Can we be certain about the truth?

We yearn to know the truth, whether about astronomy, God, family history, or politics. But what is the best method to find the truth about a specific subject? How certain can we be about whether what we discover is actually true?

A modern view is that science provides the best method to discover the truth and that it can provide certainty. This view was developed and advocated in 18th century Europe following the scientific revolution and the Enlightenment. This perspective obtained significant intellectual credibility due to the success of Newton's theories of gravity and mechanical motion. These theories provided highly accurate descriptions of the motion of bodies, whether that of planets or cannonballs. Science was certain, in contrast to "faith". Science provided a method to discover the truth about everything.

But, people are not planets or cannonballs. Biological cells are not cannonballs or planets. To study people, literature, biological cells, or the Triune God an approach that is appropriate to the object under study is necessary. Chemistry, condensed matter physics, psychology, sociology, and theology all involve different methods, assumptions, and concepts. This also leads to different criteria for deciding what is true, and the levels of certainty that are possible. This is now generally accepted by academics who study the history and philosophy of science. However, this view has not spread to most scientists, particularly those who are perceived as "public intellectuals." 

Newton's success is to be admired and celebrated. But it does not follow that a similar approach is appropriate for other fields of study. Neither should we necessarily expect similar levels of certainty.

In the first few pages of Karl Barth's Evangelical Theology: An Introduction  he states that theology is a "science" [wissenschaft = a discipline of study] because it seeks

"to apprehend a specific object and its environment in the manner directed by the phenomonen itself...to understand it on its own terms and to speak of it along with all the implications of its existence." 

In the next post, I will discuss in more detail why the success of Newton led to such seismic intellectual shifts.