Christianity And Science

 Science has proven man and apes had a common ancestor, who in turn evolved from lower creatures. The earth and the universe itself came into being with the big bang some billion years ago. This is scientifically proven and science is an objective matter. Therefore the Bible is wrong stating that the first man and woman were created right away and that the earth is only a few thousand years old. Belief systems are subjective by nature and religion is pure superstition, a delusive confort for the narrow minded. This is what is nowadays commonly believed.

To get a better understanding of the issue it is helpful to distinguish between experimental and historical science. The former diligently tries to to find out the basic laws by which our universe is governed, using both inductive and deductive reasoning. Based on these physical laws it is possible to predict, for example, how far a ball of certain weight will go when pushed from a particular angle with certain force etc. In these kind of science the equations worked out are confirmed by repeatable experiments. In case of the latter, historical sciences, like archeology or paleontology, the issue is quite different. Although the facts on the ground might be studied with scientific diligence, the outcome remains basically a theory that cannot be proven experimentally. For example, the fossils found might allow a scientist to put together a reasonably plausible skeleton of T. Rex, but there is no way of knowing his ultimate appearance and determine his age, without presupposing certain fundamentals that remain questionable.

As far as concerns the origin of man and the universe, the scientific enquiry belongs to the historical category. Whether you hold to evolution or are a creationist, neither case can be scientifically proven, in the strict and experimental sense (although one theory might better fill certain factual data in certain cases than the other, and viceversa).

Another debatted issue is the occurrence of miracles. A scientist may accurately observe the universe as it works today and assume that these are the only laws according to which the earth has ever functioned. This purely rational materialistic view does, of course, not allow for supernatural miracles to have occurred in the past. But in fact there is no scientific way of knowing it. It is noteworthy to consider that in this basic assumption the rationalist is no way more neutral than a religious person that allows for supernatural revelations and interventions as part of reality. One’s viewpoint simply depends on the one or other basic assumption.

The christian worlview and science are by means opposing each other. On the contrary, the christian belief in a Creator and an ordered universe, makes scientific investigations possible. It is indeed no coincidence that the great scientific advances were made in western civilization with its linear view of history.and not in eastern cultures where a cyclical view of history prevails. So many of the great scientists of the past were indeed believers in the God of the Bible, or were at least influenced by the christian worldview.

Science and Christianity are not supposed to be opposing matters. Next time you’re told otherwise make sure you get the basics straight.