A college student once asked me, “How can I believe there is a God out there when there is no scientific proof of it?”
I answered him, “Is reality limited to that which can be proven by the scientific method of investigation? Are we required to reduce reality to the findings of science?”
I have a problem when science becomes “scientism,” just like I have a problem when religion becomes “fundamentalism.” I reject scientism and I reject fundamentalism.
The so-called “battle” between science and religion is bogus and is based on a misunderstanding of both. Science is one mode of knowing, and religion is another mode of knowing. Science and religion represent two valid ways of knowing, but they are different in their goals and methods.
Science deals with data of the observable, natural world, and tries to explain why things happen according to the laws of causality—cause and effect. Think of modern medicine. I’m glad that science has discovered how to relieve pain and cure diseases. I’m thankful for the many inventions of science that have made our lives better compared to centuries ago.
Yet religion deals with other questions, ultimate questions. Where did we come from? Why are we here? What is the meaning of truth? What are the sources for ethics and morality? What is our destiny? What happens when we die? Why should we care about the world and each other? To what or to whom are we ultimately accountable? How do we deal with meaninglessness, condemnation, guilt, and fear?
None of the above questions are scientific questions. They deal with spiritual realities. Such questions cannot be put into a test tube, but they are essential to what it means to be human.
Yet religion makes a huge mistake when it tries to be scientific! For example, when religious persons try to use the scientific method to “prove” that God exists or to “prove” that the earth was created in six days . . . this is when religion oversteps its bounds.
Let science do what it is meant to do, and let religion do what it is meant to do. But don’t try to turn science into religion or religion into science. Science is one valid mode of knowing; religion is another valid mode of knowing. As long as we remember this, the battle between science and religion is bogus.
April 9, 2010
April 1, 2010
Bearing witness to the crucified Christ
In my World Religions class I try to encourage students to develop at least a partial appreciation for the non-Christian religions. It is not evangelism but an academic course on global religion in a college setting. Students are expected to be open to new learnings, to consider the various ways that “truth and grace” have manifested themselves in different cultures.
Yet I am aware on a personal level that, as a Christian, I have a place to stand. One needs a place to stand, a referent point, a normative center. At the heart of Christian faith is Jesus Christ crucified and raised from the dead. The biggest difference between Christianity and the non-Christian religions is Jesus himself—the message of the cross and resurrection. It is not a matter of “converting” people to this. The traditional “conversion model” of mission is laden with problems. For one thing, it ignores the new parity there is now between the world’s religions, and it smacks of arrogance.
Rather, Christians are called to bear witness to the crucified Christ through cruciform living. How do we do this? We bear witness through our words and deeds. We bear witness through our worship and service. We bear witness through suffering and sacrifice and by loving a world that needs the healing power of the gospel. We bear witness by following Christ and sharing his fate: cruciform living in the name of the crucified Christ.
Jesus willingly died without retaliation or violence. He died with a vision of the coming kingdom of God. God raised him from the dead as the sign that the New Age has already begun. Therefore, Christian faith is hope—hope in the God who turns crucifixion into resurrection, and who brings in the kingdom through vicarious suffering: the triumph of love over hate.
There are many Christians in America right now who are very good at hating and very good at being angry. They are very good at judging who is saved and who is lost. Do they really understand the crucified Christ?
Sooner or later the message of the crucified Christ has to get through. The world needs to hear it. But more importantly, the world needs to see it.
Yet I am aware on a personal level that, as a Christian, I have a place to stand. One needs a place to stand, a referent point, a normative center. At the heart of Christian faith is Jesus Christ crucified and raised from the dead. The biggest difference between Christianity and the non-Christian religions is Jesus himself—the message of the cross and resurrection. It is not a matter of “converting” people to this. The traditional “conversion model” of mission is laden with problems. For one thing, it ignores the new parity there is now between the world’s religions, and it smacks of arrogance.
Rather, Christians are called to bear witness to the crucified Christ through cruciform living. How do we do this? We bear witness through our words and deeds. We bear witness through our worship and service. We bear witness through suffering and sacrifice and by loving a world that needs the healing power of the gospel. We bear witness by following Christ and sharing his fate: cruciform living in the name of the crucified Christ.
Jesus willingly died without retaliation or violence. He died with a vision of the coming kingdom of God. God raised him from the dead as the sign that the New Age has already begun. Therefore, Christian faith is hope—hope in the God who turns crucifixion into resurrection, and who brings in the kingdom through vicarious suffering: the triumph of love over hate.
There are many Christians in America right now who are very good at hating and very good at being angry. They are very good at judging who is saved and who is lost. Do they really understand the crucified Christ?
Sooner or later the message of the crucified Christ has to get through. The world needs to hear it. But more importantly, the world needs to see it.
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