June 2009 - Vol. 31, No. 6

The Revd Steve Osman writes...

You may have noticed how some car drivers put fish shaped stickers on their cars. If you don't know what they mean, it's from the very early church days when it was dangerous to be known as a Christian, and the fish was a secret sign used to identify yourself as a Christian - a bit like a password. The Greek word for fish is Ichthus and those letters were shorthand for Jesus Christ Son of God - it's all Greek to me, I hear you say!

What I've also noticed in recent months is that some cars have a similar badge, but the fish shape has legs and the word "Darwin" in the middle. These symbols seem to be a reaction to the Christian symbol, proclaiming that evolution, not God, is what the driver believes in.

These badges are symbols of the perceived clash between science and religion. Charles Darwin is the adopted hero of those who say science has replaced the need for superstition and unprovable faith. I just want to say that there doesn't need to be such polarisation - it doesn't need to be one or the other. It is perfectly possible to be a scientist and a Christian. My understanding is that Darwin lost his faith, not because of his scientific research, but because of the death of his daughter. The most he would call himself was agnostic, not atheist and my guess is, he would be appalled to see his name being hijacked in such a way.

I don't understand why some persist in creating a gulf between science and religion. The earliest scientists were people of faith who simply wanted to explore how God did what he did. Today, there are biologists or cosmologists who discover more of the amazing complexity of organisms or the vastness of the universe and find their faith in a Creator deepened. I, as a non-scientist, read Genesis and think it sounds pretty much like evolution. For me, it takes more faith to believe that the universe is all a matter of chance, than to believe in a creator.

It's not so much a clash between science and religion than a clash between world-views. There are basically three world-views; theistic - there is a divine being behind all things; atheistic - there is no divinity, all is random; pantheistic - everything is God.

I'm all for folk making up their own minds where they fit in all this, please stop using science as the referee. How about examining evidence about Jesus?

Steve Osman