Science and faith

Sometimes people are surprised to learn that their Church of England priest is also a scientist, as though the two are incompatible. I think there is a widespread misunderstanding of what science is.

The scientific mind and method have led to some awe-inspiring discoveries that have truly benefitted humankind. If I were a time traveller who could only take one thing back with me, I’m fairly confident there would be a large supply of penicillin packed into my time travelling luggage. Personally, I love Analytical Chemistry: I started my working life in a laboratory checking medicine to ensure it was good for human use. I had a sense of integrity and purpose to my life; I was playing my part to help people feel better, and to make sure that no bad medicine made it into people’s homes. I made no huge ground breaking discoveries, I wasn’t a genius, and I wasn’t even very good at a lot of the things people expect Chemists to be good at. I was no good at pub quiz questions about the periodic table… but I was a good scientist because I had the care and attention to detail you need in Quality Assurance.

Science is all about looking at the world and asking questions. Once upon a time, scientists were known as natural philosophers. A scientist I admire, Tom McLeish, is a professor of physics. He wrote in his book ‘Faith and Wisdom in Science’ that natural philosophy is the “love of wisdom of natural things”. The best scientists tend to love wisdom, and looking closely at this universe to understand it. Sure, there are some scientists who look at the world as something to be used for profit, but that isn’t all scientists.

People of faith tend towards a belief that there is a God who made the universe. Jews, Muslims and Christians all believe that there is a creator God who made everything. Judeo-Christian scripture opens with, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…” The belief that there is a God who made everything tends to lead people of faith to have a high regard for God’s good creation. Sure, there are some religious people who see creation as something to be dominated, but that isn’t all religious people.

My faith and my scientific understanding have to live in harmony within me, otherwise I wouldn’t have integrity. If I believe in evolution during the week, and seven day creationism on Sunday then I deceive myself and the truth is not in me. God didn’t create me with a brain and then ask me to leave it at the door when I come to church… rather God invites me to love him with all of who I am, including my brain. Like me, there are plenty of religious people and scientists who are simply asking questions, and seeking to understand the world in which we live.

Another scientist I deeply admire is Alister McGrath. He has a significant and influential background in chemistry and molecular biophysics; he is also a theologian, someone who helps people get to know God. He wrote about an idea that has really helped me to understand the relationship between science and faith in a simple way. He used an analogy about maps.

In my hallway there is an Ordinance Survey map on the wall. It shows the contours of the Benefice of Marsden and Slaithwaite, I love that I can trace the gullies and shoulders of our moorland hillsides. I can also see something of the old trading routes and how they influenced the homes and businesses of the area. What the OS map doesn’t tell me, is anything about the county I’m in. I would need a geo-political map to understand when I’ve crossed from West Yorkshire into Manchester.

In the same way that the concept of overlaying different maps helps me to understand the world I live in; science and faith are also two different ways of looking at the universe – both help me understand God’s good creation and humanity’s place within it.