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Our New Blog Series: Science-Engaged Worship
At ECLAS we talk a lot about science-engaged theology. But how do we engage with science in our worship? Scientific language and ideas pervade our daily lives, so it makes sense to engage them in our services as well.
We see science as a gift from God, one that can illuminate truths about Creation. Good science – meaning that which seeks to benefit the world – enriches Christian faith and helps us fulfil our God-given potential. For good and ill science shapes our culture, through language and concepts and rapidly-changing technology. By engaging with science, we engage with all the people whose lives are shaped by it, from scientists and engineers to the general public.
“One of my assumptions had been that faith was the opposite of reason and hence that there could be no evidence to undergird it – it was merely a blind leap in the absence of evidence.
It surprised me when I found the definition of faith in Hebrews 11:1: “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” It was astounding for me to realise that word “evidence” was in the very definition of faith in the Bible.” Francis Collins, Biologos
Our new blog series provides practical advice for preachers and worship leaders seeking to engage with science in their ministry. It builds on a basic insight – that science can be a gift from God – providing both examples and advice for sharing that gift. Sometimes it seems as though both theology and science are confined to academia and dense books and journal articles. By engaging with them in sermons, songs, and liturgies, we make them more accessible, relevant, and easy to discuss.
Experienced preachers, liturgists, and musicians will share their thoughts on science-engaged worship. We hope this will provide a handy reference guide on how to introduce science into services.
We’re kicking off with a post on nature and science in hymns. Music affects us in a special way, and well-chosen music can bring all the other elements of a service together.
Our second post is from our friends at Creation Care Collective on how their free Growing Together program enables churches to equip congregations and communities to engage in environmental care and justice. As churches we need to consider how we best steward our resources for ourselves and future generations.
Our third post, from Dr Jennifer Brown, is all about how best to prepare sermons linking to a scientific theme.
Our fourth post showcases contributions from three scientists of faith – Professor Paul Ewart, Grace Wolf-Chase, and Tom McLeish – on how to make fruitful links between science and theology, and their favourite Biblical passages to link to science.
Our fifth post, from God and the Big Bang, looks at how churches can incorporate science into all-age services.
Our sixth post focuses on specific moments in the church calendar where we can explore scientific questions through the Bible, history, and church festivals.
And the final post, from Grace Wolf-Chase, focuses on her perspective on prayer, asking God what we can do to help creation as co-creators.
Thanks for reading!