Most people recognize this famous quote from Albert Einstein. Although Einstein was against organized religious dogma he believed that science was lame and disabled without embracing a moral element. In other words, science needs to go beyond simply increasing knowledge. Knowledge should bear the additional fruit of goodness.
Materialistic science or naturalism often fails to see the deeper agency operating within its own endeavors. Science does not end its work with a new discovery. No sooner is something newly discovered than its focus changes over to making this knowledge beneficial and useful to the world.
In other words, science would indeed be “lame” if it had no application to serving humankind and the good of society.
Hmmm? Think about that.
It is said that science deals with facts and religion deals with values. Therefore the two truth-systems are mutually exclusive of each other. But isn’t serving humankind for the betterment of society a value? Isn’t a scientific discovery that improves the quality of our life the same enterprise as “loving the neighbor”?
You might criticize this assessment because a scientist may be driven by self-promotion, celebrity status and public reward but this overlooks the fact that even a selfish motive cannot succeed without bearing useful fruit. Besides, a motive deals with the human heart and its values.
A volitional element, such as intention, aim, purpose, desire, passion or disposition drives the whole pursuit of scientific discovery. These drives are all derivatives of LOVE!
Both the scientist and clergyman, both the atheist and believer, are driven by some agency of love. Evolution has taken the human species to exploit a unique niche in the world that embraces values not just information and data. The universe is more than computational—it is volitional.
Love can lead us to solving the mysteries of gravitational order as well as the mysteries of faith. I have addressed these topics in my upcoming book, Proving God. This blog was created to give you a small taste of how science and theology can be rationally united.
Unfortunately, many people’s oxen will be gored by this challenging project. Unifying science and religion will require changing our present assumptions about both.
In my next post I will address the other half of Einstein’s famous quote – “religion without science is blind.”