Does Science Disprove God?
Science and religion are like two sides of the same coin who have worked harmoniously together for most of history. They are two separate fields of study who both seek truth in different ways. However, since “The Enlightenment,” atheists and skeptics have proclaimed that science has replaced religion, which is superstitious and outdated. This triumphant opposition has been raised to a whole new level with the “New Atheists” who possess great animosity towards religion and people of faith. They believe that science and religion are mortal enemies locked in a battle for power, a battle which science will win because science has proof for what it advances while religion has nothing but blind faith. They assert that there is no evidence for God whatsoever.
But, it this true? Is it true that Catholics “just believe” or “just have to have faith” while we throw reason out the window? On the contrary, the Catholic Church has always held that faith and reason work together, side by side!
The truth is that these atheists are just blowing hot air. Nothing else. There is a lot of proof for the existence of God, which I will discuss over the next few posts. And, science absolutely cannot disprove God, now or ever. So let’s begin.
Does Science disprove God?
This brings us to a crucial point – What is Proof?
Today, most people would attribute proof solely to the study of science. Generally, when pressed for evidence on the existence of God, atheists desire to see some empirical scientific demonstration that will show that God is real without a doubt. The problem with this double standard is that science cannot prove most things without a shadow of a doubt, not even natural things. While I love the study of science, there is such a limit to what it can do, what it can tell us.
More to the point, science cannot prove or disprove God in any regard. Nor, can this field pronounce any judgment on the matter at all. By definition, science is the empirical study of the natural world. It deals with things that can be seen, observed, and tested through hypothesis and repeated experiment. God is purely spiritual in nature. He is not made up of matter or material parts in any way. He cannot be seen, observed, or tested by any experiment, and therefore, the question of God necessarily falls outside the realm of science. God, who made the laws of the universe, is not subject to them. Since, science cannot possibly test for God with any of their instruments, they cannot have any say on the matter whatsoever. By definition, the question of God is outside the scope and competency of science.
There are some who accept the fable that, “If it cannot be demonstrated by science, then it cannot be true,” or that “science will eventually prove everything.” This statement is hopelessly false and itself cannot be proven scientifically. The assumption is that scientific conclusions are the only way to prove anything at all. This fallacy is called scientism. With our limited understanding, scientifically speaking, we still do not even understand matter, how bumble bees fly, what is inside a black hole for sure, or what is beyond the limited number of galaxies we can observe, and countless other things. If we are so limited in our knowledge of natural, material things, how can we ever begin to sanely consider that we have the ability to pronounce judgment on spiritual, non-material realities that science cannot even conceive of or touch upon?
Science, and we as human beings, are only capable of viewing a tiny fraction of the unimaginable number of countless galaxies and universes that exist. Moreover, it is almost certain that we could never view, discover, or even reach most of the natural universes in existence because of quantum theory. So, because of our severe limitations in knowledge and understanding, how can one possibly think that science can disprove God so easily when we are not privy to all, or even a fraction of all the evidence in existence? How does science therefore think it can reach God or assess His reality (He who is beyond – transcends – all the material worlds? The answer is that it can’t. Science is completely incapable of disproving God.
Similarly, in avowing that scientific proof alone can be trusted, we forget that there are other studies that produce truth too. Philosophy and Mathematics are two examples. Math is far more trustworthy than science is. 2+2=4. This is always the case. It is not possible to be something different. In contrast, “truth” and “proof” in science changes repeatedly. Scientists understand that their conclusions and “facts,” may be overturned at any time through new evidence and discovery. There is no way to know if we have considered all the evidence on a particular issue. This is true in relation to God as well. So the claim that science is the be-all and end-all of proof is demonstratively false.
Christians have postulated evidence for the existence of God, in varying degrees, for almost 2000 years. In the 1200s, Thomas Aquinas produced the definitive apologetic work on answering questions of the faith, including the issue God’s existence. Very few atheists have actually read Aquinas, fewer even understand him and attempt to grapple with his wisdom, and fewer still do not present him accurately without stooping to condescending caricatures. Finally, the few who do attempt to refute Aquinas, like Richard Dawkins, only spend a couple of pages attempting to do so, and do not succeed in any compelling way. This is perhaps why Dawkins tends to sling a barrage of insults rather than provide a solid, well-thought out rebuttal.
So while there is no “scientific proof” for God’s existence, this does not mean that there is no proof whatsoever. On the contrary, there is sufficient causal evidence that necessarily points to a Creator. I will present a few of these over the next several posts regarding this topic. So stay tuned and share this with others.
As we shall see, it is far more reasonable and rational to believe in God than to hold to the atheistic alternative!
