Ronel Kian S.

Cablinda Issues in Science and Religion RHD MW 3:00-4:30 AM

1. Write at least 3 things that you have learned from today's discussion. Explain your
answer.
Passages in the Bible can be either literal or figurative. Some people make the
mistake of taking symbolic images literally or spiritualizing verses that have a literal
meaning. In the same vein, many naturalists would argue that the Genesis creation account
is figurative (as in the day-age theory). However, this belief stems from either skepticism
or a lack of knowledge of genre. The Genesis account is meant to be taken as a historical
narrative. Ergo, creation was a literal event that took place in history.
At some time in the past, there was an era where scientists advocated for the
separation of science (philosophy) and religion, albeit they would still consider both having
the same author. Such is a viable approach to modern thinking, with an additional caveat –
not all of our questions will be answered. In our quest for knowledge, we must also
acknowledge an element of impenetrable mystery. There are some things that cannot be
known to us in this lifetime, and will instead be revealed only in eternity. In our pursuit of
knowing the unknown, we need to know our limits and be wary of conclusions, however
scientific, that can jeopardize one’s faith.
As we uphold our faith in the almighty God who has created and sustains the
universe, we must be careful not to wield our religion so much that we ostracize those who
have been given the gift of scientific thinking. When the Church, while holding itself to be
infallible and authoritative an all areas of thought and persecuting those who held contrary
claims, made a mistake with regards to whether the earth was the center of the universe or
it merely revolved around the sun, people started questioning the reliability of and necessity
for religion. “Serious thinkers were often alienated by superstition, suppression, and
coercion (associated with the dominant church), and this led to distrust of the Bible itself.”
This might have been the first wedge driven into what is now the gulf between science and
religion.

2. What do you think, why many people believe that Bible and Science are in conflict?
Explain your answer.
The Bible and Science in modern thinking seem to behave like oil and water. Both
are fluid, in that they change form (or the form becomes clearer) with each interpretation
in history, but they never mix. And yet, there was a time when science and the Bible were
in harmony, and may even have been inseparable. Perhaps it is not the belief systems
themselves that are at fault but the interpretation. We have an incomplete – and even faulty
– understanding of science and the Bible. And yet Christians understand enough that both
have the same author.
Another factor that divides science and religion is the animosity of proponents on
either side against each other. The hostile dogmaticism of the Catholic church against
earnest thinkers has led to the distrust of the scientific world against religion. In present
times, overzealous Christians often perpetuate this conflict. Christians must therefore be
careful of their ways of evangelizing. They should ever bear in mind that Christ’s method
alone – not scientific arguments or religious polemics – gives true success.