Noetic Shift exists to thoughtfully and respectfully engage the culture of the greater Hamilton area. Rooted in a distinctive Christian perspective, Noetic Shift examines the philosophical and ideological assumptions and norms of our day considering issues of origin, meaning, hope, and identity.
According to Websters, ‘noetic’ derives from the Greek adjective noētikos, meaning "intellectual," from the verb noein ("to think") and ultimately from the noun nous, meaning "mind." Noetic Shift is a shift of the mind or intellect.
The “shift” involves a respectful dialogue among people of various worldviews—atheist/agnostic and persons of faith. Together, we form a community. Community thrives, humans flourish, when it is safe to co-exist, to disagree agreeably, and thus to learn from one another.
Any sort of learning requires a “shift,” a change of perspective. Thomas Kuhn, in his groundbreaking book, The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, describes the progress of science in those terms. Kuhn, a historian of science, believes that science makes progress through a series of stutter-steps. These steps are precipitated by the failure of older paradigms to explain new data collected in the lab and in thought experiments. Kuhn describes these as “paradigm shifts.” For example, from Newtonian physics to quantum physics, when the Newtonian paradigm failed to describe the insights of quantum physics in the early Twentieth Century. By its very nature, science is constantly challenging older paradigms—all for the sake of more deeply understanding the universe. It’s no surprise that Kuhn’s book is more often cited in the scientific literature than any other source.
Noetic Shift creates safe settings where we are free to discuss the realities that describe our world. We believe that world is carefully nurtured, even ‘held together,’ by Jesus, for the benefit of human flourishing. We engage one another in examining the reality of God, the consciousness of truth, what it means to see humans flourish, and the claims of Jesus. We are committed to learning with you.
In September 2018, four Hamilton Churches hosted speaker Sam Allberry to a sold out crowd of over 2000 people at the First Ontario Concert Hall. Since then we have hosted a variety of events.