God and Science: From the Origin of the Universe to Modern Science
Scientific approaches to the existence of God
Humans have long questioned the existence of God, and advances in modern science are shedding new light on this question. Especially in the 21st century, attempts to approach the existence of God through science have become increasingly popular. A book published in 2016, “Proving the Existence of God with Science,” attempts to prove the existence of God through the scientific method and compare it to the representations of God in the doctrines of various religions.
This approach explores the possibility of God’s existence by applying the Law of Entropy and the Big Bang Theory, two of the scientific laws that are currently accepted as the most complete. While science and religion have long been at odds over the existence of God, modern science is changing the way humans perceive the existence of God.
Great scientists’ views of God
Great scientists like Albert Einstein pondered the existence of God. When Einstein received a telegram asking him, “Do you believe in God?” he replied, “I believe in the ‘God of Spinoza’ who reveals himself as the lawful harmony of all that exists, but I do not believe in a God who is involved in the destiny and behavior of mankind.”
Einstein’s beliefs were pantheistic in nature: for him, God was the universe itself, and he had a deeper reverence for it than any religious person might have for the object of their faith: “The fact that the universe is intelligible and obeys laws is worthy of admiration. It is an intrinsic quality of God that reveals itself through the harmony of all that exists.”
Meanwhile, Stephen Hawking, a leading figure in modern physics, took a different view. He argued that “the Big Bang universe did not need God’s help,” and that the laws of physics alone could prove its creation. In his M-theory, Hawking explained that a multiverse, with many possible histories and many possible states of being, was created out of nothing.
The Big Bang and the origin of the universe
The most prominent theory in modern science to explain the origin of the universe is the Big Bang theory, which claims that the universe began about 13.7 billion years ago. The Big Bang theory tells us that everything in the universe did not “just exist from a time before infinity,” but began at a definite point in time.
The Big Bang theory is also discussed in terms of theology. Some theists argue that the Big Bang theory provides evidence for the existence of God by recognizing the beginning of the universe. There are attempts to prove the existence of God by linking it to cosmological proofs such as the Kalam Argument. On the other hand, the atheistic view is that the laws of physics alone can explain the creation of the universe.
Human origins and evolution
Research into the origins of humanity is still ongoing. Recent research has led to an expanded study of the process of spreading across the globe as the Earth’s climate and environment changed, with many species still unknown as ‘origins’ or ‘ancestors’.
Genetics is an ongoing effort to trace the origins of modern humans. By measuring the variation that accumulates in DNA, we can estimate when an individual diverged from the human lineage. Ancient DNA research is extracting and analyzing DNA from the remains of ancient humans, animals, and plants to help uncover our origins and migratory routes.
In the early 19th century, monogenism, the theory that humans descended from a common ancestor, and polygenism, the theory that human origins varied among different races, coexisted. Modern science strongly supports the theory of a single origin of humankind through genetic evidence.
Rethinking the relationship between science and religion
The relationship between science and religion can’t be viewed as a simple opposition: where science explains, religion has no place, and where religion explains, science has no place. This means that science and religion have different methodologies and search for truth in their respective domains.
Some scientists argue that “the current inability of science to prove the existence of God is not because God does not exist, but because science has not yet advanced to the point where it can prove the existence of God.” The discussion of the existence of God is also an area of philosophical and theological inquiry that goes beyond the limits of scientific proof.
In 2023, efforts continue to explore the mysteries of the universe, such as dark matter and dark energy, with cutting-edge instruments like the Vera Rubin Telescope. These explorations will help us find clues to the origins and future of the universe.
Different perspectives on the existence of God
There are many different perspectives on the existence of God. God is typically depicted as a supernatural being beyond human comprehension, the creator and maintainer of order in the world. Spinoza, a pantheist, argued that “the universe is God,” and Einstein followed Spinoza’s view.
The theistic view is that God can explain the universe and the order within it with clarity, and that the question of “how” is irrelevant in the face of a transcendent being called God. The atheistic view, on the other hand, holds that physical laws and natural phenomena alone can explain the creation and development of the universe.
Human belief systems strongly influence these perspectives, and conflicts between scientific findings and religious beliefs often manifest as a head-on collision of incompatible beliefs. However, it’s important to rethink the relationship between science and religion, and to search for truth while respecting each other’s territory.
Scientific atheism versus theism
Scientific atheists tend to deny the existence of an “invisible” God, adopting positivism as their academic methodology. In response, some scholars are attempting to prove the existence of God through the very science that denies it. Dr. He’s new book, Science and the War on God, critiques the irrationality of scientific atheism and argues for the existence of God from the perspective of scientific theism.
Additional perspectives on Einstein’s faith
Einstein once said in an interview, “If science today cannot prove the existence of God, it is not because God does not exist, but because science has not yet advanced to the point where it can prove the existence of God.” He also expressed in a letter to his daughter that “love is the greatest force in the universe, love is God, and God is love.” This shows that Einstein’s beliefs went beyond mere philosophical concepts and were connected to deep insights into the nature of the universe.
The specifics of the Kalam Argument
The Kalam Argument is a form of cosmological proof to prove the existence of God, and has the following logical structure
- Everything that came into existence had a cause (something cannot come from nothing).
- The universe didn’t always exist, but there was a point in time when it began to exist (the first beginning) (proven by the Big Bang theory)
- Therefore, the argument is that the universe has a cause, and that cause is God.
This argument refutes ‘normal cosmology’ by showing that the Big Bang theory provides a starting point for the universe, and challenges the atheistic view of origins.
The concept of the Anthropocene
In 2023, the scientific community began to discuss the idea that humanity’s impact on the planet has been so great that we have entered a new geologic era, the Anthropocene. The term anthropocene is a combination of the Greek words anthropos, meaning humanity, and cene, meaning era, and means that human activity is having an indelible impact on the global environment. This calls for a new reflection on the relationship between humanity and nature, and even the relationship between God and man.