Are science and faith contradictory? Some Atheists (and Christians) believe they are. But Michael Strauss disagrees. Strauss, a Physics professor at the University of Oklahoma and one of the scientists who helped discover the Higgs boson particle (the so-called “God particle”), is both a Christian and a scientist.
In a recent lecture at Southeastern Seminary, Strauss explained how he integrates faith and science, and he offers key scientific evidence for God. Later in the lecture, he offers his take on the “the Big Bang and the Bible” and defends his position on the day-age theory.
Watch the lecture above. Below is a key excerpt and an outline of his main points. (For more perspectives on these topics, watch the recordings of our Historical Adam Conference and Noah’s Flood and the Age of the Earth Conference.)
“The truth God gives us in Scripture should align with the truth he gives in nature. And that’s what I’ve found.”
Dr. Strauss’ introduction to his lecture
“People come to me and say: ‘Christian scientist… Isn’t that an oxymoron? Is it possible to be a Christian and scientist?’ My non-Christian friends think that can’t happen because the Bible’s a book written by men, it’s full of myths. And doesn’t science contradict everything in the Bible, particularly the story of creation? My Christian friends say the same thing. They say science is dominated by non-theistic assumptions. ‘How can you trust what it says? And doesn’t the story of creation disagree with what science has found?’
“But in reality we know that can’t be the case — this apparent contradiction. Why can’t it be the case? Because the same author who created the universe wrote the book of Scripture. And the same author should speak with a single voice when he talks in the universe or when he talks in his Word. And he’s a God of truth; he cannot lie. So the truth he gives us in Scripture should align with the truth he gives in nature. And that’s what I’ve found.
“I have a friend who’s an artist; he’s actually a very good artist; one of his paintings hangs in the state capitol of Oklahoma…. He says that when you look at a piece of art, you see the soul of the artist. As a scientist, I get to look at God’s piece of art and I get to see his soul. And I want to share some of the things I’ve learned, some of the modern scientific evidence that actually points to God. Science doesn’t move us away from God, but the better we understand nature, the more we look at in detail, the more science actually draws us toward God.
“I often give this talk at secular universities. I just gave it at North Carolina State last night, and we talked there about the scientific evidence for God. (How does God show himself in nature?) And I want to talk about three things: The origin of the universe, the design in the universe, and something called the rare earth hypothesis.”
An outline of Dr. Strauss’ main points
- The Origin of the Universe
“If we lived 100 years ago, scientists didn’t know that the universe even had an origin. But now every scientist believes the universe had a beginning, something that’s called the ‘Big Bang.’ It’s really a misnomer; there’s nothing there to bang. The term was coined by a scientist named Fred Hoyle who didn’t believe the universe had a beginning and thought if he came up with an audacious name for this beginning, then no scientist would ever accept it. So he coined a silly term, ‘the big bang,’ and it stuck. “ - The Design of the Universe
“The anthropic principle says the universe appears to be designed.” - The Rare Earth Hypothesis
“This planet really looks unique. It’s as if a creator cared about the beings on the planet. Because if you do the numbers, we probably shouldn’t be here.” - “The Big Bang and the Bible”
Strauss seeks to reconcile the Big Bang with Genesis 1-2, and he defends the day-age theory.
Comments and Pingbacks
2019-03-26 09:35:34
Phil Shepard
Iâm a follower of Jesus. I work in IT and I want this ministry and website to thrive. It is not a secure website. Please correct this for your own safety. Having a website that is not secure will also reduce your visibility and credibility. Search engines will demote or even omit you.
2019-04-18 06:01:12
This Easter, Bring Your Brain with You | Intersect
[…] be faithful. The secular sphere is filled with intelligent, hard-working people of faith, such as Michael Strauss, a physics professor at the University of Oklahoma, or Thomas Kidd, a history professor at Baylor […]
2021-06-10 13:59:08
Neil
The god of the bible has the brains of a Stone Age fool. His top 10 commandments donât include rape or slavery, but 2 are about coveting. He drowned all the people and animals on the planet because some people were doing bad things. This was the dumbest solution every created.