Science has become ever more entangled with pop culture, and as a Christian, that probably concerns you. The attention brought by celebrity scientists like Neil deGrasse Tyson and Bill Nye (although we may question the latter’s credentials) makes it easier every day for people to attack faith.
While your concerns have merit, the situation is not quite what it seems. Let’s take a look at the state of science and the beliefs of scientists and see just how atheistic the field really is.
Dr. Michio Kaku
While the immensely famous Neil deGrasse Tyson actively speaks against God and religion, there is another physicist with far more academic acclaim and a very different message. If you aren’t familiar with Dr. Kaku, he’s one of the founders of String Theory. As one of the most acclaimed living physicists in the world, his views tend to carry a little weight.
While he doesn’t openly disclose the details of his religious views, he is very vocal about grand design. He has published many pieces that explain the elegant simplicity of the universe and how it points towards a creator.
In his own blog he wrote, “Physicists are the only scientists who can say the word ‘God’ and not blush.” Dr. Kaku may not receive the same level of media attention as his more secular counterparts, there is no question that one of the greatest scientific minds of the modern age does not follow the anti-religious views you might expect.
American Scientists
Simply quoting one good physicist is a weak point, though. What you might find more surprising is the study done by the Pew Research Center. In it, they interviewed a large number of American scientists across as many fields as possible. They found that 51 percent of all scientists in the country believe in God or subscribe to a higher power. Conversely, only 41 percent claimed to not believe in any form of God or creation.
To be fair, this is a stark contrast to the 95 percent of Americans who believe in God, but it still highlights an important point. Media outlets put a lot of effort into painting a picture that God and science can’t mix and that science is the ultimate disproof of God. Reality paints a very different picture, and it shows science and religion existing in harmony more often than not.
Scientists Around the World
It turns out that a global picture is much the same. Rice University ran a study similar to Pew’s, but this one tried to include scientists from as many different countries as possible. They found that globally closer to 55 percent of scientists believe in God.
In most cases, God-fearing scientists outnumbered their atheist counterparts by two to one. What was even more surprising is that the regions with the least religious population bases, such as Hong Kong, had the most religious scientists.
Also noteworthy was the study’s findings on conflict between science and religion. In the U.K., this conflict is reported the most often with only 32 percent of scientists believing the two don’t mix. In the U.S. that number is 29 percent. In short, the majority of scientists in this country and across the world believe in God and that their faith and scientific work inform and balance each other.
Why Faith Matters
The importance of faith can never be understated. In science specifically, there is an important component of faith that is often overlooked. The researchers in the Rice study did many interviews, and they found a common theme. While they didn’t quantify the number of scientists making the claim, they reported a recurring theme that scientists often defer to religion to help with moral judgments.
It’s easy to cultivate a Machiavellian approach to science, and the fastest ways to answer research questions is not always the safest or most ethical. When they enter gray areas, scientists (even those self-identifying as atheist) often turn to Christianity to help navigate their decisions. The well-established boundaries of the Bible are the final line of defense that deters many scientists from walking a dark road that leads to unspeakable atrocities.
God is not dead, and science is not the alleged weapon. A minority of people in America have gained a disproportionate power, and they use that to attack the most commonly held beliefs in our country. Their most insidious approach to selling that idea is to convince you that science and God are at indisputable and irrevocable odds. Take comfort in the truth. Science is still being steered by people of faith, and it is in fact the harmony between God and science that pushed America into prosperity in the first place.
~ Christian Patriot Daily
