Famous Scientists Who Believed in God
Belief in God
Is belief in the
existence of God irrational? These days, many famous scientists are
also strong proponents of atheism. However, in the past, and even
today, many scientists believe that God exists and is responsible
for what we see in nature. This is a small sampling of scientists
who contributed to the development of modern science while believing
in God. Although many people believe in a "God
of the gaps", these scientists, and still others alive today, believe
because of the evidence.
- Nicholas Copernicus (1473-1543)
Copernicus was the Polish astronomer who put forward the first
mathematically based system of planets going around the sun. He attended
various European universities, and became a Canon in the Catholic church in
1497. His new system was actually first presented in the Vatican gardens in
1533 before Pope Clement VII who approved, and urged Copernicus to
publish it around this time. Copernicus was never under any threat of religious
persecution - and was urged to publish both by Catholic Bishop Guise,
Cardinal Schonberg, and the Protestant Professor George Rheticus. Copernicus
referred sometimes to God in his works, and did not see his system as in
conflict with the Bible.
- Sir Francis Bacon (1561-1627)
Bacon was a philosopher who is known for establishing the scientific method
of inquiry based on experimentation and inductive reasoning. In De
Interpretatione Naturae Prooemium, Bacon established his goals as being
the discovery of truth, service to his country, and service to the church.
Although his work was based upon experimentation and reasoning, he rejected
atheism as being the result of insufficient depth of philosophy, stating,
"It is true, that a little philosophy inclineth man’s mind to atheism, but
depth in philosophy bringeth men's minds about to religion; for while the
mind of man looketh upon second causes scattered, it may sometimes rest in
them, and go no further; but when it beholdeth the chain of them
confederate, and linked together, it must needs fly to Providence and
Deity." (Of
Atheism)
- Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)
Kepler was a brilliant mathematician and astronomer. He did early
work on light, and established the laws of planetary motion about the sun.
He also came close to reaching the Newtonian concept of universal gravity -
well before Newton was born! His introduction of the idea of force in
astronomy changed it radically in a modern direction. Kepler was an
extremely sincere and pious Lutheran, whose works on astronomy contain
writings about how space and the heavenly bodies represent the Trinity.
Kepler suffered no persecution for his open avowal of the sun-centered
system, and, indeed, was allowed as a Protestant to stay in Catholic Graz as
a Professor (1595-1600) when other Protestants had been expelled!
- Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)
Galileo is often remembered for his conflict with the Roman
Catholic Church. His controversial work on the solar system was published in
1633. It had no proofs of a sun-centered system (Galileo's telescope
discoveries did not indicate a moving earth) and his one "proof"
based upon the tides was invalid. It ignored the correct elliptical orbits
of planets published twenty five years earlier by Kepler. Since his work
finished by putting the Pope's favorite argument in the mouth of the
simpleton in the dialogue, the Pope (an old friend of Galileo's) was very
offended. After the "trial" and being forbidden to teach the
sun-centered system, Galileo did his most useful theoretical work, which was
on dynamics. Galileo expressly said that the Bible cannot err, and saw his
system as an alternate interpretation of the biblical texts.
- Rene Descartes (1596-1650)
Descartes was a French mathematician, scientist and philosopher who
has been called the father of modern philosophy. His school studies made him
dissatisfied with previous philosophy: He had a deep religious faith as a
Roman Catholic, which he retained to his dying day, along with a resolute,
passionate desire to discover the truth. At the age of 24 he had a dream,
and felt the vocational call to seek to bring knowledge together in one
system of thought. His system began by asking what could be known if all
else were doubted - suggesting the famous "I think therefore I
am". Actually, it is often forgotten that the next step for Descartes
was to establish the near certainty of the existence of God - for only if
God both exists and would not want us to be deceived by our experiences - can
we trust our senses and logical thought processes. God is, therefore,
central to his whole philosophy. What he really wanted to see was that his
philosophy be adopted as standard Roman Catholic teaching. Rene Descartes and Francis
Bacon (1561-1626) are generally regarded as the key figures in the
development of scientific methodology. Both had systems in which God was
important, and both seem more devout than the average for their era.
- Blaise Pascal (1623-1662)
Pascal was a French mathematician, physicist, inventor, writer and
theologian. In mathematics, he published a treatise on the subject of
projective geometry and established the foundation for probability theory.
Pascal invented a mechanical calculator, and established the principles of
vacuums and the pressure of air. He was raised a Roman Catholic, but in 1654
had a religious vision of God, which turned the direction of his study from
science to theology. Pascal began publishing a theological work, Lettres
provinciales, in 1656. His most influential theological work, the
Pensées ("Thoughts"), was a defense of Christianity, which was
published after his death. The most famous concept from Pensées was
Pascal's Wager. Pascal's last words were,
"May God never abandon me."
- Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
In optics, mechanics, and mathematics, Newton was a figure of
undisputed genius and innovation. In all his science (including chemistry)
he saw mathematics and numbers as central. What is less well known is that
he was devoutly religious and saw numbers as involved in understanding God's plan for history
from the Bible. He did a considerable work on biblical
numerology, and, though aspects of his beliefs were not orthodox, he thought
theology was very important. In his system of physics, God was essential to the
nature and absoluteness of space. In Principia he stated, "The
most beautiful system of the sun, planets, and comets, could only proceed
from the counsel and dominion of an intelligent and powerful Being."
- Robert Boyle (1791-1867)
One of the founders and key early members of the Royal Society,
Boyle gave his name to "Boyle's Law" for gases, and also wrote an
important work on chemistry. Encyclopedia Britannica says of him:
"By his will he endowed a series of Boyle lectures, or sermons, which
still continue, 'for proving the Christian religion against notorious
infidels...' As a devout Protestant, Boyle took a special interest in
promoting the Christian religion abroad, giving money to translate and
publish the New Testament into Irish and Turkish. In 1690 he developed his
theological views in The Christian Virtuoso, which he wrote to show that the
study of nature was a central religious duty." Boyle wrote against
atheists in his day (the notion that atheism is a modern invention is a
myth), and was clearly much more devoutly Christian than the average in his
era.
- Michael Faraday (1791-1867)
Michael Faraday
was the son of a blacksmith who became one of the greatest
scientists
of the 19th century. His work on electricity and magnetism not only
revolutionized physics, but led to much of our lifestyles today,
which
depends on them (including computers and telephone lines and, so,
web sites).
Faraday was a devoutly Christian member of the Sandemanians, which
significantly influenced him and strongly affected the way in which
he
approached and interpreted nature. Originating from Presbyterians,
the Sandemanians rejected the idea of state churches, and tried to go
back to a New Testament type of Christianity.
- Gregor Mendel (1822-1884)
Mendel was the first to lay the mathematical foundations of
genetics, in what came to be called "Mendelianism". He began his
research in 1856 (three years before Darwin published his Origin of Species)
in the garden of the Monastery in which he was a monk. Mendel was elected
Abbot of his Monastery in 1868. His work remained comparatively unknown
until the turn of the century, when a new generation of botanists began
finding similar results and "rediscovered" him (though their ideas
were not identical to his). An interesting point is that the 1860's was
notable for
formation of the X-Club, which was dedicated to lessening religious influences and
propagating an image of "conflict" between science and religion.
One sympathizer was Darwin's cousin Francis
Galton, whose scientific interest was in genetics (a proponent of
eugenics - selective breeding among humans to "improve" the
stock). He was writing how the "priestly mind" was not conducive
to science while, at around the same time, an Austrian monk was making the
breakthrough in genetics. The rediscovery of the work of Mendel came too
late to affect Galton's contribution.
- William Thomson Kelvin (1824-1907)
Kelvin was foremost among the small group of British scientists who
helped to lay the foundations of modern physics. His work covered many areas
of physics, and he was said to have more letters after his name than anyone
else in the Commonwealth, since he received numerous honorary degrees from
European Universities, which recognized the value of his work. He was a very
committed Christian, who was certainly more religious than the average for his era.
Interestingly, his fellow physicists George Gabriel Stokes (1819-1903) and
James Clerk Maxwell (1831-1879) were also men of deep Christian commitment,
in an era when many were nominal, apathetic, or anti-Christian. The
Encyclopedia Britannica says "Maxwell is regarded by most modern
physicists as the scientist of the 19th century who had the greatest
influence on 20th century physics; he is ranked with Sir Isaac Newton and
Albert Einstein for the fundamental nature of his contributions." Lord
Kelvin was an Old Earth creationist, who estimated the Earth's age to be
somewhere between 20 million and 100 million years, with an upper limit at
500 million years based on cooling rates (a low estimate due to his lack of
knowledge about radiogenic heating).
- Max Planck (1858-1947)
Planck made many contributions to physics, but is best known for
quantum theory, which revolutionized our understanding of the atomic and
sub-atomic worlds. In his 1937 lecture "Religion and Naturwissenschaft,"
Planck expressed the view that God is everywhere present, and held that
"the holiness of the unintelligible Godhead is conveyed by the holiness
of symbols." Atheists, he thought, attach too much importance to what
are merely symbols. Planck was a churchwarden from 1920 until his death, and
believed in an almighty, all-knowing, beneficent God (though not necessarily
a personal one). Both science and religion wage a "tireless battle
against skepticism and dogmatism, against unbelief and superstition"
with the goal "toward God!"
- Albert Einstein (1879-1955)
Einstein is probably the best known and most highly revered
scientist of the twentieth century, and is associated with major revolutions
in our thinking about time, gravity, and the conversion of matter to energy
(E=mc2). Although never coming to belief in a personal God, he
recognized the impossibility of a non-created universe. The Encyclopedia
Britannica says of him: "Firmly denying atheism, Einstein expressed a
belief in "Spinoza's God who reveals himself in the harmony of what
exists." This actually motivated his interest in science, as he once
remarked to a young physicist: "I want to know how God created this
world, I am not interested in this or that phenomenon, in the spectrum of
this or that element. I want to know His thoughts, the rest are
details." Einstein's famous epithet on the "uncertainty
principle" was "God does not play dice" - and to him this was
a real statement about a God in whom he believed. A famous saying of his was
"Science without religion is lame, religion without science is
blind."
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