A Grain of Salt

Startin’ here this week.

In recent years, some Americans have come to view science and religion as consistent antagonists, butting heads over everything from the origin of the cosmos to when human life begins (abortion) and when it ends (euthanasia).

This article was written by a columnist on the USA Today website. After a brief explanation of the views of “Conservative denominations,” he states the reason for bringing the topic up.

The issue surfaced again over the summer. When President Obama named Francis Collins, an outspoken evangelical as well as former director of the Human Genome Project, to head the National Institutes of Health, some scientists, secularists and at least one prominent atheist criticized the appointment. They were concerned that Collins’ faith might influence his decisions at the NIH. This despite the fact that Collins, author of The Language of God, supports both evolution and embryonic stem cell research

This really shows a lot about… well, everyone. First, the “scientists, secularists, and at least one prominent atheist.” They believe that the new appointee would be influenced negatively by his faith. Maybe they don’t entirely realize the point of this government- to represent the people. When the majority of the nation is against abortion, isn’t it logical to have a leader who reflects those views? And if President Obama felt it appropriate to appoint the man to the position in the first place, then shouldn’t we trust that the decisions made will be good ones that reflect common opinion? I realize that their exists a very simple argument against this one, so I’ll go ahead and address it. “Well when people you disagree with are appointed,” some of you may be thinking, “why do you always go up in protest against them?” Well, first of all, I prefer to wait and see a politicians decisions before I decide anything about them, while trying not to pin the blame on their moral character. And if I do decide to protest, it’s because I disagree with some of the decisions that they have made. Not for the reason of disagreeing with their belief system.

Next is the way the Christian community as a whole is viewed. These people obviously see us as all holding the same opinions- the outcry wasn’t against him, it was against the way they felt he would respond. So these scientists may think that all evangelical Christians hold the same opinion. Sure there are several beliefs that all Christians should share, but some are simply a matter of belief. I think that Christians should embrace and share the differences that we have, explore them, and then maybe come to a reasonable conclusion. That may be too much to ask. But maybe if we can get the world to see us differently, these kind of disgraces wouldn’t happen.

More on the rest of the article next week.