SCIENCE AND RELIGION: A COMMON GOAL?
A discussion paper for the Jornada de Reflexión Cristiana, May 1997
Mart de Groot
ABSTRACT: This article discusses the proper goal of natural science: to study nature with the aim of finding out its workings, origins and future, to discover that its origin requires a divine act of creation, and, most important, to learn about the character of the Creator as a preparation for how to develop a living relationship with Him. Thus, it is seen that true science and theology are complementary human activities which both need divine inspiration to be successful.
INTRODUCTION
We live in an apocalyptic age. As we approach the year 2000, the number of doomsday prophets who tell us to get ready for the great final disaster, the consummation of all things, is increasing. And so is the volume of the noise they make. Other prophets there are, though. Prophets who paint us a picture of increasing human wisdom, scientific knowledge and wonderful technologies that will be ours in the new century and millennium. Prophets who talk about raising ourselves to the level of the gods when we will have learned the rules of the game in the new age that is upon us.
At a time when millennia-old religions are often seen as old-fashioned and hopelessly unrealistic, the question is often asked, "What role is there for Christianity?" "Can Christianity bring us safely into and through the next millennium?" In this essay I intend to discuss the goals of science and of religion, and to suggest how a new relation between the two can both fulfill their original purposes and bring real wealth to mankind.
I will talk about science from the point of view of an astronomer with a lively interest in matters cosmological, i.e. in questions pertaining to the origin, present and future of the Universe we live in. When talking about religion I will speak as a Seventh-day Adventist Christian with an interest in prophecy, i.e. in matters concerning the past, present and future of mankind, both collectively and individually.
THE AIMS OF CHRISTIANITY
Religion, both as a "particular system of faith and worship" and as the "human recognition of a personal God entitled to obedience and worship" is as old as humanity. The Bible presents a clear picture of God who creates the first human beings (Gen.1:26,27; 2:18, 21-23), who instructs them in the way of living (e.g. Ex.20:1-17; Mic.6:8; Mat.22:36-40), who saves them out of their human predicament of inability to attain to His high standards (Ez.36:26,27; Rom.7:24,25a; Eph.5:25-27) and who promises to give them a future of eternal happiness and fulfillment (John14:1-3; Rev.21,22). The Bible, written by devout men but whose author is God Himself (2 Pt1:21), was given so that we might know God and enter into that special relationship with Him that allows full development of our intended potential. This "knowing God" seems to me the principal purpose of the written Word, a purpose that includes all other goals of Christianity (John 17:3).
The theme of "knowing God" is taken up by John again in his first general epistle (1John 2:13,14) where it is closely linked with two other aspects of man's relationship with God. God is presented as He "who is from the beginning", and John's addressees "have overcome the wicked one" because the word of God has abided in them. In Chapter 5 of the same epistle John points to overcoming the world (1John 5:4,5), equivalent to overcoming the wicked one (1John 5:19), and mentions faith in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, as an indispensable ingredient for such a victory. While it must be recognised that "our faith", together with all other things we have or can have, is a gift from God (Rom.12:3), "our faith" can only be of real value when we exercise it (James 2:17). Thus it is that the Bible calls us to have faith, the kind of faith without which it is impossible to please God (Heb. 11:6), the faith that accepts that God "is from the beginning" and the supreme candidate for the title `Creator of the Universe'.
Therefore, at the outset of this essay I call upon you to have faith in God as the one and only Creator (Isa.45:12,18) and, therefore, the only possible Redeemer (Acts 4:12). Now, the Bible makes it very clear that our God has a `plan of salvation', a plan whereby the original purpose of His creation, though destroyed by our desobedience, may be restored in such a way that we can all have a part in it. In order that we should not miss out on this (literal) `chance of a lifetime', God has done everything possible to make known to us who He is, what His plan for us is, and how we can participate in it. A short summary of this divine self-revelation is in His Word, including Jesus Christ, the Word Incarnate, and in His works, i.e. His creative acts whether physical, mental or spiritual. In what follows I will concentrate on how He makes Himself known to us through His physical creation, i.e. the natural world, especially that studied by astronomers, the Universe. But first, we must look at the aims of science and see whether there are any possible relations with Christianity that we can explore.
THE AIMS OF SCIENCE
In order to simplify the discussion, in dealing with the aims of science I will limit myself to the pure sciences and, among these, more in particular to astronomy as one of the best examples of a pure science. I will not deal with the applied sciences since, quite clearly, their aim should be the application to the human situation of the knowledge obtained through the pure sciences with the purpose to improve the quality of our existence - whatever one understands when talking about the improvement of the quality of our existence.
Many books about astronomy begin with a statement to the effect that man has been looking at the sky from the dawn of his existence, and has always been wanting to find out more about the stars, to discover the how and why of their existence, and whether and how their existence relates to his own. This, then, is the first aim of science: to satisfy our curiosity. However, if it were just for curiosity's sake, most of the more expensive scientific disciplines (among which astronomy certainly belongs) would have been abandoned in the face of other, more pressing, physical human needs.
Man's basic physical needs of food and shelter must be satisfied to an acceptable level before he can think of spending of his meagre resources on satisfying his curiosity. This is clearly seen when one looks at a list of nations and identifies those that do not have a programme of astronomical research. Apart from a few very small ones, all those countries are among the poorer developing nations. However, in the richer countries, the main reason for engaging in pure scientific research is not the satisfaction of human curiosity. The desire to know Nature to the extent that it can be subdued for our benefit, is a much stronger argument for supporting scientific research. Man is under the illusion that the dominion of Nature will bring great reward of prosperity and wealth. Of course, this is not a new idea. When God commanded the first humans to "have dominion over" His creation, it was with the clear idea that physical and spiritual benefit would accrue from this activity: "to you it shall be for meat" (Gen.1:29) and "blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing (Lk.12:42).
While the idea of prosperity and wealth as a benefit of our scientific endeavour is not new, we do, of course, realize that today, at the end of the twentieth century, prosperity and wealth are interpreted in almost purely material terms. The spiritual dimension that was included in God's original contract with man has largely been pushed out of the way. I believe science has much to gain from including again these original values in its programme.
GOD'S TWO BOOKS
Some 3000 years ago David, probably at a time when he was still looking after his father's sheep and spent many a night in the great outdoors admiring the beauty of the night sky and meditating on their Maker, wrote these words in Psalm 19: "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth his handywork" (vs.1). Trying to understand the meaning of the word "glory" in this context, I have found it useful to remind myself of what Ellen White wrote in Gospel Workers as a comment on Moses' request that God show him His glory (Ex.33:18). On p. 417 she writes, "What is this glory? - The character of God. This is what He proclaimed to Moses." This is also clear from God's fulfillment of Moses' request in Ex.34:5-7 - God reveals His character to Moses in unmistakable terms.
Thus, a free translation of Ps.19:1 could be "God shows His character in His created works, especially those outside the Earth". However, while this gives us a clear indication of where to look when we want to know more about God, there is also a potential problem. It may have been relatively easy for Adam and Eve to discern God when walking through the Garden of Eden, but it must have been much more difficult already for their children who grew up together with "thorns and thistles" (Gen.3:18). We must conclude that, as far as God's handywork on Earth is concerned, it has been severely marred by the destroying effects of sin. This conclusion immediately raises the question, To what extent are God's created works in the Universe still a reflection of His character? Has our space environment also become marred by sin?
Before 1959, i.e. before man was capable of launching spacecraft, there was a wide-spread belief among Christians that man would never be able to travel into space and contaminate his wider environment with sin. The words of Ps.115:16 were taken quite literally to mean just that. Today, after having landed vehicles and instruments on various bodies in the Solar System, and with several spacecraft that have left the Solar System behind altogether on their journey into deep space, we know better. Thus, one could legitimately ask, Is there any place in God's creation where sin has not entered or its influence is not felt? It is common knowledge that every spacecraft that is launched does so after having gone through a most rigorous cleansing and decontamination exercise aimed at preventing the spread of any organic material. Therefore, the possibility of contaminating our extraterrestrial environment with (presumably sin-tainted) organic material is infinitesimally small. Of course, there are also human artefacts, spacecraft and instruments, which were left behind in divers places. Insofar as these are made of materials that can be found everywhere in the Universe, it would be difficult to argue that these are foreign to any celestial bodies and could be interpreted as being contaminants significantly degrading the purity of God's handywork. We come, then, to the conclusion that space, especially outside the Solar System, has not been tainted with sin or its results, and that there we have many virtually 100 % pure examples of God's created works.
This conclusion is confirmed by Ellen White. First she confirms that sin has distorted our world, but that Nature still speaks of the Creator: "The earth, marred and defiled by sin, reflects but dimly the Creator's glory. It is true that His object lessons are not obliterated. Upon every page of the great volume of His created works may still be traced His handwriting. Nature still speaks of her Creator. Yet these revelations are partial and imperfect." (Ed. 17) Then she reminds us of the almost completely unspoiled Universe: "The heavens may be to them [the youth] a study book, from which they may learn lessons of intense interest. The moon and the stars may be their companions, speaking to them in the most eloquent language of the love of God." (The Youth's Instructor, Oct. 25, 1900) Thus, I come to the conclusion that there are at least two sources of information when we desire to know more about God. There is His Word, written as well as Incarnate, and there is, what is sometimes called, `The book of Nature'.
In the minds of many people the "two books of God" are often seen as addressing different questions. One book is telling us about Nature while the other book tells us about Nature's Maker. However, it is possible to have a somewhat different concept. While the two books are different, they both are examples of how God communicates with man. Through the one He speaks to us about His works through the general revelation of Nature, in the other book He speaks to us about Himself through special revelation. It can be useful to distinguish between God's two books on the basis of the questions each of them answers: questions that ask how nature works - so-called how-questions; and questions that ask why nature is as it is - so-called why-questions. Answers to how-questions can, in principle, be answered by reading the Book of Nature, by observing the natural world, and through the methods of natural science constructing models from which answers can be deduced. This Book of Nature is open to all who care to read it; it is a general revelation.
Answers to why-questions fall outside the scope of natural science. They presuppose the existence of a higher power that is not the subject of the pure sciences. Therefore, answers to such questions are to be obtained through communication with that higher power. Because reading the Bible means exposing oneself to God's revelation of Himself in His Word, this process is not called general but `special revelation'. In fact, Jesus Christ is also a special revelation of the Father and, therefore, the observation and study of His life and teachings can be classified as special revelation.
Since both the Book of Nature and the Bible have the same author who is "abundant in ... truth" (Ex.34:6) and who does not, yea cannot, lie (Num.23:19; Tit.1:2), the answers obtained from the Bible cannot be in contradiction to those obtained from Nature in those areas where both books have something to communicate. This does not mean that students of Nature and students of the Bible always agree on how the information should be interpreted. The Bible itself makes it clear that it can only be understood by those who have spiritual discernment, i.e. who, in their studies, take account of God's Spirit (1Cor.2:6-16). This truth had already been proclaimed in Old Testament times - "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding" (Prov.10:9) - and seems to extend the condition of spirituality beyond biblical studies to the investigation of Nature. Thus, some initial knowledge of God, or at least a willingness to recognize His existence and wisdom, are necessary condition for arriving at a deeper understanding of the problems posed by Nature and by theology.
In our striving to know God through the study of His two books we must be aware of the fact that one cannot obtain satisfactory answers by studying the one at the neglect of the other. The study of Nature and the study of the Word must go hand-in-hand. Albert Einstein understood this complementarity of biblical theology and natural science when he said, "Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind . The following table attempts to illustrate this two-book concept.
A COMMON GOAL FOR CHRISTIANITY AND SCIENCE
I have tried to argue that natural science and biblical theology are two ways God has chosen to communicate "important" information to us; important in the sense of our well-being. We are not talking about a short-term feeling of comfort, but about a real, everlasting happiness and prosperity. Here we find answers in our quest for that real, long-lasting happiness and prosperity, both materially and spiritually. This happiness and prosperity require answers to our deepest questions, those that ask about origin, purpose, future.
Let us now turn our attention to Isa.40:26: "Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who hath created these things, that bringeth out their host by number: he calleth them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one faileth." Here we have God's invitation to study His handywork in planets, stars and galaxies. The first aim of such a study seems to "behold who hath created these things", i.e. to obtain a personal knowledge of God. But there is more. We are also challenged to discover that this Creator is great in power, that He is eternal even when all "they shall perish" (Ps.102:25-27), that He is also our Maker and Shepherd (Ps.95:6,7; 100:3).
Thus, Isa.40:26 is more than just an invitation to study God's universal handywork. It also tells us why God created and invites us to study His great Universe. Astronomy is all about the study of that Universe. This study helps us to understand Nature. This in turn helps us to be good stewards of the created world that has been entrusted to us (Gen.1:28). While the mandate of Gen.1:28 seems to apply strictly to the Earth, one cannot get away from the impression that a study of things extraterrestrial is a legitimate endeavour, especially when the thus acquired knowledge will help us to be better stewards of things terrestrial. When this is accepted as a true statement it begs the question whether this is the only reason for the existence of astronomy as a scientific discipline and of astronomers, or whether science could have other, independent, reasons for its existence.
I believe that the scientific study of the physical Universe and its more spiritual study with the purpose to know its Maker and His plans for us should go hand in hand. Therefore, I regret the separation between these two disciplines that has occurred over time, and especially in the last two centuries. Here, it is of interest to note a recent trend in cosmology. Some 70 years ago cosmology embarked on a course that has lead to a seemingly satisfactory physical explanation of the origin of the Universe. Although there are many details yet to be more completely understood, the Big Bang model of the origin of the Universe has been accepted by the large majority of scientists active in the field as a suitable framework within which further progress can be made. The collaboration between astrophysics, particle and theoretical physics has led to great insight into the very first moments of the Universe's existence. However, it has also led to a recognition that there is a barrier in time beyond which even our best theories cannot reach. The first seconds of the Universe remain shrouded in mystery. At the same time cosmologists have come to the recognition that many aspects of the Universe require a very fine tuning of initial conditions and values of physical constants. This time-barrier and the fine tuning have led to a renewed interest in the old questions about design in the Universe, the possible Designer, and what happened in that very first fraction of a second or even before.
Our scientific investigations have brought us many answers about how Nature works. In addition, we have extrapolated these answers to build a picture of Nature's origin and future. But here we have encountered some difficulties. The origin of many things lies so far back in time that we have either lost the information, or simply were just not there at the time. As for the future, there is a Chinese proverb that describes our dilemma: `To prophesy is extremely difficult, especially with respect to the future'. Remember that to prophesy includes the notion of teaching and interpretation. Thus, there remain many questions. Many of these concern our deepest emotions about life, its origin, purpose and future. And especially in these areas, science has often found it very difficult to come up with satisfactory answers. It is no wonder, then, that the name of God has been mentioned by some scientists as the One who could provide real answer to these questions . Others, however, have so far refused to admit any role for God hoping that the continuing progress of science itself would some day answer our deepest questions. Still others have simply refused to come to grips with these questions claiming that they fall outside the scope of the natural sciences and are better left to philsophers and theologians. Let us look at these three attitudes in turn.
God as the answer to our deepest questions.
While to many Christians this may seem an attractive option, we must realise
that it is fraught with danger. Imagine a 16th century person unable to
understand why the planets in the Solar System all revolve aroung the Sun. He
can observe planetary orbits but does not know of any reason why they should
behave like this. Thus he invokes God who by His hand keeps the planets in
their
regular orbits. One century later Isaac Newton comes along and explains this
"mystery" through the law of gravitation. God's involvement is now no longer
required and He is pushed into the wings. The advance of science during the
last few centuries has offered numerous occasions for earlier claims of God's
involvement to be revoked and for God to be pushed back further and
further. This "God of the gaps" policy brings the danger of pushing God off the
stage completely. Those who believe in God, and that He plays an active role in
our Universe, do not hold this belief because of unexplained phenomena in the
natural world. They believe in Him because they have a personal relationship
with Him, a relationship that goes way beyond questions about the physical
Universe, interesting as these latter may be.
Science as the answer to our deepest questions
The advance of science has not only led to a revoking of earlier claims of
God's
involvement in the affairs of the Universe, it has also brought us great
promises of increased knowledge, understanding, health, welfare, and many other
benefits. Many of our recent projects for investigating the world in which we
live - i.e. the Earth and the rest of the Universe - are very costly both in
terms of manpower and materials. In their quest for funding these projects,
scientists often
point to the great benefits for mankind if a certain investigation can be
undertaken and provide more answers to our difficult questions. Often, too, the
results have vindicated those who made such claims. As a result the belief has
grown that, given enough time, science shall be able to answer all our
questions. This attitude ignores the existence of the God of the Bible. This
God
has given us His written word, the Bible, in which He makes a number of very
interesting claims about Himself. If this God really exists, and the Bible is
really one of His revelations to us, then we shall have to live with a number
of
statements that should make us doubt very seriously whether the claim of
science as having the last word can really be trusted. I refer to such texts
as
No human activity can successfully embark on a study of nature without taking into account the existence and very real presence of the One who created nature in the first place. While we may be able to reconstruct a car and find out how it works without using the manual, this will not necessarily tell us the reason its constructor had for putting in those features whose presence puzzles us. Modern cosmolgy has moved steadily in the direction of attempting to answer our deeper questions. In the face of finding some of these too hard to answer through the application of the purely scientific method, it can neither pretend that a metaphysical extension of its realm will take care of this, nor can it wash its hands and pass the buck to philosophy and theology. Even in its simpler aspects the world still bears the undeniable stamp of its Maker: "science without religion is lame" and will not get very far in explaining every aspect of the world and of life in it.
Philosophy and theology should answer our deepest questions
When we admit that there are questions outside the realm of science, questions
that
must be asked and, if possible, answered, we are on the right course. In the
face
of the omniscient God of the Bible nobody need be ashamed of not knowing all
the
answers. But if this referral means that science can successfully be done
without
addressing a certain type of questions, then the word of warning sounded at the
end of the previous section must be heeded. At the same time we must realize
that some of our deepest questions refer to things and circumstances in the
physical world. Their study does belong to the realm of science. We do not want
to ignore the bona fide findings of science and, with the Bible in our hand,
declare that the Earth is at the centre of the Universe because here is where
we
live, here is where Jesus came, here is where we will spend eternity. The
mistakes of the Middle Ages, when the church proclaimed such truths, must not
be
made again. There is yet another reason why theology, even Christianity, can
not
answer all our questions; as our interpretation of natural phenomena is
hampered
by the barriers of space, time and understanding, so our interpretation of the
Word is hampered in very similar ways. The language, culture, beliefs, etc. of
ages past as well as the mind of the author, God Himself, need to be understood
before we can arrive at a faultless interpretation of His writings. This is
where science , in the broader sense, can come to the aid of theology. We must
not forget that "religion without science is blind".
Conclusions
I have referred to man's curiosity and we have found that it is not confined to the physical aspects of Nature and his own existence. It has also led him to ask other, deeper questions. Thus, man's curiosity has led to the development of two very different areas of study: astronomy and astrology. I write "very different" because, while in antiquity the two were very narrowly related, in modern times there is a wide gap between them. Finding answers to the "how questions" - How does the Sun give its light? How do stars manage their energy budget? How do galaxies form? How did the Universe come into being? - has become the subject of astronomy. The questions of the possible relation of the stars to mankind's existence, especially at the very personal level, have become the concern of astrology. Let us not forget, however, that "from the beginning it was not so". God's purpose with the Universe was not only to provide us with one of the most interesting fields of study that one can think of, it was also meant to lead its students to Him as the Creator and, thereby, to a deeper insight into their existence - past, present and future - as wholly dependent on this Creator who is also the Maker of mankind. It must be considered one of Satan's most successful perversions that he has managed to isolate completely the study of the relationships between the stars and man from the discovery of their Maker and His saving relationship with man.
Thus, I return to Einstein's statement quoted above. Philosophy divested from Christianity is unable to answer our difficult questions because it ignores the One who has all the answers. Theology of and by itself cannot answer these questions either because it will find itself blind if it tries to arrive at valid conclusions about Nature through a study of special revelation alone. Nor can science answer our deepest questions while it ignores the legitimate role of God the Creator. Only a collaboration of all these disciplines on the foundations of the desire to know the Creator, of a recognition of His omnipotence and omniscience, and of respect and love for Him, will lead us to fulfill God's original purpose when He invited us to look up and behold Him in His power to create and to save.
Considering the above, I want to go one step beyond the recognition that the Universe can tell us a lot about its Maker. The Universe was made especially for the purpose of giving intelligent created beings, both terrestrial and extraterrestrial, a first-class opportunity to make the acquaintance of its and their Creator. Let us be very clear about this. This is not only an opportunity, it is also a challenge. It is not only for astronomers; it is for all those engaged in the natural sciences. Here then, we find our destiny as scientists of whatever discipline we belong to. Science is one of God's ordained means whereby we are offered the privilege to approach Him whom to know is eternal life (John 17:3). At the same time, we become aware of the challenge God lays at the feet of every scientist: to study his chosen discipline with the ultimate goal to learn more about the character of the Creator and to bring glory to His Holy Name. A prayerful study of chapter 6 of Paul's epistle to Timothy - especially verses 5-7, 13-16, and 20,21 - will help us to have a christian, i.e. Christlike, concept of what real science is all about, and how it relates to the great questions about God, ourselves, salvation and eternity.
REFERENCES
1. The Concise Oxford Dictionary, New Edition, 1982, Clarendon press, Oxford.
2. Frank, P. 1947. Einstein: his life and times, Alfred A. Knopf, New
York.
3. see, e.g., Jastrow, R. 1978, God and the Astronomers, W.W. Norton &
Co., New York and London.