Polarising ʿilm: Science and religion in early modern Islam

In the second half of the 19th century two American authors, scientist John William Draper (1811-82) and historian Andrew Dickson White (1832-1918), each wrote a well-received book that had an enduring influence on the ways in which the relationship between science and religion has since been viewed and understood. These books were Draper’sHistory of the Conflict between Religion and Science , published in 1874, and White’sA History of the Warfare of Science with Theology in Christendom , published in two volumes in 1896.¹ As the titles clearly indicate, the central thesis of these two works was that the history of