GLEANINGS FROM THE SCRIPTURESA SUPREME BEING?By Keith L. EstesIn the movie Contact, Jodi Foster portrays Ellie Arroway, a beautiful young scientist obsessed with finding intelligent life on other planets. One day, as Ellie monitors radio transmissions from space, a coded message flashes across her computer screen. The stunned Ellie realizes that intelligent beings have communicated with Earth from beyond our galaxy. Decoding the instructions, Ellie and her colleagues discover the encrypted blueprint for an advanced spacecraft that will transport them to the distant galaxy, millions of light years from Earth. Once the spacecraft has been built, Ellie is chosen to become its sole passenger. Although Ellie’s boyfriend objects, her passion for meaning in life overpowers her love for him. Turning to him, Ellie explains her reason for leaving him. “I’ve been searching for something, some reason why we are here. What are we doing here? Who are we? Ellie speaks for many of us who wonder about life. Who are we, and why are we here? Has science with its new discoveries in outer space and inside the molecular world, reached a point where it can shed light on such profound questions? Never has there been a more exciting time in the history of science. What does the fine-tuning of cosmos and intricate complexity of DNA mean to us? In light of distant discoveries, many leading scientists have had their materialistic presuppositions challenged. One of those Sir Fred Hoyle, was a world-renowned astronomer and founder of the Institute of Astronomy at Cambridge. Although Hoyle remained an agnostic, the brilliant astronomer remarked, “A common sense interpretation of the facts suggests that a super-intellect has monkeyed with physics, as well as chemistry and biology.” Hoyle is not alone. Other great scientists have alluded to the compelling evidence for design in the universe; yet have been unwilling to ask the question of who planned it, or to delve into the reason behind the universe. Stephen Hawking admits scientists reticence to probe question of our origins, stating, “There must be religious overtones. But I think most scientists prefer to shy away from the religious side of it.” However, there are scientists who are not so shy, and are asking profound questions. Why is the universe so finely tuned for life? Has a designer left his fingerprints? Why are we here? Although Hawking tries to avoid religious discussion, he still asks, “What is it that breathes fire into the equations and makes a universe for them to describe? The usual approach to science of constructing a mathematical model cannot answer the questions of why there should be a universe for the model to describe.” Up to now, most scientists have been too occupied with the development of new theories that describe what the universe is to ask the question, why. On the other hand, the people whose business it is to ask why, the philosophers, have not been able to keep up with the advance of scientific theories.” Here Hawking opens up new territory for scientists. Since Copernicus, and especially after Darwin, materialism had ruled the day in science. Any reference to God was scoffed at as a “God of the Gaps” argument, another way of saying “God is merely a stop-gap explanation for lack of knowledge, and has no place in our materialistic universe.” But now it is scientists who are actually initiating the discussion about an intelligent designer. Theoretical astrophysicist George Greenstein, in his book, Symbiotic Universe asks, “Is it possible that suddenly without intending to, we have stumbled upon the scientific proof of the existence of a Supreme Being? (It’s difficult for some to accept the simple words found in Genesis 1:1, In the beginning God…) Ref: Back to The Beginning- Science re-engages the question of the ages a Y-ORIGINS magazine. |