Just as the Christian church patronized the arts, so it vigorously supported scientific research. The caricature of an obscurantist, ignorance-promoting church simply doesn’t correspond to historical truth.
Some of history’s greatest scientists ”” Newton, Pasteur, Galilei, Lavoisier, Kepler, Copernicus, Faraday, Maxwell, Bernard and Heisenberg ”” were all Christians, and the list doesn’t stop there. Some important scientists, such as astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus, were actually Catholic priests!
Christianity is not against science, but against an absolutist reading of science. The empirical sciences cannot do everything, and hold no monopoly on knowledge and truth. Many important questions ”” the most important, really ”” fall outside the purview of science.
What is the meaning of life? How should people treat one another? What happens to us when we die?
No matter how long a white-coated scientist toils and sweats in his laboratory, his instruments will never reveal the answers to these questions. Science is the wrong tool for the job.
This short article may be helpful for beginners in exploring the relationship of Christianity to science, but it somehow strikes me as somewhat shallow and trite. Still, in light of the immense popularity of best-selling books by ardent atheists like Christopher Hitchens and Richard Dawkins (both cited), there is a need for short, simple, clear articles like this that can reach the masses and correct the common misconception that religion and science are perpetually at odds with each other. I’m glad the author cites sociologist Rodney Stark at one point. Stark has done some very important and creative work in calling attention to the positive benefits and impact that Christianity has made on the world, including fostering the rise of science.
If this piece evades a lot of the hard questions (e.g., what about opposition to even moderate forms of evolution? or resistance to genetic engineering? etc.), well, it’s clear that dealing with such tough, complex issues is not a reasonable expectation in an introductory article such as this.
David Handy+