Models for Integrating Faith and Science

GOD AND CREATION

© 2011 David W. Opderbeck

Licensed Under Creative Commons Attribution / Share-Alike

DISCURSUS: UNITY• Our essential unity is located in our relationship to each other in Jesus Christ, not

in abstract theologies

• “By this will everyone know that you are my disciples, that you love one another.” John 13:35

• “If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.” (1 Cor. 13:1)

• “Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.” (1 John 4:7-9)

DISCURSUS: UNITY

• Doctrinal statements are human statements embedded in historical and cultural contexts.

• God transcends all human statements about Him. “The map is not the territory.”

• Truth does not change, but theology and doctrine develop

• Theology can be thought of as a sort of “science”

• A “science” is the human investigation of reality

DISCURSUS: UNITY

• Yet, part of our responsibility to each other and to the world is to express in human words the beautiful truths of God’s being and mission – good thinking supports good living

• We carry out this responsibility by expressing theology and doctrine

DISCURSUS: UNITY

• Theology and doctrine therefore matter:

• They are part of giving proper glory to God – ortho / doxy

• They are part of commending participation in God’s mission to others

• They are part of training God’s people in worshipful living – ortho / praxy

• They are part of declaring who God is in contrast to and supremacy over the “powers and principalities” that oppose God and seek destruction

DISCURSUS: UNITY

• Still: “the map is not the territory.” Theology is a “second order” discipline. God in Himself is primary.

• Theology and doctrine should proceed in a spirit of generosity and charity.

• Theology and doctrine should proceed carefully and always returning to that which is basic and central.

• “Theology is worship, and after that, silence.”

DISCURSUS: UNITY

• What is “good” theology?

• The narrative of God’s mission in redeeming all of creation is centered in the story of the incarnation, life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ

DISCURSUS: UNITY

• The principal statements about God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, and the Church that nearly all Christians have held in common across historical, cultural and denominational differences are summarized in the Rule of Faith and the early ecumenical Creeds (e.g. the Apostle’s and Nicene Creeds)

• We find our basic theological unity and the center of all our thinking in the Triune God revealed in Christ – the incarnation, death, and resurrection of Christ, and Christ’s unique role as savior and judge.

• From there, we move outward to map areas that may be important but are not as central.

DISCURSUS: UNITY

“For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance : that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve” -- 1 Cor. 15:3-5

“This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God.” – 1 John 4:2-3

DISCURSUS: UNITY

The “Rule of Faith”

"one God, the Creator of heaven and earth, and all things therein, by means of Christ Jesus, the Son of God; who, because of His surpassing love towards His creation, condescended to be born of the virgin, He Himself uniting man through Himself to God, and having suffered under Pontius Pilate, and rising again, and having been received up in splendour, shall come in glory, the Saviour of those who are saved, and the Judge of those who are judged, and sending into eternal fire those who transform the truth, and despise His Father and His advent."

-- Irenaeus of Lyon (180 A.D.)

Note that, while the “Rule of Faith” is drawn from scripture, it also was used to help define the canon of scripture. The Rule of Faith organizes our definition and interpretation of scripture because scripture ultimately is about God’s saving work in Christ.

DISCURSUS: UNITYWe believe in one God,the Father, the Almighty,maker of heaven and earth,of all that is, seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ,the only son of God,eternally begotten of the Father,God from God, Light from Light,true God from true God,begotten, not made,of one being with the Father.Through him all things were made.For us and for our salvationhe came down from heaven:by the power of the Holy Spirithe became incarnate from the Virgin Mary,and was made man.For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate;he suffered death and was buried.On the third day he rose againin accordance with the Scriptures;he ascended into heavenand is seated at the right hand of the Father.

He will come again in gloryto judge the living and the dead,and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,who proceeds from the Father [and the Son].With the Father and the Sonhe is worshipped and glorified.He has spoken through the Prophets.We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church.We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins.We look for the resurrection of the dead,and the life of the world to come. AMEN.

-- Nicene Creed (325 A.D.)

DISCURSUS: UNITY

“The Great Church committed itself not to a universally invariable statement of faith but to variable local tellings of a particular story that aspired to universal significance.”

-- P.M. Bowers, "The Regula Fidei and the Narrative Character of Early Christian Faith," Pro Ecclesia 6 [1997]: 208

DISCURSUS: UNITY

In other words… our unity is primarily in Christ’s active work in the world and in the Church, not primarily in the precise formulations of any system of doctrine. Yet we strive to honor and worship God and to witness to His glory by speaking of Him and His work truthfully.

THEOLOGICAL SCIENCE AND NATURAL SCIENCE: MODELS OF INTEGRATION

• A model is a proposal for how to think about something

• Models, by definition, simplify complex problems in order to clarify important issues

THEOLOGICAL SCIENCE AND NATURAL SCIENCE: MODELS OF INTEGRATION

• Central elements of any model for integrating Christian theology and the natural sciences with “faith seeking understanding”• The Triune God as creator• Creation as creation

• Christ as Redeemer and Judge of all creation• Honest and comprehensive understanding of available empirical data• Honest and comprehensive understanding of the methods and schools of

thought of branches of the contemporary natural sciences

THEOLOGICAL SCIENCE AND NATURAL SCIENCE: MODELS OF INTEGRATION

• Important Elements of any model for integrating Christian theology and the natural sciences that are not in themselves central• Interpreting specific Biblical texts about creation• Apologetic considerations – whether the model is credible to

non-Christians• In some contexts: integrating and interpreting subscription to

specific confessional documents

THEOLOGICAL SCIENCE AND NATURAL SCIENCE: MODELS OF INTEGRATION

• Important Elements of any model for integrating Christian theology and the natural sciences that are not in themselves central

• Note: all of these important elements derive from and feed back into what we consider central. But it is helpful to remember that all of these are derivative and not themselves central.

• In particular: there is a dynamic relationship between the living presence of Christ and the Spirit speaking in and through the community of the Church, the Rule of Faith, the canon of scripture, and the central narrative of scripture that guides interpretation as we sit under scripture’s authority

• In other words: Word and Spirit are inseparable and Church is the location of God’s speech

SPECIFIC MODELS• Young Earth Creationism

• Biblical texts about creation, particularly in the early chapters of Genesis, are essentially straightforward and chronological historical narratives

• The heavens and earth, and all animals and humans, were created in six literal, 24-hour days

• Each “kind” of animal was separately created• Adam was directly created from dust and Eve was directly created from

Adam’s literal rib

SPECIFIC MODELS• Young Earth Creationism

• Biblical genealogies that trace lines of descent from Adam through Christ are essentially complete and literal

• Given six literal creation days and the lifespans in the genealogies, the earth and the universe is 6-12,000 years old

• Most of the geological features that modern geologists note as indications of great age, such as fossil layers, can be accounted for by Noah’s flood

SPECIFIC MODELS• Young Earth Creationism – Positives

• Apparently simpler reading of some Biblical texts about creation• Apparently simpler reading of the Biblical genealogies• Apparently simpler reading of the Noahic flood narrative• Theodicy: easier to attribute all “natural evil” to human sin (no death of

any kind, human or animal, before the Fall)• Apparently simpler reading of NT references to OT creation narratives,

particularly Paul’s references to Adam, sin and death

SPECIFIC MODELS• Young Earth Creationism – Negatives

• In the opinion of most trained scientists, both Christian and non-Christian, this model does not deal well with multiple, overwhelming lines of physical evidence

• Example: extensive fossil layers cannot be accounted for by a single catastrophic food

• Example: light from distant stars involves billions of light years of distance; changing the physical constant relating to speed of light would destroy “cosmic fine tuning”

SPECIFIC MODELS

• Young Earth Creationism – Negatives• Some young earth creationists seek to offer empirical models to

deal with these problems• Some rely on “Omphalos” arguments – “appearance of age”• Some acknowledge that empirical evidence does not favor their

position but hold to their position on the basis of their understanding of scripture

SPECIFIC MODELS• Old Earth Creationism

• The “days” of creation refer to long geological ages or sets of divine proclamations

• In most versions:• “Kinds” of animals were separately created (no “macro” evolution)• Literal creation of Adam from dust and Eve from Adam’s rib• Eden was a literal, unique protected space • The flood was a massive but localized event

SPECIFIC MODELS• Old Earth Creationism - Positives

• Integrates findings from the physical sciences – geology, chemistry, physics, astronomy

• Does not require any resort to Omphalos arguments for the age of the universe• Seeks to retain a Biblical hermeneutic (method of interpretation) that is important

in many traditions

SPECIFIC MODELS• Old Earth Creationism - Negatives

• Does not integrate well the findings from the biological sciences – often resorts to “appearance” arguments or incomplete data

• Even within the context of its own Biblical hermeneutic, many of its interpretive moves seem strained

• Theodicy – acknowledges the existence of “natural evil” before the Fall

SPECIFIC MODELS• Intelligent Design Creationism

• Argues that a divine or super-intelligent creator is the best explanation for the presence of “specified complex information” such as the information content of DNA

• Argues that some natural phenomena exhibit “irreducible complexity” and could not have self-assembled

SPECIFIC MODELS• Intelligent Design Creationism – Positives

• Avoids internecine debates over young earth vs. old earth creationism• Purports to take empirical evidence seriously on its own terms

• Intelligent Design Creationism – Negatives• Empirical arguments are weak and appear to have been debunked• “God of the Gaps”

SPECIFIC MODELS• Evolutionary Creationism

• The processes of physical and biological evolution described by the contemporary natural sciences are the means by which God created

• No “gaps” in the natural history of creation and no repeated divine “interventions” because all natural processes result from God’s power and will

• Some models: God is the primary cause and natural processes are secondary causes• Some models: God built a degree of creative freedom into the creation

SPECIFIC MODELS• Evolutionary Creationism

• Adam and Eve: various models• Representative retelling: Adam and Eve essentially are like literary figures that represent all people • Federal Representatives: Adam and Eve were individuals chosen by God to represent all humanity

• Some models: chosen at the dawn of human consciousness• Some models: perhaps Neolithic farmers

• Separate creation / intervention: Adam and Eve were created in some way apart from ordinary evolutionary processes

SPECIFIC MODELS• Evolutionary Creationism

• The Biblical creation narratives are not to be taken as chronological or “scientific” accounts of “how” God created

• Some models: in the ancient context these were texts primarily about “purpose” and “function,” and not about “material” origins

• Some models: God in scripture accommodates to and adopts human cultural ideas to communicate divine truth

• Similar interpretive moves, to varying degrees, concerning the early genealogies and other Gen. 1-11 narratives (including the flood) – i.e., Gen. 1-11 is a different genre of literature than modern historiography

SPECIFIC MODELS• Evolutionary Creationism -- Positives

• Seeks to integrate all well-substantiated scientific inquiry in all areas of natural and physical sciences• Attempts to understand the Biblical texts in their ancient context rather than as modern science texts

• Evolutionary Creationism – Negatives• Theodicy: evolution requires a history of extinction• Human origins and sin: need to understand NT teaching, particularly Paul’s relating to Adam and sin• Historic / confessional: many confessional traditions seem to require a more “literal” view of Adam and

a specific mechanism for the transmission of original sin

SPECIFIC MODELS – A CONCLUSION• Every model has significant problems, whether scientific, theological, or both• This is true of all model building in every discipline: there is no such thing as a perfect model, or else it would

not be a “model”!• If you are interested in these things, pray, study, pray, study, and as you do this, do not be afraid:

• To think;• To inquire;• To not have all the answers

• If you are not particularly interested in these things, don’t feel you need to be! God gives each of us different things to work on.

SPECIFIC MODELS – A CONCLUSION• Within a broad and generous commitment to what is central, and with love and charity towards each other, we can

respect and live with whatever differences we might have in thinking together about these different possible models• We can discuss and debate things we feel are important, and in some venues we might debate directly and forcefully --

but always with charity • Honest disagreement and debate does not have to lead to anger and division• Nobody, young or old, should ever be made to feel afraid of honestly investigating the world and working towards a

more satisfying model seeking to bring all of life together in the discipleship of heart, soul, mind and strength• Perhaps this spirit would be the best start to a more faithful missional witness concerning this important aspect of our

culture