Tools

Using the right tool for a task is important. A small screwdriver and a pair of forceps are the right tools for opening up my computer. They work better than an axe . . . especially if I want to be able to close up the computer and use it again. Mathematics is a great tool for describing difficult concepts in physics. In fact much of what is presently being investigated in the area of particle physics can only be described by mathematics. Once a concept is worked out in mathematics it may lead to physical experiments that attempt to prove or disprove a theory. For such experiments one would need another set of tools like a Large Hadron Collider and experimental science. Math and science contribute much to our understanding of the world but they are poor tools for investigating God. They are good tools for investigating how our universe operates but they are poor tools for answering the question of why things exist.

Philosophy and theology use tools of logical discourse and thought experiments to investigate things that are beyond the limits of mathematics and empirical sciences. These tools are well suited to the analysis of questions of origin, ultimate reality, and God. They also require faith.

Francis Collins in his book, The Language of God, realized that,

science, despite its unquestioned powers in unraveling the mysteries of the natural world, would get me no further in resolving the question of God. If God exists, then He must be outside the natural world, and therefore the tools of science are not the right ones to learn about Him. Instead, as I was beginning to understand from looking into my own heart, the evidence of God's existence would have to come from other directions, and the ultimate decision would be based on faith, not proof. Still beset by roiling uncertainties of what path I had started down, I had to admit that I had reached the threshold of accepting the possibility of a spiritual worldview, including the existence of God.*

We must not fear math and science but we also need not fear belief and faith. They are all tools which, when used appropriately, are well suited to the investigation of reality.

*Collins, Francis S. The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief. New York: Free Press, A Division of Simon & Schuster Inc., 2006, p. 30.