Conflict between Science and Religion

Is there a Conflict between Science and Religion?

We acknowledge that "problems undoubtedly exist within our community in reconciling our various understandings of Scripture with the discoveries of science — are they inevitable? what if they are actually unable to be reconciled? If so, we would be wasting our time "giving attention to solving these difficulties".

• understanding(s) of Scripture:

• discoveries of Science:

• Editors' endorsement of this statement of the problem

Solutions already proposed

For a quick overview of ways that Science and Religion might relate, see this essay on The Relationship Between Science and Religion.

• by Christadelphians

See links to bro Stephen Snobelen's guest posts at Biologos.org here or here

Bro Ken Gilmore has written several posts on the topic.

At Qms:Should Christadelphians reject the sciences. . . ? brother Alan Eyre argues strongly for respect for Science, and reports his own and brother Islip Collyer's belief that there is no conflict between Science and religion.

At Qms:The Irony of Christadelphian YEC brother Alan Fowler argues against YEC's "false choice" between the Bible and geology, and points out the irony that some Christadelphians reject doctrines such as a literal devil through "understanding that much of the Bible is not written in literal language," only to "capitulat[e] to an American fundamentalist interpretation of Genesis 1" and insist on a literal interpretation of Genesis in opposition to well-known facts.

• by others

See Relating Science and Religion, which covers a variety of efforts to organise our thinking about how Science and Religion relate. One example, summarised in the essay linked above by Karl Giberson, is Ian Barbour's classification of “four ways that science and religion could relate”. This is a brief summary:

1. Confict

   Each is antagonistic to the other: scientific materialism, often atheistic, versus biblical literalism.

2. Independence

   Religion and Science have contrasting methods, ideas and languages. The domains in which they have authority are entirely different: "non-overlapping magisteria".

3. Dialogue

   There are topics on which both Religion and Science have valid perspectives; these are complementary, so that each can inform the other.

4. Integration

   Science needs religion and religion needs science: each is incomplete without the other.

Note, however, that Barbour's system only deals with the concepts and propositions (or doctrines) of Science and Religion: others have considered both domains more broadly. For more information about the work of Barbour and others, follow the links from Relating Science and Religion.

Relevant Scriptures

Job 12:7-10

Isaiah 5:12