“The Spirit comes to enlighten the mind first of the one who receives him, and then, through him, the minds of others as well. As light strikes the eyes of a man who comes out of darkness into the sunshine and enables him to see clearly things he could not discern before, so light floods the soul of the man counted worthy of receiving the Holy Spirit and enables him to see things beyond the range of human vision, things hitherto undreamed of.”
-St. Cyril of Jerusalem, The Living Water of the Holy Spirit (Liturgy of the Hours)
Science and religion need not be adversaries. In Part Two of this blog series on the relationship between science and religion, I quoted Albert Einstein and St. Cyril on the importance of faith and intellect pulling in the same direction.
This passage from St. Cyril is especially inspiring for me as a career scientist and a man who attempts to be driven by my faith. I felt it was only proper to lead off the final installment of my science and religion blog series with it as a reminder.
I don’t like it when people generally denounce science and technology merely on the premise of it is new and/or against their normal. Conversely, I do not like it when the ego-driven scientific minds denounce any aspect of faith and religion as a viable foundation of the universe and generally write off faith as a lower brain function.
Sure, there is bad science and bad scientists just as there are, in general, bad people. There are scientists who allow their own arrogance to overtake the beauty of their science and, sometimes, this arrogance crosses the line of moral and ethical scientific pursuits.
There are many more good science proponents who dedicate their lives to finding answers to universal problems or to describe our universal surroundings than that scientist driven by arrogance.
Also, in both science and religion, there are good people doing bad things for all the right reasons and motivations. Like the old saying goes, “The road to hell is paved with good intentions.” Einstein, for example, often worried about how his groundbreaking nuclear physics discoveries would be used to create weapons of mass destruction. Later in life, he often wrote and spoke on the subject, and, I imagine this is where many of his public ideas of science grounded in faith grew from.
God gave us these big, beautiful brains for a reason. He gave them to us to understand our universe and to improve our human condition. Our job as faith-filled religious and inquisitive beings is to approach scientific discovery with an open mind and try to keep science and faith working together, not apart.
Every science class I ever had always ended in a whopper of a final exam. How about a final exam to test your ability to appreciate the role of faith in science and science in faith?
Final Exam (Practical)
1. Go outside on a clear night and observe the night sky.
2. Take a few moments to enjoy the beauty and the magic and the total awe that exists in your visual field.
3. Now appreciate the science aspect through a quick study of the forces of nature and physics involved in what you see.
- Gravity – Gravity attracts and holds the celestial bodies in space. It drives their orbital paths across the universe and positions them where we can see patterns and constellations.
- Electromagnetic – We see the electromagnetic force, which acts through electrically charged particles, in the light emitted from the stars and we see these same wavelengths reflected off planets and moons. Properly equipped, we may also be able to monitor radio wavelengths which bring the sounds of universe to us.
- Strong nuclear force – Strong nuclear force binds the neutrons and protons together in the nuclei of the atoms of the universe creating solid matter.
- Weak nuclear force – Weak nuclear force gives us the radioactive decay we see in the reactions on the surface of stars and at the heated core of our own planet.
4. Appreciate the influence of the “God Particle” in our universe in more than just its scientific definition. The, Higgs boson particle, the so-called “God Particle” of physics, is the underlying carrier particle behind the above four fundamental forces of nature. In theory, it drives the universe and holds it together.
After our viewing of the night sky, we should begin to appreciate God’s power to hold His universe together, making everything “God’s Particles”. Everything and everyone is a part of the whole with the unifying force of the God Particles flowing through the universe.
Final Grading: If you were able to focus on the beauty of the universe and appreciate the science which expands our knowledge and understanding of this universe, you pass the final.
Congratulations!
Our universe is a beautiful and magnificent place. God gives us the curious mind and the drive to discover. We should accept this mission with a sense of purpose and with a sense of ethics and morality. Science for the good of mankind is science based in faith and fueled by faith.
Keep faithfully wondering, studying, and discovering “things hitherto undreamed of” guided the power of the Holy Spirit.
Copyright 2014, Mike Hays
Mike Hays
Mike Hays is a husband, a father of three, a lifelong Kansan and works as a molecular microbiologist. Besides writing, he has been a high school strength and conditioning coach, a football coach and a baseball coach. His debut middle grade historical fiction novel, THE YOUNGER DAYS, is a 2012 recipient of The Catholic Writer's Guild Seal of Approval Award. You can find it at the publisher's website or on Amazon.
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