The Reason for Science

Paul Norridge
Wednesday 1 Dec 2010

Einstein famously said that the most incomprehensible thing about the world is that it is comprehensible. Perhaps we can turn that around and ask the question 'Why have we been created with the ability to understand the universe?' Or, more dramatically, 'What is science for?'

Science dominates our culture. It’s woven into every area of our lives. And, of course, this is because it has been wildly successful. Scientific studies have given us a rich and deep understanding of the world around us, from star formation to the structure of ecosystems to the building blocks of matter. The resulting technology continues to change our lives radically. But where does this success come from? Is it simply a by-product of our need to survive? Or do we assume that it’s an unexpected side-effect of the way God made us? Surely, if we believe in a God who does things deliberately, we have to conclude that science works for a reason.
 
In looking for answers, let’s take a step back and explore our relationship with the world around us. The Bible makes the rather startling claim that humans have a special responsibility to the rest of creation. Tom Wright puts it this way:

“God loved the world he made, and wanted to look after it in the best possible way. To that end he placed in his world a looking-after creature, a creature who would demonstrate to the world who he, the creator, really was, and who would go to work to develop the creation and make it flourish and fulfill its purpose.”

 
Rather than being placed in an environment that is simply a convenient place for us to live, mankind has the role of caring for creation; the task of preserving it, helping it to grow and enabling it to glorify God more completely. And where does science come into this?  Perhaps we can picture it this way:
 
Our ability to help creation to ‘develop’, ‘flourish’ and ‘fulfill its purpose’, depends on our ability to develop an understanding of the world around us. Stewardship has to start with listening and learning, with seeing how things work and appreciating their internal logic. This, of course, is precisely what the scientific viewpoint gives us. Science isn’t incidental; in allowing us to understand the world around us, it is intimately related to who we are.
 
So, if we are involved in scientific work, our day-to-day activities can be an expression of mankind’s responsibility for the creation around us. As we make discoveries and creatively interpret what we see around us we have the possibility to ‘voice creation’s praise’ (to borrow a phrase from Jeremy Begbie). Johannes Kepler recognised this way back in the 1500s when he said that ‘through my effort God is being celebrated through astronomy.’
 
Or perhaps we use our knowledge to ensure that we can care effectively and in ways that are sympathetic to the existing order. Or maybe through our studying we are able to see new possibilities and ways to bring out the potential that God has built in to the cosmos.
 
We are surrounded by a world of wonders and potential. So, if science is your thing make it God-glorifying and creation-enhancing; a science of care and flourishing, of praise and celebration.

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