Thoughts About God, the Bible, and Science

It is a popular notion among people in our modern world that science and Christianity, or science and God stand in opposition to each other. I wonder how that could be? After all, science is simply an attempt to understand the universe God has created and how it works. It seems they would fit together like a hand and a glove. The fact is, they do. There is no discrepancy between true science and true Christianity, or the whole Bible for that matter. The problem is between false religion and false science.

It could be said that the western world is built upon two foundations, Christianity and modern science. It is instructive to notice the correlation between what are called “first world” countries and the Christian religion. It is almost one-to-one. The western world, i.e. Western Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand and some other places, at least until around 1970, as a whole accepted some version of Christianity and believed in the God of the Bible. As the Bible says in John 8:32, “You shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free.” The Bible, in Genesis 1 - 3, provides the basis for an organized and planned universe which leads to the conclusion that it can be broken down (intellectually) and understood, thus science.

To carry this correlation concept one step further, and at the risk of becoming controversial, it should be noted that most of these claims I’m making held from centuries before the founding of America until around the 1970’s as noted above. At that point Christian faith in the United States as well as in the whole of the western world began to lose its place of prominence and influence and the correlation began to weaken.

It is possible, before the 1970’s, to point out a correlation between those countries in which the churches encouraged their members to be involved in personal Bible study (1st world), being most of Europe and North America. Then there are those countries in which the church would promote Bible study only through and with the leadership of church authorities and eschew personal Bible study (2nd world, if you will,) which for example would be much of South and Central America. Then finally are those countries in which the Bibile is not studied, nor even known for the most part (3rd world), which would be the pagan countries of the world, wherever they may be found.

Serious men spurred on by reason prompted by a belief in a universe that had its origin with a supreme being, God, sought to understand this universe and make sense of those things they encountered in their study. They worshipped God and studied His creation. Pagan peoples, with no Bible, and thus no understanding of a creator God, yet in awe of the majesty of His creation, worshipped the creation. This is how you end up with some peoples living in advanced societies with modern conveniences and appliances, and some peoples who have none of those things are offering children to volcanoes.

Yes, it is true that today there are many scientists who, because it is politically popular and moreover is the path to prestige and notoriety, have chosen to be atheists. They, of course, don’t understand that they have turned their back on the very thing that has provided a field of study in which they may engage their curiosity. That would be God and a belief in Him.

In the history of science, by and large these people are lightweights. I don’t say this to denigrate them. Indeed, many of them are quite intelligent and understand some concepts of which the rest of us are unaware. However historically, they are not among the giants on whose backs they ride. These are not the people that laid the foundation upon which our modern scientific world is built. Let’s observe some who are.

Nicolas Copernicus did much of his work in the 1500s. He made contributions in physics, mathematics, theology and even politics. His most notable contribution was his proposal of a heliocentric, or sun-centered solar system. This continued the work of Aristarchus of Samos, left dormant for 18 centuries. Copernicus developed a model showing how this system, which came to be known as the Copernican model, would function. Regarding God, Copernicus said, “To know the mighty works of God, to comprehend His wisdom and majesty and power; to appreciate, in degree, the wonderful workings of His laws, surely all this must be a pleasing and acceptable mode of worship to the Most High, to whom ignorance cannot be more grateful than knowledge.”

Consider Galileo Galilei, a great scientific thinker from the 1600s, referred to as the father of modern science. He invented the telescope, discovered moons orbiting Jupiter and the rings of Saturn. He proposed an ingenious thought experiment introducing the existence of inertia. He is perhaps best known for his advancemfent of the heliocentric solar system as opposed to a geocentric (earth-centered) universe.

The heliocentric controversy almost cost Galileo his life. It is a good example of how false religion can conflict with true science. The Catholic Church at the time (1616) sought to either imprison Galileo or burn him at the stake for his “heresy.” However, there is no claim in the Bible that the earth is the center of the universe. Speaking about this historical affair, Pope John Paul II said, “Paradoxically, Galileo, a sincere believer, showed himself to be more perceptive [about theology] than the theologians who opposed him.” It is not surprising that the “father of modern science” gave us the following quote: “The laws of nature are written by the hand of God in the language of mathematics.”

Johannes Kepler (1600s), a man of humble origins, was hired by the wealthy Dutchman, Tycho Brahe (he of the “golden nose,”) to study and make sense of charts that Brahe had made of the positions of celestial bodies over several years. From this Kepler gave us the Laws of Planetary Motion; laws which actually govern all orbital motion, and not only that of planets. Kepler said, “I had the intention of becoming a theologian . . . But now I see how God is, by my endeavors, also glorified in astronomy, for ‘the heavens declare the glory of God.’” So many of Kepler’s quotes reference God, but observe just this one more, ”Science is the process of thinking God’s thoughts after Him.”

It is really not proper to try to make a hierarchy of these scientists, to prioritize their work in terms of significance. They each studied what lay before them and caught their interest at the time they were present on this earth. However, Isaac Newton (1600s) stands out to me as a genius among geniuses. To his credit, Newton, himself, said, “If I have seen further than others it is by standing upon the shoulders of giants.” His contributions are many. Among them are the Laws of Motion and the Law of Universal Gravitation which are monumental. He also added much to our understanding of light and color. Amazingly, while studying planets and their motions he found the level of mathematics at the time to be unsatisfactory, so he did what any genius would do. He invented a new mathematics. We call it calculus. (Leibniz was also working on calculus separately.)

One of Newton’s quotes which is a favorite of mine is, “What we know is a drop. What we don’t know is an ocean.” Just like the other foundational scientists he was a firm believer in God. He said, “Atheism is so senseless. When I look at the solar system, I see the earth at the right distance from the sun to receive the proper amounts of heat and light. This did not happen by chance.” Also, Newton said, “ He who thinks half-heartedly will not believe in God; but he who really thinks has to believe in God.”

I could not leave Newton without offering this quote for your consideration, “ A Heavenly Master governs all the world as Sovereign of the universe. We are astonished at Him by reason of His perfection, we honor Him and fall down before Him because of His unlimited power. From blind physical necessity, which is always and everywhere the same, no variety adhering to time and place could evolve, and all variety of created objects which represent order and life in the universe could happen only by the willful reasoning of its original Creator, Whom I call the Lord God.”

Blaise Pascal (1600s) was a Frenchman who was influential in mathematics and physics and made his mark at an early age. He had invented mechanical calculators called Pascalines at the age of 19 (in 1642!) He wrote a mathematical treatise at age 12 that caught the attention of Rene Descartes . A unit of pressure, the Pascal, is named after him (you’ll see kP on the side of your tire, kiloPascals.) If you’ve taken algebra 2 you have heard of Pascal’s Triangle, and if you don’t remember that, it may explain your difficulty with that subject. Pascal said, “There is a God shaped vacuum in the heart of every man which cannot be filled by any created thing, but only by God, the Creator, made known through Jesus Christ.”

Pascal truly had some interesting quotes. Consider these, “There are only three types of people: those who have found God and serve Him; those who have not found God and seek Him; and those who live not seeking, or finding Him. The first are rational and happy; the second are unhappy and rational; and the third foolish and unhappy.” He offered a different perspective in this quote, “ There are only two kinds of men: the righteous who think they are sinners, and the sinners who think they are righteous.” Perhaps we can feel more comfortable with this giant of a scientist when we read this quote: “The more I see of Mankind, the more I prefer my dog.”

As Paul said in Hebrews 11, time would fail me to do justice to them all. Robert Boyle, father of modern chemistry, said, “In the Bible the ignorant may learn all requisite knowledge, and the most knowing may learn to discern their ignorance.” Louis Pasteur, the biologist who is famous for his classical experiment disproving spontaneous generation, said, “The more I study nature, the more I stand amazed at the work of the Creator. Science brings men nearer to God.” Christian Huygens was important in determining our understanding of what light is and how it operates. He said, “It’s evident that God had no design to make a particular enumeration in the Holy Scriptures, of all the Works of His Creation.” Albert Einstein, whom you know, said, “The more I study science, the more I believe in God.”

If I’ve offended you by leaving out your favorite scientist, I apologize. I just can’t include them all. This is not to claim that every scientist is a firm believer in God, the creator. And certainly I am not suggesting that you should turn to any of these men to determine your theology. I offer them only as proof that wise men of science, foundational people on whom our understanding of science is built, are by no means atheists, but actually far from it.

The point is that as Christians, unlearned in the intricacies of science, we need not be intimidated by scientists of our day who are atheists. Men far surpassing them in their contributions to our understanding of science were believers in an almighty God, creator, and in fact, in all cases presented, the God of the Bible. Additionally, they all believe in the Bible as the Holy Scriptures coming from God.

Instead of feeling inferior in the presence of an atheistic scientist you might let him/her know who is on your side. Maybe suggest that it’s time (according to Isaac Newton) for them to quit thinking half-heartedly. Maybe suggest (according to Albert Einstein) that they should study science some more, maybe a lot more. And while they’re at it, maybe they should start studying the Bible. At least that way they could learn what it is they don’t believe.