Title: Scientists
1Scientists God The Myth of Incompatibility
- Robert J. Marks II
- Distinguished Professor of Electrical Computer
Engineering - Baylor University
2Abstract
- Is true scientific pursuit mutually exclusive of
a faith in God. Those who objectively pursue
their truth through the scientific method, some
say, cannot realistically embrace a belief in a
living God. This posturing often arises from an
ignorance of the Christian faith and its role in
science. Indeed, both today and in history, a
number of scientists, mathematicians and
engineers are motivated in their work by the
uncovering of the precise orderliness and
wonderful interrelations in God's creations.
Many not only study the creation, but have
pursued the identity of the Creator and have come
to submission to God through acceptance of the
sacrifice of His Son. Examples from history who
embrace Christ as savoir include many giants in
science and technology, including Isaac Newton -
the father classical physics and co-creator of
calculus, Michael Faraday - the father of
electrical engineering, and Blaise Pascal -
mathematician extraordinaire and inventor of the
first computer. The myth of incompatibility
between science and faith is without foundation
or substance.
3The Mindset of the Academy
- Tolerance?
- Tolerance
- The Origin
- Overt or Covert?
- Anecdotes
- Curricula
4Excerpts
5What motivates research at the Academy?
6Seeking Fame?
and/or Seeking Fame?
- Dr., Ph.D., FIEEE, FOSA
- Illustration...
- To marks_at_u.washington.edu
- From xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Subject Beller medal
- Dear Bob I am attaching a file that gives a
short list of my contributions to optical science
and education. If you feel that I qualify as a
candidate for the Esther Hoffman Beller Medal, I
would very much appreciate and be honored by a
letter from you on my behalf for this medal.
Please note that the letter must be at OSA by
Oct. 1. The address is - Optical Society of America
- Communications Dept.
- MS 112, 2010 Massachusetts Avenus. sic, NW
- Washington, DC 20036-1023
- Fax 202-416-6134
- awards_at_osa.org
- I thank you in advance.
- Attachment Converted "gProposed Candidate for
the Esther Hoffman Beller Medal.doc"
7- e-mail from an IEEE Professional Society
governing board concerning actions of an Awards
Committee (1999) - I have never known an awards committee where the
members grant each other the awards/medals. I
don't contest that the committee members are not
deserving of an award, but the mere fact of
serving on a selection committee should exclude
one from receiving the awards being distributed. - The Awards Committee was giving their members
awards!
8Modest Mindset of the Academician
U.S. News World Report reports a poll of
university professors found that 94 of the
respondents thought they were better at their
jobs than their average colleague. U.S. News
World Report 16 Dec 96 p26
9Seeking fame through research Occupational
Hazard? Famous Researchers' Ultimate Stress
When Doing Science Leads To Suicide
Emil Fischer (1852-1919), Percy Bridgman
(1882-1961), Hans Fischer (1881-1945),
Stanford Moore (1913-1982), Ludwig Boltzmann
(1844-1906), Alan Turing (1912-1954), Leading
Factors Minor precipitating factors isolation,
50 percent death of a close relative, 17
percent physical illness, 47 percent
overwork, 14 percent politics 42 percent
business problems, 11 percent depression 31
percent. grant problems, 8 percent
problems with the administration, 3
percent. For what shall it profit a man, if he
shall gain the whole world, and lose his own
soul? Jesus Christ Molly Gleiser, a chemist, is
the founder of Suicide Prevention Among
Scientists, based in Berkeley, Calif. Richard H.
Seiden, a former professor of suicidology at the
University of California, Berkeley The Scientist,
Vol, 4, pg 21 www.the-scientist.library.upenn.ed
u/yr1990/nov/prof2_901126.html
10What motivates research at the Academy?
What motivates research at the Academy for some?
Truth, fame and/or
Seeking God !?!
11The Beauty of Creation
1. The Beauty of Creation!
2. Who Created this beauty?
12Motivation?
- Premise 1 Some Scientists and Mathematicians
embrace a strong belief in God. Motivation for
research, in certain cases, stems in part from
their curiosity of discovering Gods creation and
the awe and remarkable beauty of the
relationships they uncover. - Science brings man nearer to God
- Louis Pasteur
- Louis Pasteur (John Hudsion Tiner, Louis
Pasteur - Founder of Modern Medicine, Milford,
MI Mott Media, Inc., 1990, p.75.)
13 - The more I study nature, the more I stand amazed
at the work of the Creator. Into his tiniest
creatures, God has placed extraordinary
properties ... - Louis Pasteur (1822-1895)
- John Hudsion Tiner, Louis Pasteur -
Founder of Modern Medicine, Milford, MI Mott
Media, Inc., 1990, p.75.) - God is going to to reveal to us things He never
revealed before if we put our hands in His. - George Washington Carver (1865-1943)
- (who named his laboratory Gods Little
Workshop.) - Ethel Edwards, Carver of Tuskegee
(Cincinnati, Ohio Ethyl Edwards James T.
Hardwick, 1971) pp.141-42.
14Biographys Top 100 Persons of the Millennium
1. Gutenberg, Johann 2. Newton, Isaac 3.
Luther, Martin 4. Darwin, Charles 5.
Shakespeare, William 6. Columbus, Christopher
7. Marx, Karl 8. Einstein, Albert 9.
Copernicus, Nicolaus 10. Galileo Galilei 11.
Da Vinci, Leonardo 12. Freud, Sigmund 13.
Pasteur, Louis 14. Edison, Thomas 15.
Jefferson, Thomas 16. Hitler, Adolf 17.
Gandhi, Mahatma 18. Locke, John 19.
Michelangelo 20. Smith, Adam 21. Washington,
George 22. Khan, Genghis 23. Lincoln, Abraham
24. Aquinas, St. Thomas 25. Watt, James 26.
Mozart, Wolfgang Amadeu 27. Bonaparte, Napolean
28. Bach, Johann Sebastian 29. Ford, Henry
30. Beethoven, Ludwig Von 31. Watson Crick
32. Descartes, Rene 33. King, Martin Luther
Jr. 34. Rousseau, Jean-Jacques
35. Lenin, Vladimir 36. Fleming, Alexander
37. Voltaire 38. Bacon, Francis 39.
Alighieri, Dante 40. Wright Brothers 41.
Gates, Bill 42. Mendel, Gregor 43. Mao,
Zedong 44. Bell, Alexander Graham 45. William
the Conqueror 46. Machiavelli, Niccolo 47.
Babbage, Charles 48. Wollstonecraft, Mary 49.
Gorbachev, Mikhail 50. Sanger, Margaret 51.
Jenner, Edward 52. Churchill, Winston 53.
Curie, Marie 54. Polo, Marco 55. Magellan,
Ferdinand 56. Stanton, Elizabeth 57. Presley,
Elvis 58. Joan of Arc 59. Kant, Immanuel
60. Roosevelt, Franklin D. 61. Faraday,
Michael 62. Disney, Walt 63. Austen, Jane
64. Picasso, Pablo 65. Heisenberg, Werner
66. Griffith, D.W. 67. Zworykin, Vladimir
68. Franklin, Benjamin
69. Harvey, William 70. Pope Gregory Vll 71.
Tubman, Harriet 72. Bolivar, Simon 73.
Princess Diana 74. Fermi, Enrico 75. Pincus,
Gregory 76. The Beatles 77. Hobbes, Thomas
78. Isabella 79. Stalin, Joseph 80.
Elizabeth I 81. Mandela, Nelson 82. Bohr,
Neils 83. Peter the Great of Russia 84.
Marconi, Guglielmo 85. Reagan, Ronald 86.
Joyce, James 87. Carson, Rachel 88.
Oppenheimer, Robert J. 89. Anthony, Susan B.
90. Daguerre, Louis 91. Spielberg, Steven
92. Nightingale, Florence 93. Roosevelt,
Eleanor 94. Patient Zero 95. Chaplin, Charlie
96. Caruso, Enrico 97. Salk, Jonas 98.
Armstrong, Louis 99. Da Gama, Vasco 100.
Suleiman I
Blaise Pascal The father of computer engineering
James Clerk Maxwell The founder of
electromagnetics
Thomas Bayes The founder of statistical inference
http//www.biography.com/features/millennium/index
.html
15Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
...one of the greatest names in the history of
human thought
16Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727)
- Newtons Contributions
- Newtonian Physics
- The Calculus
- Law of Universal Gravitation
- Optics
- Reflecting Telescope
- White light components
In late editions of his scientific works he
Newton expressed a strong sense of God's
providential role in nature. Microsoft
Encarta. http//www.newton.cam.ac.uk/newtlife.html
17Namesakes
- Newtonian Physics
- Apples Newton
- Newtonian constant of gravitation 6.672 59
10-11 m3 kg-1 s-2
- Newton (mks unit of force)
- Newtons rings
- Newton Optimization
18God observed in nature...
- The beautiful system of the the sun, planets
and comets could only proceed from the counsel
and dominion of an intelligent and powerful
Being.
Isaac Newton quoted from Newtons Philosophy of
Nature Selections From His Writings (Hafner
Publishing, 1953)
19From Optics by Isaac Newton
- God in the beginning formed matter in solid,
massy, hard, impenetrable, moveable particles, of
such sizes and figures, and with other such
properties, and in such proportion to space, as
most conduced to the end for which He formed
them.
Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and
honour and power for thou hast created all
things, and for thy pleasure they are and were
created. Revelation 411
20Newton on Atheism
Newton
on Atheism
Atheism is so senseless and odious to mankind
that it never had many professors.
Isaac Newton quoted from Newtons Philosophy of
Nature Selections From His Writings (Hafner
Publishing, 1953)
21Michael Faraday (1791-1867)
Michael Faraday's scientific work laid the
foundations of all subsequent electro-technology.
Lenore Symons, IEE Senior Archivist http//www.ie
e.org.uk/publish/faraday/faraday1.html
- The Father of Electricity Faradays Contributions
- Faradays Law
- Discovered electromagnetic induction
generators, motors transformers. - The Faraday Effect
- A magneto-optic effect in which the polarization
plane of an electromagnetic wave is rotated under
the influence of a magnetic field parallel to the
direction of propagation. - Discovered Benzene
22Michael Faraday...
- Build first practical electric motor.
- Coined the terms
- electrode,
- anode,
- cathode
- electronic
- Namesakes
- Farad unit of capacitance
- Faradays constant
- F96 485.309 C mol-1
23Albert Einstein...
Albert Einstein
was a devoted admirer of Faraday. While still in
Berlin, he kept a large portrait of Faraday
in his study.
24Faradays standard of duty was supernatural.
It was formed entirely on what he held to be the
revelation of the will of God in the written
word, and throughout all his life his faith led
him to act ... to the the very letter of it.
Dr Bence Jones "The Life and Letters of
Faraday. See also http//www.iee.org.uk/publish/
faraday/faraday2.html
25Faraday on Knowledge vs. Wisdom
Alas! How foolish perhaps to leave home, to
leave those whom I loved and who loved me for a
time uncertain in its length, but certainly long
and which may perhaps stretch out to eternity!
And what are the boasted advantages to be gained?
Knowledge. Yes, knowledge but what knowledge?
Knowledge of the world, of men, of manners, of
books , and of languages Alas! How degrading it
is to be learned when
it places us on a level with rouges and
scoundrels! Ah, Ben, I am not sure that I have
acted wisely in leaving a pure and certain
enjoyment for such a pursuit
Homesick Michael Faraday in a letter from Rome to
friend Benjamin Abbott during science tour of
Europe as assistant of Sir Humphry Davy.
Michael Faraday Father of Electronics, Ludwig
Charles, 1978, Herald Press, Scottsdale, PA.
26Faraday AWARDS
- Faraday was offered and refused the Presidency of
the Royal Society. He responded no "I must
remain plain Michael Faraday to the very last."
27Thomas Bayes (1702 1761)
Bayes Theorem
- Baysian Inference Making classifications using
an historical data base. - Foundation of most modern e-mail spam filters.
Thomas Bayes, Divine Benevolence,1731, and D.R.
Bellhouse, The Reverend Thomas Bayes FRS a
Biography to Celebrate the Tercentenary of his
Birth lthttp//www.stats.uwo.ca/faculty/bellhouse/
bayesbiog.pdfgt
28Thomas Bayes (1702 1761)
- Reverend Bayes was a pastor of the Presbyterian
Chapel in Tunbridge Wells, 35 miles southeast of
London. - Bayes didnt bother to publish his mathematical
work. It was all published posthumously. Bayes
was elected Fellow of the Royal Society in 1742
having no published works on mathematics.
Bayes did publish about his faith. God always
does that which is right and fit, and that all
his moral attributes, namely justice, truth,
faithfulness, mercy, patience, etc. are but
so many different modifications of rectitude.
Thomas Bayes, Divine Benevolence, 1731.
D.R. Bellhouse, The Reverend Thomas Bayes FRS a
Biography to Celebrate the Tercentenary of his
Birth lthttp//www.stats.uwo.ca/faculty/bellhouse/
bayesbiog.pdfgt
29James Clerk Maxwell
- On an Electrical Engineering Students T-Shirt...
Maxwells Equations
And God said...
and there was light.
30Quotes
- Was it a god who wrote these lines Ludwig
Boltzmann Nobel prize winner in Physics - on
Maxwells equations (quoting a line from Goethe).
- To anyone who is motivated by anything beyond
the most narrowly practical, it is worth while to
understand Maxwells equations simply for the
good of his soul J.R. Pierce, Electrons, Waves
and Messages, Hanover House, 1956.
- Maxwells equations can be appreciated, by
those who understand them, on an aesthetic
level. Halliday Resnick, Physics II, Wiley
(1962) a widely used undergraduate Physics
text.
31James Clerk Maxwell
- As with Faraday, his profound investigations
into nature were concomitant with deep religious
reverence for natures cause. - Sir Joseph Larmor in the Biographical Notes to
James Clerk Maxwell, Matter and Motion, (Dover,
1991).
32The only desire which I can ..have is like
David to serve my own generation by the will of
God, and then fall asleep. Maxwell (near
death). Lewis Campbell William Garnet,
The Life of James Clerk Maxwell, London
1882, p.309
- I believe ... that Man's chief end is to
glorify.God and to enjoy Him for ever. - James Clerk Maxwell
Ian HutchinsonMIT IAP Seminar The Faith of
Great Scientists, Jan 98
33Dimitri Egorov
- Egorov worked on triply orthogonal systems and
potential surfaces and made major contribution
to differential geometry. - Egorov also worked on integral equations and a
theorem in the theory of functions of a real
variable is named after him
Born 22 Dec 1869 in Moscow, RussiaDied 10 Sept
1931 in Kazan, USSR
- In 1923 Egorov was elected president of the
Moscow Mathematical Society - In 1923 Egorov became director of the Institute
for Mechanics and Mathematics at Moscow State
University
http//www-groups.dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/history/Ma
thematicians/Egorov.html
34Dimitri Egorov
- The Church was repressed after the revolution.
Egorov defended them. In 1922-23 and again in
1928, clergy were executed in mass. - Egorov tried to prevent the attempt to impose
Marxist ideology on scientists. - In 1929 Egorov was dismissed as director of the
Institute for Mechanics and Mathematics and given
a public rebuke.
- Egorov was arrested as a "religious sectarian"
and put in prison. An "Initiative group" took
over the Society in November 1930. They expelled
Egorov denouncing him as a reactionary and a
churchman. - Egorov went on a hunger strike in prison and
eventually died.
http//www-groups.dcs.st-andrews.ac.uk/history/Ma
thematicians/Egorov.html
35Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)
1. The orbits of the planets are ellipses, with
the Sun at one focus of the ellipse.
http//www.leaderu.com/offices/schaefer/docs/scien
tists.html http//csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr161/lect
/history/kepler.html
36Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)
http//www.leaderu.com/offices/schaefer/docs/scien
tists.html http//csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr161/lect
/history/kepler.html
37Johannes Kepler (1571-1630)
- Keplers Laws
- III. The ratio of the squares of the
revolutionary periods for two planets is equal to
the ratio of the cubes of their semimajor axes.
http//www.leaderu.com/offices/schaefer/docs/scien
tists.html http//csep10.phys.utk.edu/astr161/lect
/history/kepler.html
38Johannes Kepler
- Throughout his life, Kepler was a profoundly
religious man. All his writings contain numerous
references to God, and he saw his work as a
fulfilment of his Christian duty to understand
the works of God. Man being, as Kepler believed,
made in the image of God, was clearly capable of
understanding the Universe that He had created.
Moreover, Kepler was convinced that God had made
the Universe according to a mathematical plan. - When asked Why do you do science?", Kepler
answered that he desired in his scientific
research to obtain a sample test of the delight
of the Divine Creator in his work and to partake
of his joy.
http//www.leaderu.com/offices/schaefer/docs/scien
tists.html http//www-gap.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/histor
y/Mathematicians/Kepler.html
39Blaise Pascal (1623-62)
- PASCAL a high level programming language
designed by Niklaus Wirth in 1974 as a teaching
language for computer scientists. - Pascals Law the pressure in a fluid is
transmitted equally to all distances and in all
directions. - PASCAL A unit of pressure. 1 bar equals
100,000 Pascal - Pascals triangle.
Blaise Pascal
(1623-62)
Blaise Pascal (1623-62)
40Pascal Computer Engineer
- In 1642, Pascal began to create a machine that
would be similar to an everyday calculator to
help his father with his accounting job. - He finished the final model in 1645.
- He presented one to Queen Christina of Sweden and
he was allowed a monopoly over it by royal
decree.
http//www-groups.dcs.st-and.ac.uk/history/index.
html
41Pascal the Mathematician
http//www.norfacad.pvt.k12.va.us/project/pascal/b
laise3.htm
42Pascals Triangle
Pascal's Triangle
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ...
- 1 1
- 1 2 1
- 1 3 3 1
- 1 4 6 4 1
- 1 5 10 10 5 1
- 1 6 15 20 15 6 1
- 1 7 21 35 35 21 7 1
- ...
43Pascals Triangle Pizza
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ...
- 1 1
- 1 2 1
- 1 3 3 1
- 1 4 6 4 1
- 1 5 10 10 5 1
- 1 6 15 20 15 6 1
- 1 7 21 35 35 21 7 1
- ...
Four (4) available toppings (Extra Cheese,
Onions, Pepperoni, Tomato) C,O,P,T You can choose
two. There are 6 possible pizzas
... CO,CP,CT,OP,OT,PT
44Pascals Triangle, Pizza Poker
From 52 toppings, choose 5 2,598,960 pizzas
number of possible poker hands
Note From 52, choose 13 6,227,020,800
number of possible bridge hands
45Pascal AWARDS
Fame is so sweet that we love anything we
connect with it, even death. Blaise Pascal
(Pensees)
46Pascals thoughts...
- Man finds nothing so intolerable as to be in
a state of complete rest, without passions,
without occupation, without diversion, without
effort. Then he faces his nullity, loneliness,
inadequacy, dependence, helplessness, emptiness.
And at once there wells up from the depths of his
soul boredom, gloom, depression, chagrin,
resentment, despair.
47Pascals Thoughts
- ...there are two ways people avoid thinking about
such matters diversion and indifference.
Regarding diversion, Pascal says we fill up our
time with activities to avoid facing the truth of
our state. "The natural misfortune of our
mortality and weakness is so miserable, that
nothing can console us when we really think about
it.... The only good thing for man, therefore, is
to be diverted so that he will stop thinking
about his circumstances. - http//www.probe.org/docs/pascal.html
48Nirvanas Curt Cobain offers a Translation of
Pascal
- With the lights out it's less dangerous
- Here we are now. Entertain us.
- The denial, the denial, the denial, the
denial, - Smells like Teen Spirit
- Nirvana
49Were all motivated by belief in God?
Pierre Simon Laplace (1749-1827). Laplace
transform Laplace Noise Laplace helped to
establish the metric system.
50Laplace
Napoleon appointed Laplace Minister of the
Interior but removed him from office after only
six weeks because he brought the spirit of the
infinitely small into the government.
Napoleon asked Laplace why God was not mentioned
in any of his work on celestial mechanics.
Laplace responded ... Sire, je navais pas
besoin de cette hypothese. Sire, I had no need
of that hypothesis. Petr Beckmann, A History of
Pi, St. Martins Press, 1971.
51What a beautiful creation!
What a beautiful creation!
Who is the Creator??
52Premise 2
Numerous great researchers embrace Christianity
The knowing of God, the creator of the
universe, personally. Belief in Gods supremacy
and saving grace made possible through the
sacrifice of His son, Jesus Christ.
http//www.ccci.org/laws/index.html
53God in the Literature
- References to God continued in the scientific
literature until the middle to late 1800's. It
seems likely that the lack of religious
references after this time seem more from a
change in social and professional conventions
among scientists rather than from any change in
underlying thought. Indeed, contrary to popular
myth, scientists appear to have the same range of
attitudes about religious matters as does the
general public. Alan Lightman (MIT) in Origins
http//www.leaderu.com/offices/schaefer/docs/scien
tists.html
54Christian ProfessorsToday
55Isaac Newton on Christ
There is one God, the Father, ever-living,
omnipresent, omniscient, almighty, the Maker of
heaven and earth, and one Mediator between God
and man, the man Christ Jesus. Sir Isaac Newton
56Isaac Newton on Christ
To us there is but one God, the Father, of whom
are all things, and one Lord Jesus Christ, by
whom are all things, and we by Him. That is, we
are to worship the Father alone as God Almighty,
and Jesus alone as the Lord, the Messiah, the
Great King, the Lamb of God who was slain, and
hath redeemed us with His blood, and made us
kings and priests . Sir Isaac Newton Sir Isaac
Newton, Sir David Brewster, Memoirs of the Life,
Writings, and Discoveries of Sir Isaac Newton.
Stephen Abbott Northrop, D.D., A Cloud of
Witnesses (Portland, OR American Heritage
Ministries, 1987 Mantle Ministries, 228 Still
Ridge, Bulverde, Texas), p. 338.
Apotheosis of Sir Isaac Newton (1642-1727),
engraved by George Bickham senior (d. 1769),
1732.
57Newtons Proclamation
We account the Scriptures of God to be the most
sublime philosophy. I find more sure marks of
authenticity in the Bible than in any profane
history whatsoever... Worshiping God and the Lamb
Jesus Christ in the temple God, for his
benefaction in creating all things, and the Lamb,
for his benefaction in redeeming us with his
blood. Sir Isaac Newton Tryon Edwards, D.D., The
New Dictionary of Thoughts-A Cyclopedia of
Quotations (Garden City, NY Hanover House, 1852
revised and enlarged by C.H. Catrevas, Ralph
Emerson Browns, and Jonathan Edwards descendent,
along with Tryon, of Jonathan Edwards
(1703-1758), president of Princeton, 1891 Sir
Isaac Newton. Henry H. Morris, Men of
Scienice-Men of God (El Cajon, CA Master Books,
A Division of Creation Life Publishers, Inc.,
1988), pp. 23-26. The Standard Book Company,
1955,1963), P. 47. Henry H. Halley, Halley's
Bible Handbook (Grand Rapids, MI Zondervan
Publishing House, 1927, 1965), P. 19. Charles E.
Jones, The Books You Read (Harrisburg, PA
Executive Books, 1985), P. 118.
58Faraday Speculations
Though the thought of death brings the thought
of judgment, it also brings to the Christian
thought of Him Jesus Christ who died, and
rose again for the justification of those who
believe in Him. Michael Faraday Walter Jerrold,
Michael Faraday, Man of Science, p. 120. Stephen
Abbott Northrop, D.D., A Cloud of Witnesses
(Portland, OR American Heritage Ministries,
1987 Mantle Ministries, 228 Still Ridge,
Bulverde, Texas), p. 147.
59Faradays faith in Christ
Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of
God. The Christian religion is a revelation and
that revelation is the Word of God. Michael
Faraday George Wilson, Short Biographies for
the People, Vol. IV. Stephen Abbott Northrop,
D.D., A Cloud of Witnesses (Portland, Oregon
American Heritage Ministries, 1987 Mantle
Ministries, 228 Still Ridge, BuIverde, Texas), p.
147-8.
60James Clerk Maxwell and the Christian
Proposition Ian HutchinsonMIT IAP Seminar The
Faith of Great Scientists, Jan 98
Clearly, from this early age, a devout
Christian faith and demanding mental discipline
were, for Maxwell, part of the same experience.
http//silas.psfc.mit.edu/Maxwell/maxwell
.html
61Johannes Kepler
- I believe only and alone in the service of Jesus
Christ. In Him is all refuge and solace.
http//www.leaderu.com/offices/schaefer/docs/scien
tists.html
62Pascal A Christian Faith Scholar
- We know God only through Jesus Christ
through Jesus Christ we know God. All who have
pretended to know God, and prove Him without
Jesus Christ, have only had impotent proofs.
Pensees is French for "thoughts"
"There is a God-shaped vacuum in the heart of
every man, which only God can fill through His
Son Jesus Christ."
63Pascals Wager
Pascal's Wager
How can anyone lose who chooses to become a
Christian? If, when he dies, there turns out to
be no God and his faith was in vain, he has lost
nothing - in fact, he has been happier in life
than his nonbelieving friends. If, however,
there is a God and a heaven and hell, then he has
gained heaven and his skeptical friends will have
lost everything in hell! Henry H. Morris, Men
of Science-Men of God (El Cajon, CA Master
Books, A Division of Creation Life Publishers,
Inc., 1988), pp. 15-16.
64Pascals Wager A Venn Diagram
65Science Faith
Premise 1 Some Scientists, Engineers and
Mathematicians embrace a strong belief in God.
Motivation for research, in certain cases, stems
in part from their curiosity of discovering Gods
creation and the awe and remarkable beauty of the
relationships they uncover. Knowing the painting
is not the same as knowing the painter. Premise
2 The knowing of God, the creator of the
universe, personally. Belief in Gods supremacy
and saving grace made possible through the
sacrifice of His Son, Jesus Christ.
66What Christians believe
- 1. God LOVES you and offers a wonderful PLAN for
your life. - He loves you wants you to know Him
personally! - 2. Man is SINFUL (imperfect)
- and SEPARATED from God.
- Therefore, you cannot know
- and experience God's
- love and plan for your life.
- www.ccci.org/laws/languages.html
perfect imperfect
67What Christians Believe (cont)...
- 3. Jesus Christ is God's ONLY provision for man's
sin. Through Him you can know and experience
God's love and plan for your life.
68What Christians Believe (cont)
- 4. We must individually RECEIVE the gift of Jesus
Christ as Savior and Lord (Master) then we can
know and experience God's peace, love and plan
for our lives.
69Pascals Conversion
Pascals conversion to Christianity. Found in
the lining of his coat on his death
Memorial In the year of grace, 1654,On Monday,
23rd of November, Feast of St Clement, Pope and
Martyr, And others in the Martyrology, Vigil of
St Chrysogonus, Martyr, and others,From about
half past ten in the evening until about half
past Twelve, Fire! God of Abraham, God of Isaac,
God of Jacob, (Ex 36 Mt 2232)Not of the
philosophers and scholars.Certitude. Certitude.
Feeling. Joy. Peace.God of Jesus Christ."Thy
God and my God." (Jn 2017)Forgetfulness of the
world and of everything, except God.He is to be
found only in the ways taught in the
Gospel.Greatness of the Human Soul."Righteous
Father, the world hath not known Thee, But I have
known Thee." (Jn 1725)Joy, joy, joy, tears of
joy.I have separated myself from Him."They have
forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters." (Jn
213)"My God, wilt Thou leave me?" (Mt
2746)Let me not be separated from Him
eternally."This is eternal life,That they might
know Thee, the only true God, And Jesus Christ,
whom Thou hast sent." (Jn 173) Jesus Christ...
Monday, Nov 23, 1654
Certitude. Certitude. Feeling. Joy. Peace.God of
Jesus Christ."Thy God and my God." (Jn
2017)Forgetfulness of the world and of
everything, except God.
70Pascals Conversion (cont)
Jesus Christ I have separated myself from
HimI have fled from Him,denied Him,crucified
Him.Let me never be separated from Him.We keep
hold of Him only by the ways taught in the
Gospel. Renunciation, total and sweet.Total
submission to Jesus Christ and to my
director.Eternally in joy for a day's training
on earth."I will not forget thy words." (Ps
11916) Amen.
71Pascals Conversion (cont)
PRAYER (traditional language)Almighty God, who
didst grant to thy servant Blaise Pascal a Great
intellect, that he might explore the mysteries of
thy creation, and didst kindle in his heart a
love for thee and a devotion to thy service
Mercifully grant to us thy servants, according to
our several callings, gifts of excellence in
body, mind, and will, and the grace to use them
diligently and to thy glory, through Jesus Christ
our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and
the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
PRAYER (contemporary language) Almighty God,
who gave your servant Blaise Pascal a great
Intellect, that he might explore the mysteries of
your creation, and who kindled in his heart a
love for you and a devotion to your service
Mercifully give us your servants, according to
our various callings, gifts of excellence in
body, mind, and will, and the grace to use them
diligently and to your glory, through Jesus
Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you
and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.
(translation by Emile Caillet and John C.
Blankenagel, Great Shorter Works of Pascal,
Philadelphia, Westminster Press, 1948). See
http//justus.anglican.org/resources/bio/233.html
72Solomons Sage Advice
Solomons Sage Advice...
11 The words of the wise are like goads, their
collected sayings like firmly embedded
nails-given by one Shepherd. 12 Be warned, my
son, of anything in addition to them. 12b. Of
making many books there is no end, and much study
wearies the body. 13. Now all has been heard
here is the conclusion of the matter Fear God
and keep his commandments, for this is the whole
duty of man.
Ecclesiastes 12