Modern Science and the Interpretation of Scripture

The idea that Sacred Scripture appears to be just a bunch of storybook fables and unscientific fictional narratives has pushed many people to conclude that God does not exist and that principles of faith are just things dreamed up by us well-meaning humans.  But with all that exists around us – the vastness of the cosmos, the complexity of the human body, and the beauty and intricacies of nature to name a few – I believe that this atheistic worldview is terribly shortsighted.  But to change minds and hearts on this subject will require an interpretation of Scripture that would answer all the objections.  What can we say in a space as small as this blog?

Primary in such a discussion would be a justification of the creation story in the Book of Genesis given the facts of modern science.  Of course, I don’t doubt the Theory of Evolution, so I won’t be trying debunk its principles.  What is necessary, then, is a “discrediting” of Sacred Scripture in terms of its being a literal description of how things got started.  Here is something to think about:  the Genesis account is the inspired word of God, and, as such, had to make sense to the Jewish people of 1000 BC, 500 BC, 33 AD, 500 AD, 1000 AD, 1500 AD, and 2018 AD.  That is over 3000 years of recorded history, from the uninformed of ancient tribes of Israel, to the illiterate people of the time of Christ, to the scientific theories put forward by early scientists, to the advances put forth by Galileo and many others, and finally to the modern advanced mathematical description of the heavens.  You can see the impossible task that God had when He was giving His inspiration to the authors of Genesis!  That means that today, in 2018, we must provide some interpretation of Scripture that doesn’t conflict with modern science.  On the surface, this would seem impossible.

There are those of us who believe that the Catholic Church is the entity on earth that provides the correct interpretations of Scripture for us.  So, what does the Church have to say?  First, the Church does not attempt to discredit modern science in any way, and so the correct interpretation must leave open any credible scientific discovery regarding the universe.  Many people point to the definition of the word “day.”  According to Scripture, God created light on the first day, but there was no sun or moon until the fourth day.  So immediately we see that a “day” in these ancient times cannot be the same as a “day” as we know it.  Even the people in ancient Israel must have recognized that.  Perhaps “day” is not a good translation of the original manuscripts!

And therein lies the most important solution of the problem.  With a “day” undefined, the possibility of a “day” being a very long period of time becomes credible and modern ideas like the Big Bang Theory and the Evolution Theory also become credible.  So, then, what is Scripture actually saying in Genesis?  The Catholic interpretation would be that all that it is trying to say is that God created everything that exists.  This is a huge statement for those who see our magnificent universe as having its beginning brought into being by the hand of God.  Can you imagine the inspired authors making reference to the Big Bang or the Theory of Evolution in their writing?  I cannot.  It would have meant immediate rejection of Sacred Scripture in those days of Genesis by its readers.  No, the authors had to write something believable by uneducated and illiterate people.

I love how the Catholic Church is open to interpret Sacred Scripture so that such interpretation is compatible with modern science.  It respects my basic belief as a scientist myself … that there can be no conflict between faith and proven scientific theories.  It places our future regarding these science/faith matters in total harmony.

There are many, many other statements and stories in Sacred Scripture that are difficult to even imagine being true, as any reader of Scripture can attest.  Currently, I’m reading a book by Catholic apologist Trent Horn titled Hard Sayings:  A Catholic Approach to Answering Bible Difficulties published by Catholic Answers.  I highly recommend it.