Source: “The Death of Supernaturalism: The Case For Process Naturalism”, Copyright © 2025 by Chad Bahl, First Edition.
This topic explores the development of process philosophy, beginning with the life and complex metaphysical transition of Alfred North Whitehead. It details how his difficult yet revolutionary ideas were later distilled by scholars like David Ray Griffin to bridge the gap between science and religion. Griffin proposes a transition from a "sensationist-atheistic-materialistic" worldview to a "prehensive-panentheistic-panexperientialist" model, which suggests that experience, rather than inert matter, is the fundamental building block of reality. By redefining God as a persuasive rather than controlling force who exists within the natural order, the author argues that this theistic naturalism offers a more coherent and scientifically compatible alternative to traditional supernaturalism.
Griffin_s_Process_Naturalism.mp4
Beyond Matter and Miracle.pptx
The_Universe_as_Drops_of_Experience.m4a
For far too long, many of us have lived in a state of "unsustainable cognitive dissonance." We find ourselves torn by what I call the "Great Divorce." On one side stands scientific materialism—a worldview that paints the universe as a cold, mindless machine made of dead matter. On the other side stands supernatural religion, which often depicts God as a cosmic magician who sits outside of nature, occasionally reaching in to break its laws.
This divorce forces a painful choice: do you follow the rigorous logic of the laboratory or the deep yearnings of your heart?
The man who found the bridge across this chasm was Alfred North Whitehead. He wasn’t a mystic trying to escape science; he was a titan of logic. A Cambridge mathematician and the son of an Anglican clergyman, he co-authored Principia Mathematica with Bertrand Russell—one of the most intellectually demanding works in history. When Whitehead turned his attention to metaphysics, he didn't abandon his logic; he followed it to its ultimate, radical conclusion: the "solid" world of dead objects we think we see is a grand illusion.