Written by Renae Trauger
As his breath drifted into the cold still night, young Tapani was bundled warmly into his fur lined coat. Above him, ribbons of green, yellow and violet shimmered and danced across the sky. Beside him, his mother squeezed his mittened hand and told him the old Finnish story of the Tulikettu, the fire fox. As it runs across the snowy hills, she said, its great bushy tail sweeps sparks into the sky, painting the glowing colors of the Revontulet, the Northern Lights across the skies. Tapani gazed upward in wonder, imagining the swift fox racing through the night, lighting the heavens with its fiery tail and leaving trails of light for the whole world to see.
Cultures across the world have long used myths and stories to explain natural occurrences they did not yet understand. Before modern science, people created imaginative tales about gods, spirits, or magical creatures to make sense of things like storms, eclipses, earthquakes, or the northern lights. Even though science has advanced and explained many natural phenomena, nature still holds mysteries that continue to inspire curiosity and wonder. Scientists have theories about how the Savonoski Crater in Alaska came to be and how a low vibrational hum can be heard up to 6 miles away from “Singing Sands” in various locations, as well as phenomena like blue glowing “lightning balls” as well as “star jelly” and earthquake lights. But there is no conclusive evidence of why these circumstances take place.
Questions about the vast universe, the complexities of nature and even the highly coordinated systems of the human body, remind us that there is still much to discover. For Christians, scientific understanding does not diminish faith or belief in God; instead, it deepens their appreciation of creation. Learning how intricate and finely ordered the universe is can highlight the beauty, complexity, and majesty of the world, leading some to see science not as a rival to religion, but as a way of uncovering and appreciating the wonders of God’s creation.
Many scientific discoveries reflect ideas also found in the Bible, revealing parallels between Scripture and modern scientific understanding. Job 26:7 states that God hangs the earth on nothing, which corresponds with Scientific understanding that the Earth is suspended in space, orbiting the sun without physical support. Isaiah 40:22 refers to the “circle of the earth” reflecting the planet’s spherical or round shape long before it was empirically proven. Scriptures in Job 36:27-28 explain how water evaporates, forms clouds and returns rain, a process that science calls hydrology. God determines the number of the stars and calls them by name, in Psalms 147:4, recognizing the vastness of the heavens, long before telescopes.
The heart stirring words in Psalms 139:14 “I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made” pay tribute to God as the creator of the complexity of the biological systems within every living creature, especially the human body. Leviticus 17:11 “the life of the flesh is in the blood” which science confirms, as blood transports oxygen, nutrients and cells, essential for life through the body. Various scriptures in Leviticus give instructions on hygiene which predate germ theory and modern public health practices.
A revealing passage found in Matthew 16: 3 points out that even though man can discern nature, Jesus warns man will not discern the signs of the times. “ When it is evening, ye say, it will be fair weather: for the sky is red, And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowering. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?” In I Corinthians 1, Paul tells us “the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise.”
Do not be persuaded by science to explain away God, but rather let science strengthen your faith as you marvel at the handiwork of the Creator. Scientist Derek Barton wrote “God is truth. There is no incompatibility between science and religion. Both are seeking the same truth. Science shows that God exists.”
If every mystery was explained by science there would be no faith. Faith is the evidence of things not seen and rises in the face of uncertainty when we put our trust in God. Put your faith in action, expect and believe, because God is doing great things today.As his breath drifted into the cold still night, young Tapani was bundled warmly into his fur lined coat. Above him, ribbons of green, yellow and violet shimmered and danced across the sky. Beside him, his mother squeezed his mittened hand and told him the old Finnish story of the Tulikettu, the fire fox. As it runs across the snowy hills, she said, its great bushy tail sweeps sparks into the sky, painting the glowing colors of the Revontulet, the Northern Lights across the skies. Tapani gazed upward in wonder, imagining the swift fox racing through the night, lighting the heavens with its fiery tail and leaving trails of light for the whole world to see.
Cultures across the world have long used myths and stories to explain natural occurrences they did not yet understand. Before modern science, people created imaginative tales about gods, spirits, or magical creatures to make sense of things like storms, eclipses, earthquakes, or the northern lights. Even though science has advanced and explained many natural phenomena, nature still holds mysteries that continue to inspire curiosity and wonder. Scientists have theories about how the Savonoski Crater in Alaska came to be and how a low vibrational hum can be heard up to 6 miles away from “Singing Sands” in various locations, as well as phenomena like blue glowing “lightning balls” as well as “star jelly” and earthquake lights. But there is no conclusive evidence of why these circumstances take place.
Questions about the vast universe, the complexities of nature and even the highly coordinated systems of the human body, remind us that there is still much to discover. For Christians, scientific understanding does not diminish faith or belief in God; instead, it deepens their appreciation of creation. Learning how intricate and finely ordered the universe is can highlight the beauty, complexity, and majesty of the world, leading some to see science not as a rival to religion, but as a way of uncovering and appreciating the wonders of God’s creation.
Many scientific discoveries reflect ideas also found in the Bible, revealing parallels between Scripture and modern scientific understanding. Job 26:7 states that God hangs the earth on nothing, which corresponds with Scientific understanding that the Earth is suspended in space, orbiting the sun without physical support. Isaiah 40:22 refers to the “circle of the earth” reflecting the planet’s spherical or round shape long before it was empirically proven. Scriptures in Job 36:27-28 explain how water evaporates, forms clouds and returns rain, a process that science calls hydrology. God determines the number of the stars and calls them by name, in Psalms 147:4, recognizing the vastness of the heavens, long before telescopes.
The heart stirring words in Psalms 139:14 “I praise you for I am fearfully and wonderfully made” pay tribute to God as the creator of the complexity of the biological systems within every living creature, especially the human body. Leviticus 17:11 “the life of the flesh is in the blood” which science confirms, as blood transports oxygen, nutrients and cells, essential for life through the body. Various scriptures in Leviticus give instructions on hygiene which predate germ theory and modern public health practices.
A revealing passage found in Matthew 16:3 points out that even though man can discern nature, Jesus warns man will not discern the signs of the times. “ When it is evening, ye say, it will be fair weather: for the sky is red, And in the morning, It will be foul weather to day: for the sky is red and lowering. O ye hypocrites, ye can discern the face of the sky; but can ye not discern the signs of the times?” In I Corinthians 1, Paul tells us “the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise.”
Do not be persuaded by science to explain away God, but rather let science strengthen your faith as you marvel at the handiwork of the Creator. Scientist Derek Barton wrote “God is truth. There is no incompatibility between science and religion. Both are seeking the same truth. Science shows that God exists.”
If every mystery was explained by science there would be no faith. Faith is the evidence of things not seen and rises in the face of uncertainty when we put our trust in God. Put your faith in action, expect and believe, because God is doing great things today.