Science and the Bible

What is Science? Kansas State Board of Education (2001) on science: “Science is the human activity of seeking natural explanations of the world around us.” This is NOT science This is scientism

What is Scientism? –“the idea that natural science is the most authoritative worldview or aspect of human education, and that it is superior to all other interpretations of life”[1] –"an exaggerated trust in the efficacy of the methods of natural science applied to all areas of investigation (as in philosophy, the social sciences, and the humanities)" [2]

What is Science? Kansas State Board of Education (2005) on science: “Science is a systematic method of continuing investigation, that uses observation, hypothesis testing, measurement, experimentation, logical argument and theory building, to lead to more adequate explanations of natural phenomena.”

What is Science? Put very simply: science is man’s observations of the physical world.

What is Science? According to the state of Texas: Science, as defined by the National Academy of Sciences, is the "use of evidence to construct testable explanations and predictions of natural phenomena, as well as the knowledge generated through this process." This vast body of changing and increasing knowledge is described by physical, mathematical, and conceptual models. Students should know that some questions are outside the realm of science because they deal with phenomena that are not scientifically testable. [3]

Limitations of science Science deals with those things which are observable, measurable, and repeatable. Science can only describe; it cannot explain. Explanations require models. No controlled experiment can be completely controlled; therefore, there is no proof, only that which is, at best, likely.

Limitations of science Science is man’s observations so it is subject to his flaws: –People’s beliefs and bias affect their judgments. –People lie. –People make mistakes. Observations may be faulty. Science cannot prove a universal statement. Science cannot deal with values or morals. Science cannot establish truth.

The Bible vs. Science The Bible is not a science textbook, but it has authority over scientific issues, just as the Bible is not a history book, but it is historically accurate. Science is not at odds with the Bible. True scientific observations support the Bible.

Sir William Mitchell Ramsey This British archaeologist was an atheist when he set out specifically to prove that the evidence shows that the Bible is only a book written by ambitious monks, not the book of heaven it claimed itself to be. He was so moved by the accuracy of the Apostle Luke (“exact in the smallest detail,” he said) that he declared Luke as “a historian of the first rank; not merely are his statements of fact trustworthy...this author should be placed along with the very greatest historians.”

Sir William Mitchell Ramsey Ramsey then shocked the world when he announced that he himself had become a Christian.

The Scientific Method The scientific method does not prove anything. If done well (and repeatedly), it provides evidence to support an idea. Once again, in science there is no such thing as proof for something. You can, however, disprove things.

Darwin “To suppose that the eye with all its inimitable contrivances for adjusting the focus to different distances, for admitting different amounts of light, and for the correction of spherical and chromatic aberration, could have been formed by natural selection, seems, I freely confess, absurd in the highest.” [4]

Darwin “If it could be demonstrated that any complex organ existed, which could not possibly have been formed by numerous, successive, slight modifications, my theory would absolutely break down.” [5]

Darwin “The foregoing remarks lead me to say a few words on the protest made by some naturalists against the utilitarian doctrine that every detail of structure has been produced for the good of it possessor. They believe that many structures have been created for the sake of beauty, to delight man or the Creator (but this latter point is beyond the scope of scientific discussion), or for the sake of mere variety, a view already discussed. Such doctrines, if true, would be absolutely fatal to my theory.” [6]

References 1.Sorell, Tom. Scientism: Philosophy and the Infatuation with Science. Routledge, 1994, p. 1ff. 2."Scientism." Encyclopedia of Science Technology and Ethics. 3rd ed. Detroit: MacMillan Reference Books, Texas Education Code, §§7.102(c)(4), , and , § b.2 Implementation of Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills for Science, High School. 4.Darwin, Charles, On the Origin of Species, 6th ed. London (1 st ed. 1859). 5.Ibid 6.Ibid