Renowned astronomer shares his thoughts

GEORGE NEWS - There was great interest the past weekend when renowned astronomer professor David Block shared his knowledge with residents at the George Presbyterian Church. He held two talks on Saturday and Sunday, 4 and 5 September.

Block was elected a Fellow of the Royal Astronomical Society of London at the age of 19, and currently serves as emeritus professor in the School of Computer Science and Applied Mathematics at the University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg.

He is the only scientist on the continent of Africa whose research work has twice been featured on the cover of the world's most prestigious scientific journal, nature. He also accompanied the world's most famous scientist in living memory, Stephen Hawking, to meet former president Nelson Mandela in Johannesburg.

His first talk on Saturday was titled The Cosmos is Shouting. The second talk on Sunday, God and Galileo, explored the relationship between science and faith, and came from the book of the same name that he co-wrote with Kenneth Freeman.

Because of Covid-19 protocol and the great interest, seating was split between two halls with the second hall receiving live video feed.

People listening to Professor David Block at the George Presbyterian Church on Saturday afternoon.

Block on Tuesday told George Herald that his search for calling is a search for truth. Truth is not restricted to any one book. Truth can be found in two principled domains: the book of nature (biology, medicine, astronomy and chemistry) and the book of Scripture (the Bible).

The two books are in perfect harmony because they have the same author, God.

He distanced himself from man-made religion. "I studied the Gospels intensely and all my relationship with the Lord is based on a study myself. And then God reveals himself to me through the two books. It is interesting - not just the Bible, but equally so by studying, for example, a galaxy, and being profoundly aware of the magnificent design."

Richard Baird, organiser of the event, said it was a great success. It was over a year in the planning.

Richard Baird, Grace Cafe organiser, with professor David Block.
Photos: Eugene Gunning