The Great Debate

The conflict between faith and science is long-running and well documented. Newton's battle with the church rocked the theological world. Darwin's theory of relativity probably sparked the most heated and staunchest debates of all time. Now, while the evolution vs. intelligent design will likely go until the end of time, its collateral damage often goes unnoticed.

I've noticed that the intensity of the debate has often caused people involved to take a very all-or-nothing approach to the big picture debate of religion vs. science. However, if a debate such as that between evolution and intelligent design is simply pushed to the side for a bit, it can be said that religion and science have much more in common than most people realize and that the two share a very unique relationship. I'll mostly be speaking with regards to the Christian faith, as that is the religion I have the most knowledge and experience with, but I am sure that the viewpoints I introduce are shared with many religions.

From the point of view of religion, if we put the debate on creation to the side and focus on how science plays into the grander scheme of things, a very interesting hypothesis arises. Assuming that God created the world, it means that he has full control over all aspects of reality. Now, since God is the "Heavenly Father" and the creator of mankind, he is essentially a parent. After eating from the tree of knowledge and being banished from Eden, mankind had to fend for itself. As such, they faced challenges in the world from which they learned new skills to survive. God wanted, as any good parent would, for his children to evolve and develop and become greater than what they already were. Thus, man discovered chemistry, physics, biology, and other sciences in order to explore the laws of the world that God created. Of course, with this knowledge there is a moral and ethical responsibility, and there are those who push things too far in order to be more like God. In the end though, science can be interpreted simply as the exploration of the world that God created and its laws.

The point of view of science is a bit more difficult. Science involves logic, and the value of proof and evidence. Anything that cannot be explained is shelved until a logical explanation can be found. However, oftentimes this leads to stubbornness and a refusal to keep an open mind to new ideas. There is much in this world that goes unexplained – miraculous recoveries from injury and illness, plants that cure diseases and conditions with no explanation, and people performing actions that are clearly beyond their capacity. Is it really so difficult to believe that a greater power can be responsible? Sir Arthur Conan Doyle once wrote that once all logical possibilities have been exhausted, whatever remains, no matter how incredible, must be the truth. There are many wonders in this world that simply cannot be explained with science. If they cannot be explained with science and logic, ironically, the only logical explanation is that there is a supernatural reason behind them.

Someone once told me: "Faith is the belief in things that cannot be proven. Science is the belief that things can be proven." While I've been raised and taught through science, I've done my best to keep an open mind towards religion, mysticism, and the supernatural. While the ultimate truth of existence may never be known, what matters is one's perception. As long as what you believe allows you to act morally and become a good person, then there shouldn't be any conflicts either way. Do not allow your beliefs to close your mind to the wondrous world around you. Instead, use them to drive you to explore all that the world has to offer.