The
Spirituality of Science
“I
like the scientific spirit—the holding off, the being sure but not too sure,
the willingness to surrender ideas when the evidence is against them: this is
ultimately fine—it always keeps the way beyond open—always gives life, thought,
affection, the whole [person] a chance to try over again after a mistake—after a
wrong guess.”
Walt
Whitman (Walt Whitman’s Camden Conversations)
We have
been privy to a grand display of science these last three months. We’ve had
scientists speaking almost every day in front of TV cameras to tell us what
they know about the corona virus that causes Covid-19. They do not speak a
language that cannot be understood. They have given us clear answers and
correct guidance, and when they don’t know the answer to a question, they
simply say so. Even so, some people criticize them for speaking what they know
because they think it flies in the face of their religious beliefs.
One
thing that puzzles me about the rejection of science and scientific knowledge
is that it is somehow perceived as being in opposition to religion. We hear
such things as: “The big bang theory can’t be true, because God created the
world in seven days. I won’t catch this virus because God is protecting me from
it. The people who have died from it must have displeased God.” And so on and
so forth. I don’t understand how that happens. Did God not also give us science?
Aren’t many scientists also people of faith?
Science
and religion are not in opposition; they are both being misunderstood. Our
faith stories are important because they underpin all of our better instincts—the
love of family and country, the kindness to strangers, the moral obligation we
have to care for others, especially those who cannot care for themselves.
Religion covers the territory of the soul. Our faith informs our questions as
to the “why” of things. Science gives us answers as to the “how.”
We need
both. To have only one without the other is to be half a human being. As we
have progressed through time, as we have studied and learned and probed and analyzed
the world, we have learned much about its workings. God gave us those
curious minds and created our brains so that we can understand what we find.
We have cured diseases and discovered a million facts about the universe
through the vehicle of science. But we stand in awe of the magnificence of that
creation because we are people of faith. We are complicated and amazing
creatures and science has shown what makes us so. But it is our spirituality
that has made us grateful, reverent, and sometimes speechless in the face of
it.
We don’t
have to embrace ignorance to glorify our creator. Faith opens our hearts and minds
and science fills in the blanks. Both are divine gifts.
In
the Spirit,
Jane
No comments:
Post a Comment