Science vs. Religion; Can There Be a Meeting of the Minds?

By Mark L. Casper

I have become a much more spiritual person the last few years. Though I always believed in God, I never truly observed all sorts of things in a special light as I do now. Perhaps, it is because I am turning fifty-three years old and that I have come to realize that I have already lived more than half my life.  I tend to stop and smell the roses more often than not. I have come to believe that God created everything; from the mountains to the oceans, from the flowers to the insects, to hominids, “The Creator” was responsible for it all! No matter what religious practices one chooses and regardless of what name is selected to identify with God, the fact remains that both the scientific and the spiritual communities agree, that there had to be an “Omnipotent force” at the very origin of the universe. Though I am a student of the sciences, and I know that some of the stories in the first testament have been embellished or misinterpreted, I have no doubt that many are true. I shall attempt to reveal why I have reached the hypothesis that there is good reason to believe that the acceptance of scientific theory and religious/spiritual awakening in many cases, go hand in hand. Why and how did the “Big Bang” occur? It had to have an origin! If you make that argument, then rightfully so, that person should then ask, “Where did God come from?” We of course are in no position to even approach coming up with a theory. Since there were no scientists, astronomers or astrophysicists living soon after the “Big Bang” gave way that created space, time, star matter and light, the scientific community may never know the answers. Yet, most astrophysicists and astronomers theorize and even will state that it is a fact that the “Big Bang” took place and gave way to the gases and minerals that coalesced into galaxies and planets.
And then there is the human soul over which to ponder. Is there invisible energy that constitutes how we love, and show compassion, why we shed tears when we grieve over the loss of a beloved relative or friend? How is it that there have been cases where patients who are having intensive-lifesaving surgery have found themselves hovering up above the setting. After surviving, that individual has been able to describe every event sometimes in undeniable detail, from the locations and conversations of the surgeons to readings on the ICU machinery? What about the motorists who have survived an accident, only to tell shocked EMT’s and critical care surgeons that they felt themselves being drawn to a white-very bright light within an abstract tunnel. Afterwards, most have concluded that they felt themselves being drawn back into their bodies; some at the exact time that their hearts were shocked with defibrillators. Coincidence? Imagination? The side effects of strong anesthetics? I believe not!
When my father died six years ago while in a nursing home, at his bedside I observed a very odd happening. Beforehand I knew that my father feared death. Due to his severe state of dementia, his doctor had prescribed psychotropic medications to keep him calm. However, one hour before he died, he appeared overwhelmed—startled with whatever image he was observing in his bed. He grasped tightly onto the railing while his eyes grew large in response to some inexplicable happening. It was as if he was trying to repel some magnetic force, perhaps unwilling to cooperate with someone or something beyond his comprehension. I could feel it. I sensed it! I tried to make him more comfortable by placing his hands downward by his sides, but his grip on the bars were so tight that I could not pry his white-knuckled fingers loose. And so I told my father despite the fact that he was incoherent, to let go, that he had no chance of surviving and that he should welcome moving onward to be with his loved ones who beckoned him. He eventually seemed to capitulate and a strange sense of tranquility overtook his facial expression and demeanor. He died within the hour. I believe that his soul passed on and that his spirit—his voice—his life energy left behind, will echo about, never to dissipate.
Did God cast plagues against the Egyptian’s first born, to force the Pharaoh to let the Hebrew slaves cross into Israel? Did the Red Sea part to allow them to cross, while the Egyptian warriors drowned as they entered, in hot pursuit? It is likely that as the scribes passed and transposed the stories from generation to generation, they became distorted and interpreted differently by each of them?
Can we possibly be the only hominids in the universe when there are millions of planets that are similar to ours? Surely “The Creator” wasn’t concentrating only on bringing life to earth and Adam was certainly not the first human male. If we choose to eliminate such impossible stories as the aforementioned, while at the same time enlighten the scientific community that they are not infallible, then perhaps the spiritual and scientific viewpoints as a whole, can converge rather than conflict. As an example, the theory that only a few moons orbited each of the outer planets in our solar system has proven to be false. If the scientific community as well as the religious leaders can deduce that they can find answers to their questions by combining the knowledge they attained, then all of humanity can benefit.