As we all know, this forum supports the fact that Christianity and Science can go hand in hand. If we think back into the history of our world, we will note that society is becoming better due to the teaching of Jesus and methods and interests in the creation made by God. William Hendriksen, a theologian of the Christian Reformed Church, has said the following:
The influence of the gospel upon the thought and life of mankind scarcely can be overestimated. In some countries the blessed truths of Christianity affect human life in all its phases: political, economic, social, and intellectual. Only the individual who lacks the historic sense and is, therefore, unable to see the present in the light of conditions which prevailed throughout the world before Christ’s ascension, can fail to appreciate the glories of the millennial age in which we are now living. The prophecy found in Psalm 72 is being fulfilled before our eyes.
It is true that the world is still not perfect, that is to say, the world is not paradise. This can be seen in the incident of September 11. To steal a phrase from Franklin Delano Roosevelt: this is a day that will live in infamy. However, when we look back at history, Christianity and Science have contributed to a better world. Christianity has given to the world a level of morality that it never saw before the birth of our Lord by the virgin Mary. During the time of the Greco-Roman world, people lived with no hope. There was nothing to look forward to in the future. It was a dark and bleak time. After the fall of the Roman Empire in AD 476, the Teutonic tribes moved across Europe destroying what culture did exist. There were plagues and various sicknesses that existed everywhere. There were no cures for diseases that we consider to be mere troublesome illnesses today. It is true that this dark time influenced the church as well; however, people were still educated in a way by the church that led them in the pursuit of knowledge and learning. There were those who sought to find cures for diseases. There were others who sought to end tyranny. This lead to the establishment of the United States and Switzerland, lands that sought to bring freedom to their people. The English Civil War in 1649 helped bring democracy to Great Britain in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Today, Britain could be called a crowned republic. The people elect their representatives. As we all know, many priests in the church studied nature to find the answers of many of the world’s problems. This does not mean that science cannot be misused, however. One must only look back to the 1940’s to see that.
What must we do to make certain that science remains within its good intensions and the teachings of Jesus, the Son of God? We must make certain as Christians that science stays on its course to pursue the truth without its misusing of its methods. Can we do that? Are we up to the task? We can if we stand behind the teachings of our Lord and Savior Jesus. That is the answer.