DID THE CHRISTIAN FAITH PROVIDE THE INTELLECTUAL IMPETUS TO DO SCIENCE?

·       ISAAC NEWTON: He wrote, “The most beautiful system of the sun, planets, and comets could only proceed from the counsel and dominion of an intelligent and powerful Being.”

Newton believed that the evidence of design was so extensive, only the Designer could possibly account for it.

·       ROBERT BOYLE (Died 1691): He discovered the gas law (PV = nRT) and wrote, “Some Motives & Incentives to the Love of God” and “The Wisdom of God Manifested in the Works of Creation.”

Boyle made it clear, as did also the vast majority of the early Western scientists, that the universe pointed unfailingly to its Creator, and this fact motivated them to further explore God through His workmanship.

·       MICHAEL FARADAY (Died 1867): “He discovered benzene and electromagnetic radiation, invented the generator and was the main architect of the classical field theory.” He wrote, “The book of nature which we have to read is written by the finger of God.” (Thomas Buchanan, “The Soul of Science, Salvo Magazine, Fall 2019, 26-27)

They believed that what they were investigating could only be explained by God rather than a blind purposeless naturalistic process. This understanding had given them an extra dimension to their exploration of the creation.

·       WILLIAM LORD KELVIN: He wrote, “As the depth of our insight into the wonderful works of God increases, the stronger are out feelings of awe and veneration in contemplating them and in endeavoring to approach their author,” “Do not be afraid to be free thinkers. If you think strongly enough, you will be forced by science to believe in God.”

It was this sense of “awe and veneration” that had brought about the rebirth of science, rather than an atheistic “enlightenment.”

·       MAX PLANCK (an originator of quantum theory): He stated, “Religion and science demand for their foundation faith in God…For believers, God is in the beginning, and for physicists He is at the end of all considerations…To the former He is the foundation, to the latter, the crown of the edifice of every generalized world view.”

Consequently, they understood that the investigations into the creation were a holy, God-honoring task, pursued to discover the Mind of God. But why would “science demand for their foundation faith in God?” Especially now, it seems that many scientists who reject the existence of God are able to do science. However, the pursuit of scientific knowledge requires basic underlying Christian presuppositions like:

·       The material world exists,

·       Its immutable laws are elegant and knowable,

·       The conclusions of science will still pertain tomorrow even though we live in a world of molecules-in-motion,

·       We can discover truth through the labor of our minds,

·       It is a legitimate blessing to know these truths.

While these presuppositions might appear to be self-evidence, they aren’t. Many cultures have doubted the existence of a knowable physical world, believing instead that it is illusory. Others had believed that science represented an illegitimate penetration into forbidden knowledge. Others have placed politics over free thought and the pursuit of truth. Today, it seems that the scientific community has a growing predilection for the latter.