Faith and Science

 

An interesting report was published on Monday by the Christian Think Tank Theos and the Faraday Institute.  It’s headline finding was that hostility towards religion in favour of science is declining.

Now, like all statistics that has to be read in context!  That’s because, although such hostility may be going down in some age groups, the report still found that of those questioned no less than 80% said they thought science and faith remain incompatible.

This report questioned just over 5,000 people and it found that it was those on the younger side of the age spectrum that were more open minded about the place of faith in the world.

I find this fascinating simply because I spend so much of my life with fellow Christians, many of whom willingly embrace the insights of modern science alongside their faith. So, it’s helpful to be reminded that others in society are not at all sure of this compatibility.

Over recent years we’ve all become more aware of a phenomenon of ‘militant’ atheism.  So it was interesting to read that one of the respondents to this survey was keen to say: I want it on record, don’t just put me down as an atheist in the Richard Dawkin’s type.  Because I am not an atheist like him at all!

Another finding from the report that caught my eye was that sixteen years ago when Dawkin’s published his book The God Delusion 42% of adults polled agreed with him that Faith is one of the world’s great evils, alongside something like smallpox. Today that’s down to 21%.  But that still sends shivers up my spine, that so many people actually think the message I would be preaching week by week from the pulpit is intrinsically ‘evil’.

However, there is some encouragement in the findings (if statistics do it for you) in that 46% said all religions have some element of truth in them and 64% said that science could not explain everything.

I always love the fact that in our house I’m a jobbing theologian and Rachel has spent part of her adult life as an academic scientist.  And that we feel, in our own way, is an example that you can marry the two together!