There Should Be no War between Science and Religion

There is a war going on, a war for the collective mind which is society. Some term it a war on science; others, a war on religion. But must there be a war between then?

Huffpost Politics offers today an interesting piece featuring a man both seriously scientific and seriously religious. You may find it here: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/01/25/francis-collins-davos_n_4635338.html?ir=Politics&ref=topbar The article is centered on one Dr. Francis Collins, a devout Christian and, believe it or not, geneticist. His science is so respected that no less than Pope Benedict XVI appointed him to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences.

Dr. Collins in Huffpost this morning says simply, "...you know, if you are a believer in God, it's hard to imagine that God would somehow put this incontrovertible evidence in front of us about our relationship to other living organisms and expect us to disbelieve it." We may argue about exactly how incontrovertible the evidence might be, as much of it appears mere conjecture. Still, if the Almighty deigned to create through an evolutionary process, who are we to argue? Are we special because of our physical appearances or due to our sentience?

We believe the latter. If we are made in the image of God, then surely that image is more like retrospection than rock. It is thought which makes us more real than any given liquid, solid, or gas. If God is Spirit, them form and matter are not, or are, at least, less so. We are more like God because we can think and consider and not because we might have the tensile strength to hold a suspension bridge up. True, knowing tensile strength is important, especially if we want the bridge to be safe for others like us. We should want that knowledge.

Science and religion do not contradict one another. Or, if we are truly interested in all which God commands, we must accept knowledge in all its forms, facts, and minutiae. This means that science must respect religion. It means as well that any serious religion must accept good science too.

An old military maxim states that you should not fight battles you cannot win. Religion should not fight science because it cannot win. Neither, then, shall science defeat religion. Why should it be expected to? It was created by the same God.