It seems to me that as a nation we have created a conflict between fact and belief that borders on celebrating ignorance in the name of freedom of speech while diminishing the role of education in a civil society.
In reality this is a conflict between science and religion, one, I submit, that is unnecessary, counterproductive, and mostly contrived to suit people’s personal agenda.
Think about it. The word science means “knowledge about or study of the natural world based on facts learned through experiments and observation.”
Human beings have been doing science as long as we have existed because it is in our nature to want to know about the world around us.
Science tells us about “what” that world is, what it is made of, how it functions, about the incredible variety of life all around us, about what humans can do with and to the world and all life forms, and what our decisions now might mean for the future.
In short, science doesn’t invent stuff. It discoveries it.
Religion, on the other hand, tells us about the “why” of life, why we exist, why we are made the way we are, why we should do this and not do that, why we should think about the impact of our decisions on future generations, and why life has purpose beyond simply existing.
Even the great Albert Einstein who did not believe in God understood how utterly absurd conflict between religion and science is. “Science without religion is lame,” he wrote, and “religion without science is blind.”
He then clarified what he meant by that statement: “For science can only ascertain what is, but not what should be, and outside of its domain value judgments of all kinds remain necessary. Religion, on the other hand, deals only with evaluations of human thought and action: it cannot justifiably speak of facts and relationships between facts.”
Even as Einstein could appreciate the role of religion without embracing it, Dr. Francis Collins is an example of someone who could bridge the gap between the two.
Before becoming the director of the National Institutes of Health, Dr. Collins led the Human Genome Project that was responsible for mapping all the genes of human body, a critical breakthrough in science and medical research. He is also a self-avowed Christian who is not at all anti-intellectual and is unreservedly pro-science.
In an interview last April posted on Huffington Post he was asked about the conflict between religion and science. This is what he said:
“It is certainly true in the United States that there is an uneasiness about certain aspects of science, particularly evolution, because it conflicts, in some people’s minds, with their sense of how we all came to be.
“But you know,” he continued, “if you are a believer in God, it’s hard to imagine that God would somehow put this incontrovertible evidence in front of us about our relationship to other living organisms and expect us to disbelieve it. I mean, that doesn’t make sense at all. So as soon as you kind of get over the anxiety about the whole thing, it actually adds to your sense of awe about this amazing universe that we live in, it doesn’t subtract from it at all.”
In his own way Collins was saying what Einstein said, only he spoke from the perspective of faith. Thus, for him what science uncovers faith sees as the handiwork of God.
You don’t have to share his faith to embrace his capacity to affirm the co-existence of science and religion, and to recognize that conflict between them is minor compared to the light one shines on the other.
All it takes is a certain willingness to respect the distinctive roles of each. Faith cannot supplant science, and science cannot ignore religion.
Yes, there is an inevitable tension between the two, but open conflict is avoidable if we as a people have the minds and hearts to learn from both.
If we do we will then be able to discuss and debate the great issues of our time – whether it is evolution, climate change, abortion, medical research, space exploration, drone warfare, poverty reduction, income equality, and others – without demonizing one another.
I would even say – as a person of faith, of course – that should that happen it would be a day the Lord has made, and we could all rejoice in it.
Below are a couple of Einstein quotes that leads me to ponder the metaphysical aspect of my faith. Science tells us that all things are energy and connected via wave theory. It’s not beyond me to conceive of “God” being in the waves (perhaps the waves themselves?) that connect us.
“My religion consists of a humble admiration of the illimitable superior spirit who reveals himself in the slight details we are able to perceive with our frail and feeble mind.” (Albert Einstein)
“I believe in Spinoza’s God who reveals himself in the orderly harmony of what exists, not in a God who concerns himself with the fates and actions of human beings.” (Albert Einstein)
Thanks again, Jan, for stimulating our thoughts and the resulting discussion.
More to think about, Rollie. Thanks.
Jan, absolutely great post on science and religion and the relationship between the two. Just love that closing sentence. We need a whole lot more of those kinds of days right now. Also am drawn to Rollie’s suggestion about “wave theory”, which I take to mean super string theory. I believe we will increasingly understand better the nature of reality which will make what we call “God” more plausible as something implicit in the orderly harmony of what exists. Jane
Thanks, Jane. This is a great discussion. I hope more will join in.
According to the wave structure of matter theory, every physical thing in Nature is made of waves and space, and is interconnected and depends on everything else. The matter of the Universe tells space what it is and space tells matter how it must behave.
My faith led me to believe in the interconnectedness of life. Science can now tell me how. Thanks, Rollie.
Jan,
For those us who are neither scientists nor theologians, this post is a masterful, thought-provoking piece that points-out the necessity for man to “blend” science and religion in order to understand both “what” and “who” we are — and to challenge those who would separate the two for stupid, self-serving reasons.
It’s the challenge you name, Bill, that is the heart of the matter. Those on both sides of the equation who perpetuate the conflict between religion and science have gotten off too easy.
Thanks for a great comment on something that has long been a puzzle to me, i.e. the supposed conflict between science & religion. I never figured out why there should be a conflict. Each deals with its own part of life and serves it own purpose in our lives. As I see it, they are complementary as you point out, and not competitive. I suppose one can think up a competitiveness on the subject of evolution, but I think science has pretty well defined the facts of that subject.
I think that those who insist that this is an either or situation know very little of the realities of either one.
Wally, I think you are right about that.