The faith of the founders of quantum theory

A common claim is that there is a dichotomy of faith vs. reason when it comes to the relationship between Christian belief and science. However, I would claim that both involve faith, evidence, and reason. The nature of that faith, evidence, and reason is different in the two cases, but it is there.

With regard to the successful development of quantum theory Paul Dirac wrote that for Erwin Schrodinger and himself

It was a sort of act of faith with us that any questions which describe fundamental laws of nature must have great mathematical beauty in them. It was a very profitable religion to hold and can be considered as the basis of much of our success.

Dirac, P. (1977): In: History of Twentieth Century Physics. Proceedings of the International School of Physics "Enrico Fermi", Course 57, New York: Academic Press, p. 136.


I thank Denis Alexander for bringing this quotation to my attention.

Two key points about science and religion

Just because we can explain something without God (e.g. the Big bang, evolution of life) does not mean that God is not involved in the process.

Just because science cannot explain something now does not mean that it requires an explanation involving God.

Science and religion in Edinburgh

The University of Edinburgh is initiating a new Masters degree in Science and Religion and an associated position as a Lecturer has been advertised in the School of Divinity.
This sounds like a great initiative and opportunity, both for students and for some aspiring young academic.
I thank David Reimer for letting me know about this.

Awe and wonder

Contemplating the natural world can produce awe and wonder. The greater understanding that comes with scientific knowledge can lead to even greater awe and wonder. How might we respond?
Should we feel insignificant in light of the vastness of the universe? We live in the orbit of one star which is just one of 200-400 billion stars in one galaxy. Yet there are more than 100 billion galaxies in the whole universe.

We should be humbled. Psalm 8 says

³When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers,
   the moon and the stars, which you have set in place,
⁴ what is man that you are mindful of him,
   and the son of man that you care for him?

 ⁵Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings
   and crowned him with glory and honor.
⁶You have given him dominion over the works of your hands;
    you have put all things under his feet

Aside: Why should we have such strong feelings of awe and wonder?

Does this tell us something about our connection to the material world?

There is something even more striking and awesome than the natural world. It is that the same God who created all these stars actually cares so much about each one of us that he sent his one and only Son Jesus to die for us.

This post was inspired by hearing a sermon this morning along these lines by Rodney Holder. An earlier post which explores some similar issues is How should we respond to scientific success?

Cracking under pressure

Worldly success does not remove the vulnerability to mental health problems. Indeed, the successful are often more prone for two reasons. First, the same mental make up (singlemindedness, creativity, sensitivity,..) that can contribute to success can also make one more vulnerable. Second, success usually leads to pressure for more and greater success.

Sports stars are particularly vunerable. There is a good article Ignorance to mental illness not bliss about mental health issues amongst professional footballers. I thank my son for bringing it to my attention.

Desperately seeking redemption

My family and I enjoyed watching the movie Seven Pounds. It generated lots of good discussion within the family. I found it rather intense and struggled to follow the plot, particularly at the beginning. But, it was worth the effort. It has a strong theme of redemption through sacrifice. But, it is very non-Christian with regard to several implicit beliefs. First, it has the implicit belief that this is only life there is. Second, there are "good" people and "bad" people. The former deserve to be blessed, particularly when life deals them "unfair" cards. Third, it raises questions about whether suicide might actually be ethical (and admirable) in certain circumstances.

Apologetics in the non-Western world

Understanding the relationship between science and the Bible is a key issue in Western apologetics. But how is this issue relevant in non-Western countries such as India?
[An earlier post briefly discussed this issue].

Western apologetics seems to be shaped by Enlightenment values and has an emphasis on

• the law of non-contradiction and unique truth claims
• logical, systematic and linear arguments
• conceptual and methodological foundations
• reductionism rather than holism
• universality rather than particularity
• objectivity rather than subjectivity
• time is linear

This approach downplays

• ambiguity
• feelings, emotion, and personal experience
• beauty and aesthetics

In India there is a diversity of cultures, religions, gods, and points

of view...  This diversity is not just present but celebrated.

Science clearly shows that truth does matter. Not all views, beliefs, and theories are equally valid. Two contradictory ideas cannot both be true. However, there are often paradoxes (particularly in quantum theory) where two apparently contradictory claims can be both true.

Science does show that (in some sense) time is linear. But how can this be related to Biblical and non-western views of time and history?

In writing this post I found helpful an entry by Atul Aghamkar, “Christian Apologetics in the Non-Western World: A South Asian Perspective”, in the New Dictionary of Christian Apologetics. (I thank my dear wife for finding this article).