dark matter, dark energy, and the fine-tuning of initial conditions remain active areas of cosmological research.
  • Central question: Does the Big Bang provide a complete natural explanation for the origin of the universe — or does it mark the boundary where natural explanation reaches its limit?

Key Takeaways — Second Roundtable

🌌

The Big Bang Is Not "Creation from Nothing"

The Big Bang model describes the evolution of the universe from an extremely hot, dense state — it does not describe the origin of existence itself.

📊

The CMB Is the Key Evidence

The Cosmic Microwave Background — the faint afterglow of the early universe — is the strongest observational pillar of the Big Bang model.

⚙️

Physics Has Boundaries

The laws of physics as we know them break down at the singularity. What "preceded" the Big Bang is a question physics cannot currently answer.

🔍

Fine-Tuning Demands Explanation

The initial conditions of the universe are calibrated to extraordinary precision. Whether this reflects design, necessity, or selection remains an open philosophical debate.

📚

Science and Theology Ask Different Questions

Science asks how the universe evolved. Theology asks why it exists. These are complementary, not competing, inquiries.

✨

The Question Remains Open

Whether the Big Bang provides a "natural" explanation for the universe's origin depends on what we mean by "natural" — a question at the heart of science, philosophy, and faith.

🎞 Presentation Media

Watch summary videos and download full slide decks from our Roundtable Discussions

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Dr. Amel Durakovic

Does the Big Bang Provide a Natural Explanation for the Universe's Origin? — Second Roundtable, July 3, 2026

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Full Slide Deck — Handout Mode (Google Drive)

103-page handout covering the full cosmological journey: geocentric to heliocentric models, Newtonian gravity, special and general relativity, the expanding universe, Hubble's law, the Big Bang model, the CMB, the cosmological constant, and the open questions at the frontier of modern cosmology. Presented by Dr. Amel Durakovic, Assistant Professor, University of Sarajevo — PhD, Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen.

⬇ Download Slides (Google Drive)
FH

Dr. Firas Hamade

Is Evolution God's Plan for Creation? — First Roundtable, January 2, 2026

🎬

Summary Video — With Captions

A captioned clip from the panel discussion on evolution, creation, and the dialogue between faith and science.

⬇ Download Video
📊

Full Slide Deck — PowerPoint

🧬Is Evolution God's Plan?
💬Why This Matters
🔬Science vs. Belief
❓What Science Doesn't Claim
🕌Theistic Perspective
📖Scripture & Meaning
🌌Naturalistic Perspective
⚖️Where Tension Lies
🤝Compatibility
🎓Education
✨Closing
👏Thank You

Full slide deck covering theistic and naturalistic perspectives with a synthesis of faith and reason.

⬇ Download PowerPoint (.pptx)
ID

Dr. Ibrahim Duhaini

Theistic Evolution Perspective — First Roundtable, January 2, 2026

🎬

Summary Video — With Captions

A captioned clip from Ibrahim Duhaini's presentation on Theistic Evolution — Qur'anic support, scientific evidence, and the science-faith synthesis.

⬇ Download Video
📊

Full Slide Deck — PowerPoint

🌿Theistic Evolution
❓What is TE?
📋Core Beliefs
⚖️TE Overview
🔬Science Harmony
📖Qur'anic Proof
🧬God's Tool (Science)
🕌God's Tool (Qur'an)
👤Human Uniqueness
🌟Soul & Qur'an
🔮HOW vs WHY
🌳Misconceptions

19-slide deck with scientific evidence, Qur'anic proofs, phylogenetic tree analysis, and a theistic evolution synthesis.

⬇ Download PowerPoint (.pptx)

About the Forum

Our Mission

This forum seeks to explore the intricate relationship between scientific advancements and the philosophical discourse of ontology, particularly the tension and dialogue between faith and science.

As groundbreaking developments challenge traditional notions of existence, purpose, and creation, they also provide fertile ground for deeper reflection and integration.

Through open-minded discussions, we aim to navigate questions about the nature of being, reality, and the universe, considering perspectives that balance scientific inquiry with spiritual and ethical considerations.

Participants are encouraged to share insights, challenge assumptions, and foster mutual respect while delving into the profound intersection of science, faith, and ontology.

Discussion Topics

Evolution and Creation Theory

Exploring the dialogue between evolutionary science and traditional religious narratives about creation.

Big Bang Theory and Cosmology

Examining whether the Big Bang theory provides a natural explanation for the universe's origin.

Consciousness and Neuroscience

Investigating how advances in understanding consciousness relate to beliefs about the soul and afterlife.

Life Beyond Earth

Discussing the search for intelligent extraterrestrial life and its implications for science and faith.

Quantum Mechanics and Determinism

Exploring probabilistic views of the universe and their implications for free will and divine action.

Multiverse Theory

Debating whether the multiverse hypothesis challenges or complements traditional theological views.

Mindfulness & the Search for Alien Life

Exploring what the search for intelligent extraterrestrial life means for human consciousness, spirituality, and our place in the cosmos.

Life Extension and Mortality

Examining research on extending human lifespan and its ethical and spiritual implications.

Climate Change and Stewardship

Addressing scientific evidence for climate change and its ethical implications from a faith perspective.

Events

⭐ UPCOMING EVENT

Third Roundtable Discussion

🦌 Topic: Mindfulness and the Scope of the Search for Intelligent Alien Life

📅

Date

Thursday, November 13, 2026

🕑

Time

6:00 PM EST

📍

Location

Bint Jebail Cultural Center

14201 Prospect St Bldg. 2

Dearborn, Michigan

✅ PAST EVENT

Second Roundtable Discussion

🌌 Topic: Does the Big Bang Provide a Natural Explanation for the Universe's Origin?

Featured Speaker: Dr. Amel Durakovic — Slides & media available above ↑

📅

Date

Friday, July 3, 2026

🕑

Time

6:00 PM EST

📍

Location

Bint Jebail Cultural Center

14201 Prospect St Bldg. 2, Dearborn, Michigan

✅ PAST EVENT

First Roundtable Discussion

🧬 Topic: Is Evolution God's Plan for Creation?

Presenters: Dr. Firas Hamade & Ibrahim Duhaini, PhD — Media & slides available above ↑

📅

Date

Friday, January 2, 2026

🕑

Time

6:00 PM EST

📍

Location

Bint Jebail Cultural Center

14201 Prospect St Bldg. 2, Dearborn, Michigan

Get Involved