Science, religion and the geography of speech at the British Association: William Henry Dallinger (1839–1909) under the microscope

Abstract

Since its inception in 1831, the discussion of political and religious topics had been excluded from the meetings of the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BAAS) - it was a 'neutral' body. This strategy was designed to both unite men of science with differing religious views, and prevent the Association from becoming embroiled in theological disputes. Although not always successful, the dedication to neutrality remained throughout the BAAS's history and was an important organising principle. This paper investigates how the separation of scientific and religious knowledge played out in practice by examining the speech of William Henry Dallinger, the prominent English microscopical researcher and Methodist preacher. In 1884 Dallinger travelled to Montreal, Canada, to part in the BAAS's fifty-fourth meeting. While in the city he delivered three addresses: a guest lecture to the Association, a presentation to a local theological College and a sermon at Montreal's largest Methodist church. To the Association Dallinger presented his science without any religious commitments, yet in these other venues, and away from the Association's strictures on speech, he presented science and religion as harmonious and inexorably tied. This paper argues that where Dallinger spoke made a difference to what he said, and underlines the value of thinking 'geographically' about encounters between science and religion.