One of the most well-known Roman Catholic Bishops in North America says there's no need for a conflict between religion and science. Writing for the Los Angeles Times, Robert Barron, Auxiliary Bishop of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, says claims that there is an 'eternal war' between the two simply aren't true.
The op-ed, entitled, "The myth of the eternal war between science and religion" sees Bishop Barron argue that it is only in recent years that the apparent conflict has emerged. "We can see that the vast majority of the founding figures of modern science - Copernicus, Newton, Kepler, Descartes, Pascal, Tycho Brahe - were devoutly religious," he says.
The Bishop has a large social media presence (second only to Pope Francis in North America) and has regularly challenged atheist writers and speakers, including the late Christopher Hitchens and TV host Bill Maher.
He outlines many of the ways in which science and technology have benefited society. But he also claims those who say science is the only way to determine truth have overreached the realm of true science. He says, "That there might be a dimension of reality knowable in a nonscientific but still rational manner never occurs to them. In their scientism, they are blind to literature, philosophy, metaphysics, mysticism and religion."
Bishop Barron says the stakes are high. "This is why thoughtful people - Christians and atheists alike - must battle the myth of the eternal warfare of science and religion," he says. "We must continually preach, as St John Paul II did, that faith and reason are complementary and compatible paths toward the knowledge of truth."
