God in Science

I just finished reading Dan Brown's Angels and Demons. Incredible book. A little over the top, maybe...but vivid and compelling storytelling.

Throughout the novel, there's an overt tension between "Religion and Science." The scientific community claims it has been undermined and kept at bay for centuries by religion as a whole. The religious community, on the other hand, claims that science only aims to take God out of the equation - that man tries to explain away every miracle through scientific discovery.

One of the quotes in the book has stuck with me: "Science and religion are not at odds. Science is simply too young to understand."

I think there's a lot of truth in this statement. If we (as believers) are confident that God is the Creator, then we shouldn't have an issue with that remark.

One definition of science is as follows: systematic knowledge of the physical or material world gained through observation and experimentation.

Science is essentially gaining knowledge by studying and observing stuff.

God is in science. And, science is simply trying to understand what God has already mastered.

But, it doesn't mean we play God. And, it doesn't mean we'll understand everything, no matter how long or how relentlessly we attempt to do so.

Famed French microbiologist Louis Pasteur believed that scientific discoveries only further proved that God existed. But, he also warned that approaching God through science too often would result in being further separated from Him.

And finally, Albert Einstein added, "Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind."

So, here's the deal. Both faith and science are important. They are not mutually exclusive, as religious zealots or the most staunch atheist would have you believe.