Faith and Facts: Can Belief in God Coexist With Science? (By Jaehyun Kim)
- Isaac Shim
- Jul 10
- 3 min read
In a contemporary world brimming with extraordinary scientific achievements, ranging from genome editing to exploring extraterrestrial planets, many growing Christians are faced with a common dilemma: Can I believe in God and still trust Science? For many in the world, reason and faith are conflicting forces. However, as a Christian, I believe that faith and science complement each other, especially when understood correctly.
Firstly, it is essential to clear the misunderstanding that faith contrasts with reason. Faith is not defined as simply believing in something without logic or reason. The Bible supports the concept of reason in verses like Isaiah 1:18, where God explicitly states to “Come now, and let us reason together.” Just like how scientific theories rely on things we can’t directly touch, faith is about believing in what we cannot see.
C.S. Lewis, a former atheist who turned Christian, wrote, “I believe in Christianity as I believe that the Sun has risen not only because I see it but because by it I see everything else.” Lewis was once a professor at Oxford university for nearly 30 years and held major positions at Cambridge university including the Chair of Medieval. He is also the author of the acclaimed series “The Chronicles of Narnia”. His quote is evidence that faith is essentially a light that helps us understand everything else, like science.
Additionally, faith intrinsically explains what science cannot. Admittedly, science is amazing. It tells us how the stars have formed and how small atoms in our body behave. However, it doesn’t tell us why anything matters, like the concept of love or purpose in life. Galileo Galilei, a renowned astronomer, famously quoted, “Science tells us how the heavens go. Religion tells us how to go to heaven.” This message beautifully illustrates how faith and science answer distinct questions, proving how faith can enhance science and acknowledge deeper questions.
Finally, if faith and science could truly not coexist, how can one explain the myriad of brilliant scientists who were also believers? For instance, Isaac Newton, the father of physics and calculus, spent more time with Bible study than in his respective fields. Gregor Mendel, the founder of genetics, was a Roman Catholic Augustinian abbot. Blaise Pascal, inventor of the early calculator and hydraulic press, deeply justified his belief in God, famously saying, “The heart has its reasons, which reason does not know.”
These people didn’t set aside faith to pursue careers as scientists. Instead, they embraced their belief and saw science as a medium to understand God’s creation even more deeply.
As a Christian teenager, I often struggle and speculate whether science and religion are homogeneous elements. Miracles, for example, are one of many events of the Bible that are not easily explained by human rationality. Phenomenons like Jesus walking on water and raising the dead still befuddle modern scientists who are equipped with sophisticated technology. Even they admit that miracles, by definition, cannot be tested under scientific conditions. However, this doesn’t make them any less real—just like how we believe in assassination of Julius Caesar or the signing of the Declaration of Independence despite there not being any tangible footage of these events.
Furthermore, theories like evolution gaining prominence have caused many Christians to have doubts about their faith. But instead of fearing them and stagnating one’s spirituality, there is a quote from Proverbs 25:2 that directly encourages humans to seek and explore for the truth from the wise instructions of King Solomon himself: “It is the glory of God to conceal a matter; to search out a matter is the glory of kings.” That’s what science is all about, and so is faith.
Faith and science are not rivals but interwoven partners. Science is what explores God’s creation, and faith helps us interpret what everything means. As Francis Bacon, philosopher and one of the fathers of the scientific method, said, “A little science estranges a man from God; a lot of science brings him back.”
As believers, we should not feel torn apart between our love for God and natural curiosity about the universe, which is the human nature God deliberately designed. Christians should view faith and science as part of the same journey—one that leads to both knowledge and wisdom.
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