SCIENCE AND RELIGION AND CONTEMPT

I was recently listening to older podcast of one of my favorite radio programs; Talk of the Nation-Science Friday on National Public Radio. The topic was the teaching of evolution in public schools. There were three guests, one from the scientific community, one from the religious community, and one who was a writer. What really struck me was the level of contempt that the scientist and the religious leader had for each other. I could see actual “hate rays” coming out of my computer.

The religious leader asked the scientist why he dismissed religion so completely and the scientist replied that science determines what is fact by what it can quantify. He went on to say that if you are attempting to determine if religion is harmful or helpful that you can easily quantify the negative impact of religion. However, it is almost impossible to quantify the positive impact of religion. You can note that more people have been killed in the name of religion throughout history than for any other reason. You can also note that while religion attempts to be “inclusive” it is actually the most divisive element on the planet. Since the positive aspects of religion are more often measured by the personal impact that religion has had on the life of an individual, it is virtually impossible to quantify.

As Christians, we might find this offensive but we can’t deny its truth. We don’t want to admit that our religious heritage is sometimes tainted by evil but even the most cursory study of history demonstrates that fact time and time again. Obviously, it’s much more difficult to point to lives being changed for the better simply because faith is much more personal and intangible.

So the scientist obviously has a point, but it’s also apparent that his hot button was pushed and that his contempt of religion really isn’t useful to the discussion. Everyone has hot buttons. One of mine is when someone tells me that “God told them something”, or that they got a “Word from God.” The reason this is such a hot button for me is that when I was in the ministry and someone came into my office, sat down, and began a sentence with “God told me,” 90% of the time it meant they were getting ready to bend me over and didn’t have the guts to take responsibility for their own actions. So I have to admit, that when that hot button is pushed I’m as guilty of religious contempt as the scientist was.

Was the religious leader any better? No, he demonstrated just as much contempt for the scientist’s views, and therefore was just as guilty. Both displayed a level of arrogance that one typically only finds in Donald Trump. The position that intrigued me, however, was that of the writer’s. He used the following analogy as it related to the discussion of evolution. He said “Imagine that you are boiling a pot of water on the stove. You can explain why the water is boiling in a couple of ways. You can note that the molecules in the water are excited and are bumping against each other. This would be the scientific explanation. You could also state that the reason the water is boiling is because you wanted to make a cup of tea.”

In his analogy the concepts of science and the concept of a “larger influence” exist side by side in complete harmony, and my personal belief is that is where the truth lies.

The religious community does not benefit itself by demonstrating contempt for science, and the scientific community does not benefit itself by demonstrating contempt for religion. We all need to put our hot buttons aside and keep and open mind.

In fact I’ll offer this link to guy named Louis Giglio who does a very enjoyable job of using science to speak to creation issues (if you jump forward to the 2:00 mark, he begins his science discussion.)

LOUIS GIGLIO