Hasty theology, hasty atheism
“As in natural science, cosmology is neutral with respect to philosophical or theological doctrines. Unfortunately, this does not prevent scientists, philosophers, and theologians from abusing it. It is usually the so-called God-of-the-gaps theology that snares too hasty a thinker. The trap consists not only in constructing ‘proofs’ of God’s existence from weak points in our knowledge, but also in rejecting God on the grounds that there are no gaps in our science in which God could safely dwell.” -Michael Heller, Creative Tension: Essays on Science and Religion. Winner of the $1.6m 2008 Templeton Prize It cuts both ways: the ease with which scientist Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion, 2006) dismisses the existence of a Creator because he does not see gaps in his scientific worldview (which might require a Creator to bridge them supernaturally) is the same ease with which a Christian might be inspired by their perception of gaps in the complexity of evolutionary theory, or the seeming randomness and unpredictability of quantum mechanics. Heller’s point is that we don’t need gaps (or the perception of gaps by non-scientists) in science to have a theology in which a loving Creator is behind all things. It is a flawed foundation, Heller argues, to make a precondition of belief in God the existence of a portion of a scientific theory that is currently unexplainable (a gap)—because in all likelihood an explanation may soon be found as science advances that would require searching for another gap in order to keep the belief. It simply is not rigorous—we cannot ‘prove’ the existence of something through the absence of something else. Abandoning a God-of-the-gaps approach to either atheism or theology is essential to moving beyond the human tendency to want to prove others wrong in order to feel justified in what we believe. In particular, I feel this applies to proponents of ‘new earth’ Creationism, who spend enormous amounts of energy trying to find (and market to Christians) gaps in areas of natural science that indicate that some form of evolutionary process may be a part of the unfolding of the universe. This energy could be better spent advancing God’s kingdom in other, more Christ-like ways, I feel.
