In this lecture, we explore whether and where science and religion intersect, and if there’s harmony or hostility between God’s word (the Bible) and God’s world (science). Presentation by Dr. Dennis Wilson

1. The Domain of Religion
and Science
Dennis Wilson
December 2017
Michelangelo’s Creation of Adam

2. Outline
1. Introduction
2. What do Scientists say?
3. Where Science and Scripture are in Harmony
4. Fine Tuned Examples
5. Summary

3. Science & Religion Have Different Focus
• Religion tackles the big issues
– Origin – where did we come from?
– Identity - who are we?
– Purpose – why are we here?
– Destiny – where are we going?
– Morality – How should we live?
• Science is designed to discover information
– about the natural world and organize that
information into testable laws and theories.
– Transcendent or supernatural phenomenon are
rejected
Religion Science
Method: Faith (unseen) Theories (observable)
Reason: Why How

4. Working Definitions
Words have precise meaning in science
• Hypothesis: educated guess, based on observation (facts) and
supported by background knowledge or understanding.
• A scientific theory summarizes a
hypothesis supported with repeated
testing.
– Systematic and comprehensive
knowledge organized into a framework
that is applicable to a wide variety of
circumstances
– Theories can be disproven – but not
proven
– When a theory is said to be true it means
it agrees with known observable evidence

5. Scientists use Theoretical Models
• Scientists use theoretical models to explain the natural
(physical) world.
– Theoretical model: A framework of ideas and concepts from
which we interpret observations and experimental results.
• Models approximate the “real” complex world
• Richard Feynman, Nobel Laureate: “Scientific knowledge is a body of
statements of varying degrees of certainty -- some most unsure, some nearly
sure, none absolutely certain.”
– Example: Kinetic Theory of Gases
Molecules are hard spheres which undergo
elastic collisions resulting is a property we
call pressure

6. Scientific Method
• Over time a Theory may gain widespread acceptance
– No observations found that are contrary to the predictions
• A Scientific Law is a concise, universal statement usually as a
simple mathematical statement
• Law of Gravity: F = G(Mm)/R2
• Newton’s Laws of Motion (e.g., F = d(mV)/dt)
• 1st Law of Thermodynamics (DQ + DW = DE)
• Einstein’s Mass Energy Equivalence: E = mc2
Observe nature, collect
verify and organize data,
and generate hypothesis
Ideally, Construct a
Mathematical Model
Predictions
Construct Theory
Note: Models are
approximations to nature
Verify predictions through
controlled experiments

7. Information Science Recently Discovered the
Scientific Method
Data (Facts)
Information
Knowledge
Wisdom
Who, what,
when & where
How
Why
Ackoff, R. L. (1989). From data to wisdom.
Journal of Applied Systems Analysis 15: 3-9
• The DIKW hierarchy was first proposed by Ackoff in 1989
Proverbs 1:7 The fear of the Lord
is the beginning of knowledge but
fools despise wisdom and
instruction
Synthesize
Analyze
Organize
Collect

8. Science Relies on
Order and Design
• The scientific method rests on the
foundational belief that there is an
order and universality in the
Universe.
– Physicist Paul C. Davies: "...to be
a scientist, you had to have
faith that the universe is
governed by dependable,
immutable, absolute, universal,
mathematical laws of an
unspecified origin.”

9. God’s Hand in Order and Design
• Early, science giants envisioned universal laws in keeping
with the rationality of God the creator:
– Copernicus, Kepler, Galileo, Boyle, Newton, Leibniz, Pascal,
Dalton, Faraday, Herschel, Joule, Lavoisier, Kelvin, Ohm,
Ampere, Pasteur, Maxwell, Planck, Kelvin, Mendel, etc.
• The Christian worldview provides a coherent framework
for the
– order of nature
• It is I who made the earth, and created man upon it. I stretched out the
heavens with My hands… Isaiah 45:12
– rationality of the human mind
• …we have the mind of Christ 1 Corinthians 2:16

10. Independent or Overlap?
1. Science and Religion are independent
• Non-Overlapping Magisteria (NOMA): religion and
science are in separate domains ("magisteria")
– Prof Stephen Jay Gould, Harvard Evolutionary Biologist,
Paleontologists and Historian
2. Science and Religion are in conflict
– Richard Dawkins, Michael Shermer, Victor Stenger
3. Science and Religion complement one another
and can be constructively integrated
• Albert Einstein: “Science without religion is blind and
religion without science is lame.”
• Max Planck: “There can never be any real opposition
between religion and science, for one is the
complement of the other.”
• RTB: “God’s word and God’s world (properly
interpreted) must be in harmony.”
Harmony
or conflict

11. Outline
1. Introduction
2. What do Scientists say?
3. Where Science and Scripture are in Harmony
4. Fine Tuned examples
5. Summary

12. No Place For Christians In Science?
(Commenting on the 15% of people on the National Academy of
Sciences that believe in a personal God) “That’s a problem that
needs to be addressed. How come the number isn't zero? That
should be the subject of …investigation.”
Neil deGrasse Tyson
Host of PBS “NOVA”,
Hayden Planetarium, NYC
"I don't want the religious person in the lab
telling me that God is responsible for what
it is they cannot discover. It's like saying
no one else will ever discover how
something works.”

13. Some are Hostile
Dr. Richard Dawkins Author: The
God Delusion Speaking at UT
…he ravaged creationism and design theories
that claim a supernatural being created the
universe… Austin American Statesmen 3/20/08
• “The enlightenment is under threat. So is reason. So is truth. So is science,
especially in the schools of America…... We have to devote a significant
proportion of our time and resources to defending it from deliberate
attack from organized ignorance. We even have to go out on the attack
ourselves”

14. “The first gulp from the glass of natural
sciences will turn you into an atheist, but at
the bottom of the glass God is waiting for
you.”
Dr. Werner Heisenberg: Nobel Laureate, Physics -
1932
Some are Humble
Louis Pasteur: Founder of Microbiology &
Immunology
“The more I study nature, the more I
stand amazed at the work of the Creator.
Science brings men nearer to God.”

15. Isaac Newton: Inventor of Calculus, Founder of
Classical Physics and Christian
Some are Humble
“Atheism is so senseless.
When I look at the solar
system, I see the earth
at the right distance
from the sun to receive
the proper amounts of
heat and light. This did
not happen by chance”

16. Notable Conversions
• Richard Smalley (Rice University) Nobel Prize-
Chemistry 1996
• Became a Christian after being Diagnosed
with cancer in 1999
"Genesis was right. There was a creation, & that Creator is still
involved. We are the only species that can destroy the Earth or take
care of it & nurture all that live on this very special planet.”
“Evolution has been dealt its death blow. …. with
my background in chemistry & physics, it is clear
evolution could not have occurred.”

17. Statistics of Distinguished Scientists
• According to 100 Years of Nobel Prize [1],
65.4% of Nobel Prize Laureates, have
identified Christianity in its various forms as
their religious preference
1. Shalev, Baruch Aba (2003). 100 Years of Nobel Prizes. New
Delhi : Atlantic Publishers & Distributors.
Check out Wikipedia article: List of Christian
Nobel laureates
Book based on statements (quotes)
826 Nobel Laureates from 1901 to 2011

18. Outline
1. Introduction
2. What do Scientists say?
3. Where Science and Scripture are in Harmony
4. Fine Tuned Examples
5. Summary

19. Scientific Theories Evolve
• Static/Infinite Universe: Universe is infinite and always existed
– View held by scientists for centuries until middle of 20th century
• Big Bang: The universe had a beginning about 13.8 billion years
ago that marks the creation of space and time.
Example: Origin of the Universe
– Widely accepted theory with
significant scientific evidence
– Prof Richard Feynman (Nobel
Laureate): “If you thought that
science was certain - well that is
just an error on your part.”

20. Big Bang Theological Implications
• The theological significance of the Big Bang Theory is significant.
– It suggests a supernatural creation or causal agent of the universe
– The evolution also displays incredible fine tuning or design
1. Causal agent: outside of space-time
2. Fine tuning: Large number of constants,
parameters and initial conditions were
“just right” for the universe to evolve
• Einstein concluded “there must be a
beginning and a beginner”
• … physicists and cosmologists have
uncovered numerous eye-popping
"cosmic coincidences," remarkable
instances of apparent "fine-tuning" of
the universe. (PHYS.org April 3, 2014)

21. Christian Truth Claims are Constant
God speaks through Scripture: In the beginning, God
created (Baraʹ) the heavens and the earth (Genesis 1:1)
• Hebrew word definition: Baraʹ
– To supernaturally create something that is totally new or extraordinary
(not fashioned from something else)
• God brought the universe into existence from nothing
• This sounds a lot like the Big Bang
– Properly interpreted, there is agreement or
harmony between science (cosmology and
astrophysics) and scripture.

22. • Mass density distribution after about 380,000 years was “just
right” for star formation to begin
– WMAP (2003) satellite: Stunning confirmation of Cosmic Microwave
Background (CMB) Radiation and Big Bang cosmology
– George Smoot (Astrophysicist & Nobel Laureate) "If you're religious, it's
like looking at God."
– Prof. Geoffrey Burbidge (Astronomer & Professor): Everyone is running off
to “join the first church of Christ of the big bang”
Big Bang Theological Implications

23. Outline
1. Introduction
2. What do Scientists say?
3. Where Science and Scripture are in Harmony
4. Fine Tuned Examples
5. Summary

24. Fine Tuning of the Universe
Cosmic Expansion and Fine Tuning
from NASA Website
• WMAP has determined the geometry of the universe to be nearly flat. A
universe as flat as we see it today would require an extreme fine-tuning
of conditions in the past, which would be an unbelievable coincidence.
• Secular Fine Tuning Definition: “The
Universe seems to have a number* of
special features that are not explained in
the Big Bang Theory several numbers
which the theory doesn't specify must be
fixed to very special values. This is called
"fine-tuning" because these parameters
must be "fine-tuned”.
– Prof Ned Wright’s Cosmological Tutorial
Notes (Presidential Chair in Physics at
UCLA)
*At least
two dozen

25. Primordial Density Fluctuations
Density Fluctuations: At about 1 month after the Big Bang, matter began to form
slightly larger concentrations, e.g. higher density. These density variations were
finely tuned to one part in 100,000 (1:105)
– if smaller, stars and galaxies would not form
– if larger, galaxies would be too dense for life; black holes would dominate

26. Matter Antimatter Evolution
Early Particle Evolution
At t = 10-6 s: T =1013K the
universe was filled with high
energy gamma rays, which
form particles (e.g. protons
and antiprotons) in a process
called pair production. Two photons come
together to form a
matter-antimatter pair
Matter-antimatter
annihilation
E = mc2 governs this process
Matter-antimatter
annihilation creates
lots of energy
Something very strange happened
at about 10-4 sec and nobody (no
human, that is) knows why!

27. Matter Antimatter Evolution
• Excess of protons to anti-protons
– There was a small excess of matter compared to
antimatter, roughly 1 billion (109)antiprotons for every 1
billion + 1 protons
– If equal: no atomic matter and no life – only radiation!
– The same ratios existed for
• neutrons and antineutrons
• electrons and positrons (anti-electrons)
• One of the great mysteries of modern particle physics is the relative lack of
antimatter…
SLAC Summer Institute on Particle Physics, Aug. 2-13, 2004

28. Our Universe Should Not Exist
• “All of our observations find a complete symmetry between
matter and antimatter, which is why the universe should not
actually exist.”
18 OCT 2017 Nature article
CERN antimatter study
Universe shouldn’t exist,
CERN physicists conclude
10/27/2017

29. Example: Fine Tuned Galactic Parameters
• Certain places (GHZ) in a galaxy are more hospitable to life than others.
Reference: NASA Astrobiology Institute, May 18, 2001
• A planetary system must be close enough to the galactic center for:
– A sufficiently high level of heavy elements to form rocky, or terrestrial, planets.
• The planetary system must be far enough from the galactic center so:
– Dangerous radiation, which would damage any carbon-based life, is less intense.
– Gravitational perturbations of planets by nearby stars becomes less likely.
Galactic Habitable Zone (GHZ)
• The Milky Way’s GHZ lies
• far from the center where
radiation is less intense
• between the spiral arms
where gravity from nearby
stars is much less

30. Example: Fine Tuned Solar Parameters
• SHZ is where an Earth-like planet can maintain liquid water on
its surface and support organic chemistry.
– Astrobiologists define the SHZ as a region that is neither too hot nor too cold
for liquid water and therefore life to exist.
• Earth orbits a (main sequence G star) at right location in the
SHZ for liquid water.
Stellar Habitable Zone (SHZ)
Intersection of (SHZ),
and (GHZ) forms the
“Goldilocks Zone”
Rare Earth Hypothesis will
be topic for next weeks talk

31. Outline
1. Introduction
2. What do Scientists say?
3. Where Science and Scripture is in Harmony
4. Fine Tuned Examples
5. Summary

32. Science Scripture Harmony
1. God existed before the beginning of time and created the
universe
– Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth…
– Colossians 1:16 - 17 For in him all things were created: things in
heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers
or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and
for him. 17He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.
2. God created the universe from things unseen by our senses
– Hebrews 11:3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed
at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what
was visible.

33. Apparent Science Scripture Disharmony
1. Neo-Darwinian Evolution is a collection of independent
theories that “evolve” fairly rapidly over time
2. Major issues are:
– Irreducible complexity
– Divergent vs. convergent evolution
– Punctuated equilibrium
– Common design vs. common descent
Topic of future talk

34. The Christian
Worldview
asserts that
God is the
author of
universal and
immutable
ideas of: truth,
logic, and the
laws of nature.
Since we are created in the
image of God (Genesis
1:28 - 29), we are uniquely
gifted to discover these
universal ideas using
rational thought and
evidence-based reasoning.
Christian Worldview
…we have the mind of Christ
1 Corinthians 2:16