Mathematician, Scientist, Christian (a joint Christian and Science testimonial)

I will be traveling to Italy October 4-12, 2024, hosted by Faculty Commons, a ministry under Campus Crusade for Christ, International. I wlll give several talks in Italy, at least one or two to a university Christian student group (and their invited friends) arranged by Cru or InterVarsity staff. One of the talks is essentially my testimony as a scientist and a Christian. It is intended to be "evangelistic" and my personal apologetic for Christianity. 

The apologetics part of the talk may be a little understated, but I have often been bothered by those apologetics speakers who claim a "proof" of Christianity. I have no intention of "proving" that Christianity is true but I wish to argue that Christianity is a rationale choice for an intelligent person to make.

I attach links here to a video draft of the apologetics talk I plan to give in Italy, The talk is in six parts. If you get a chance to watch it (it totals 43 1/2 minutes), I would be interested in your reactions to the concepts, to the arguments. (My gmail address is KenWSmith54@...)

(Don't worry too much about video format or stuff like that, as I will be presenting the material live using PowerPoint -- and possibly working with a translator.)

When I recorded this, I was still dealing with the aftereffects of my second bout with Covid, so I struggled throughout trying to suppress coughing! I'm afraid you can tell that sometimes in the audio....

Part 1 (5:31), My upbringing as Christian and scientist

Part 2 (9:14), What the Bible and Science each tell us about our universe

Part 3 (7:08), What the Bible does NOT say about our universe

Part 4 (8:32), What Science does NOT say about our universe

Part 5 (6:46), Can randomness have a purpose?

Part 6 (6:19), Why I think Christianity is true

Any suggestions are appreciated!! thanks. (Feel free to reply on this blog or send me a personal email (gmail) KenWSmith54@...

Ken

PS. Creating this was an interesting exercise. I had not thought about some of these issues for some time and I found it hard to put my thoughts together!

Value and Beauty in Mathematics, Part 1

For almost fifty years I have explored and taught mathematics, at a variety of levels. The study of science often requires a significant amount of mathematical reasoning. Yet students consistently struggle in, and sometimes even dread, their math classes. In this talk I will share some thoughts on the beauty and importance of mathematics, with an emphasis on some simple steps to student success in this important field. 

I want to tell you how to be successful in mathematics. But before I do, I want to tell you why you should care.

1. Mathematics and mathematical exploration is good for the human race!

I am sure you have heard many arguments about mathematics improving science or technology but here are some small examples of which you might not be aware.

Mathematics helps brew good beer. Indeed, a century ago, an engineer at Guinness in Ireland, working on developing quality control, discovered what is now called the Student t-distribution. (The specialist published his results under the pseudonym August Student.) Good beer led to better math led to better beer!

Artists in the Italian Renaissance developed the mathematics of perspective. Filippo Brunelleschi and Leon Battista Alberti were leaders in this field; Leonardo daVinci displays his knowledge of perspective by including the perspective lines in paintings such as The Last Supper. 

Piera della Francisco's Ideal City

da Vinci's Last Supper

 

This study led to projective geometry which violated classical Euclidean geometry.

And non-euclidean geometry is the background for the theory of relativity. The theory of relativity is used to precisely set the clocks in orbiting satellites so that our GPS coordinates are accurate. There is about a 25,000 nanosecond difference (per day) in the clocks in the standard GPS satellite; if this were not corrected by these clock setting, the GPS coordinates would be off by 25,000 feet (8 kilometers) per day!

Your GPS guide not only relies on the geometry of mathematics but the geometry of relativity! (Where the sum of angles of a triangle is NOT 180 degrees and the Pythagorean theorem does not hold!)

Other examples:

• The mathematics behind microbiology has helped us develop antibiotics and vaccines and led to fairly rapid development of vaccines during the COVID pandemic.

• Linear algebra, especially algorithms (a 2-D Fourier transform) are used to find inverse of matrices and more complicated mathematical systems has led to the science of Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). 

• The seismic imaging process in geology uses a similar inverse problem to map out the geology of a region (such as Mount Vesuvius at the Vesuvius Observatory) without being able to “see” the internal formations.

• Binary sequences have led to the use of objects like Barker sequences (a Barker sequence of length 11) is used as BPSK signal modulation in many wifi routers.

• Pseudorandom sequences are behind most computer games, assuring that each gaming experience is different than the last.

• Number theory that dates back to Fermat has led to public key exchange algorithms behind internet commerce. If you have ever used a credit card to purchase an item online, you have used one of those key exchanges.

These are mere samples from millions of modern applications of mathematics.

But most of these applications involve someone else's knowledge of mathematics; you and I merely benefit from that knowledge, without needing that knowledge ourselves. Are there reasons you, personally, might need to think mathematically? We will explore that in the next blogpost.

Faith and Science

Tonight I am a resource at a Cru meeting on apologetics and will focus on Faith & Science.  I hope to have a brief handout which will include my email address and a link to this blog, so that I can provide additional resources.

The Bible's perspective

In Genesis 1 we see each part of the universe created deliberately as an act of God, as beautiful and good. The passage describes the earth "teeming" with life, and describes all of nature as created by God's pleasure in an orderly fashion.

It is reasonable to believe that the Creator of the universe, a universe with physical laws, uses those laws and processes to do his will.

Beginning in Job 38 and continuing for four chapters, God challenges Job to "step to the blackboard" and explain, even control, a variety of natural phenomena. Here are verses 4-11 at the beginning of that passage:

"Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?
Tell me, if you understand.
Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know!
Who stretched a measuring line across it?
On what were its footings set,
or who laid its cornerstone—
while the morning stars sang together
and all the angels shouted for joy?

Who shut up the sea behind doors
when it burst forth from the womb,
when I made the clouds its garment
and wrapped it in thick darkness,
when I fixed limits for it
and set its doors and bars in place,
when I said, ‘This far you may come and no farther;
here is where your proud waves halt’?"

Acts 12:23 on Herod's death:
"Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died."

So which is it -- an angel struck him down or he was eaten by worms?  (Or both be true?)

Romans 1:20 -- Nature is a witness to God's work.
"For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities--his eternal power and divine nature--have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that people are without excuse."

Psalm 8,

"Lord, our Lord,
how majestic is your name in all the earth!
You have set your glory
in the heavens...."

Psalm 19: 1-4,

"The heavens declare the glory of God;
the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech;
night after night they reveal knowledge.

They have no speech, they use no words;
no sound is heard from them.
Yet their voice goes out into all the earth,
their words to the ends of the world.
In the heavens God has pitched a tent for the sun."

Common Myths about Faith and Science

1. The Bible is a science textbook. (This belief, not supported by Scripture, leads to false assumptions by Christians about the world we live in. No, the earth is not flat....)

2. Hebrew scholars insist that creation must have been in six 24-hour days. (Some Young-Earth creationists claim, "Whenever yom [the Hebrew word for day in Genesis 1] is preceded by a numerical article we are forced to accept it as a literal day." A Hebrew scholar, Dr. J. Oliver Buswell reacts to that, "the very form of [this claim] reveals the fact that the author has never had a course in Hebrew...." Although there are different agreements about the various uses of the word yom in Genesis 1, there are significant hermeneutical errors in claiming it must be "24 hours".)

3. Faith is "blind faith", without any justification. (No, a better word might be "trust".  A Christian lives by "trust", relying on an invisible God whose actions may not always be seen.)

4. A naturalistic world view is completely rational and logical. (The argument used to justify naturalism is circular: "I dismiss anything outside the naturalistic world because there is nothing outside the naturalistic world.")

Some Resources that I recommend

American Scientific Affiliation (an organization of scientists who are Christians)

BioLogos (started by Francis Collins) focus on Evolution and Science. The organization is led by biologists who are Christians. BioLogos defends evolution from a Biblical Christian viewpoint.

Reasons to Believe (founded by Hugh Ross) focuses on scientific arguments for Christianity. RTB argues for progressive creation of some type (the universe is billions of years old) but does not endorse evolution.
Musings on Science and Theology, by RJS, is an excellent blog which covers a variety of issues of science and faith, especially as they relate to biology.

The following books are in my personal library. (I have another dozen books or more in my personal library, but these are my favorites.)

"Teaching Science in a Climate of Controversy" (a guide for educators from the American Scientific Affiliation) -- email me for a pdf copy of this.

"Creation of Evolution?" by Charles Hummel, an Intervarsity pamphlet summarizing the issues.. A review appears here.

Science and its Limits, by Del Ratzsch, an excellent examination of what science can and cannot do.
The Language of God, by Francis Collins, explains why Collins sees science as providing evidence for God.

The Fingerprint of God, by Hugh Ross, explains why Ross sees science as providing evidence for God.

The Fourth Day, by Howard Van Till. Subtitle: "What the Bible and the Heavens are telling us about Creation".  The viewpoint of an astronomer.

Science Held Hostage, by Van Till, Young, Menninga.  Subtitle: "What Wrong with Creation Science AND Evolutionism."
Evolution, Nature & Scripture in Conflict? by Pattle P. T. Pun. This a favorite of mine, as Pun aggressively dismantles the arguments for Young-Earth Creationism while carefully explaining what we know about biology and evolution... and scripture.

My contact information

My blog, with links: https://longingforabettercountry.blogspot.com

Email: KenWSmith54 (at) gmail (dot) com

The Trinity

Christians supposedly believe in "the Trinity", a popular but confusing doctrine that gives the impression that Christians believe in three gods. It is my conviction that Christians in the United States place far too much emphasis on minor doctrinal differences and are far too willing to forget their main mission (and love) in order to "take a stand" on confusing topics.  (See, for example, this blogpost that raises concerns about "complementarians" and the Trinity and this Wikipedia article for a history of some of the past viewpoints and disagreements!)

The theological concept of the "Trinity" of God dates to the second century and is an attempt to understand the way God is represented in creation, in Jesus and in the Holy Spirit. The concept is not explicit in the Scriptures, but various pieces of it are implied in certain passages.

That there is only one God, not three, is clear throughout Scripture. The Old Testament "Shema Israel" passage, in Deuteronomy 6:4, makes that a basic principle of the faith of Israel.

In John 1: 1-4, we are introduced to the Word (Logos) of God, the creative mind of God, with God from the beginning of creation, finally made flesh (John 1:14) in the appearance of Jesus.

In Hebrews 1: 1-3, Jesus is similarly described as the one through whom the universe was made. Furthermore, he is the "exact representation" of God. I cannot read those passages without reading the claim that Jesus is God, in some human representation of him.

In John 14: 16-17, Jesus promises to send "a Comforter" who will live within his followers and we see this Comforter appear at Pentecost in Acts 2.  The early church seemed to view the Holy Spirit as the presence of God (or Jesus) internally guiding the believer and Paul seems to explicitly identify the Holy Spirit with Jesus (eg. II Corinthians 3:17.)

There is a popular explanation of the Trinity in a diagram (see below.) The diagram makes no sense to me, as it violates our understanding of "is" or "equal."  As a mathematician, if God=Son and God=Father then Father=Son by the transitive property of equality!  Apparently the word "is" here means something different than the way I typically use it.  I am uncomfortable with an argument that relies (to quote an American president) "on what the meaning of the word 'is' is."

That people consider this important is clear.  But it is not important that a Christian sort this out. If the Bible only provides a sketch of the complexity of God, I see no obligation to take that sketch and create an intricate (and flawed) systematic theology. Nor am I obligated to endorse someone else's detailed (and flawed) theology.

The website GotQuestions.org attempts to lay out the Biblical theology for the Trinity.  There is some good material these, including a number of related Old Testament passages.  But I appreciate most that the site wisely ends with this paragraph:

"The doctrine of the Trinity has been a divisive issue throughout the entire history of the Christian church. While the core aspects of the Trinity are clearly presented in God’s Word, some of the side issues are not as explicitly clear. The Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God—but there is only one God. That is the biblical doctrine of the Trinity. Beyond that, the issues are, to a certain extent, debatable and non-essential. Rather than attempting to fully define the Trinity with our finite human minds, we would be better served by focusing on the fact of God's greatness and His infinitely higher nature. “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing out! Who has known the mind of the Lord? Or who has been his counselor?” (Romans 11:33-34)."

Ruth, Dreamers... and a Plea

The Old Testament books of Joshua and Judges describe the pagan nations that routinely fought the young nation of Israel, attempting to destroy it.

One of these evil pagan nations was Moab.

In the midst of this history, in the time of the Judges, a pagan woman, a Moabite refugee, enters the small Judean town of Bethlehem. In Bethlehem she is welcomed and protected. And in the sovereign plan of God, she has a son (a "Redeemer".) Her great-grandchild is David, a future king. In her lineage is the Messiah, the Son of David.

The line of Jesus goes back through this Moabite refugee welcomed by the village of Bethlehem.

The book of Ruth displays God's sovereign plans, the ways that God works out, over a long period of time, His redemption. The short book of Ruth is a beautiful work. Read through it slowly!  Read it as a romance, if you will, between Ruth and Boaz ... and between God and the widow and orphan.

Do not miss an undercurrent theme in the book of Ruth -- indeed, throughout the Old Testament -- the emphatic insistence that the people of Israel were to welcome the alien and the stranger. God worked through the "alien and stranger". In the Old Testament there are two, three dozen explicit instructions to welcome, protect and shield the alien!

And so, to my Christian friends, a plea –

   IF you have looked at the heartbeat of a fetus and -- knowing that it had a beating heart and felt pain -- if in love for the vulnerable fetus, you have taken a stand for the unborn,
   IF you are aware of those sweet children who are born with an extra copy of chromosome 21 and if you have then acted in love for those with Downs Syndrome (some of you even have started calling it Ups Syndrome!)

THEN, as your brother in Christ, seeking to speak in the Holy Spirit, I plea with you, I beg, that you consider the plight of the "undocumented aliens" and those "dreamers" around you who love this country, their home!

They are in your block.  They live near you and go to your church.

Please, walk down the block, cry with them and pray with them! And then (as you would for the unborn and those with Downs) take a stand for the Immigrant. Reach out to your congressional representative and ask that our country find a way to legally welcome these people who love the USA and who are doing so much for our beautiful country!

My wife and I are currently involved in a Christian ministry that includes at least three students who have publicly identified themselves as DACA recipients.  These friends are anxious and frightened. Last year they studied hard, hoping to soon graduate and start a career. Now they are afraid that in six months they will be deported to a country they do not know.

And IF you are sympathetic with the unborn and IF you are sympathetic with those with Downs but can still turn your back on the Dreamers – if you as a Christian, but can ignore two dozen Old Testament passages on the immigrant  – if you can find words like "Obama" or "America" or "Muslim extremist" to ignore that scared neighbor down the block – then your conscience has been seared.  I pray, in Jesus name, that you RESET your conscience – that you put Jesus above your job and your country – and I beg that you weep with the dreamers and then act to protect them.  If Jesus is your Lord and Savior, if your Master is concerned about the unborn and the child with Downs, then please prayerfully, slowly, read through the last half of Matthew 25, read the book of Ruth, read through the more than two dozen Old Testament commands, and see your dreamer neighbor as God does!

Republican, Democrat or Independent, this issue is above American politics. It is an issue for Christians, residents of a different country (Hebrews 11:13-16.)  Please, act as a citizen of that eternal kingdom!

Some Teachings of Jesus (21st Century Texas Version)

In modern 21st century USA, it is common for people to use Christianity as a comfortable crutch, offering a convenient spiritual side to their lives.  But Christianity was never intended that way; Jesus never made the religious people feel comfortable but challenged them at every turn.  To make that point, let's take a few of his statements and simply move them into the 21st century American culture.

Matthew 23: 1 - 13, 23
Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples: “The religious leaders preach from their Sunday pulpits, with lots of helpful teachings on honesty and morality.  Do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.

“Everything they do is done for people to see: They create large churches with choirs that praise their country.  They love the place of honor on talk shows and political campaigns. They love to be seen in the White House, in pictures praying with the president.  They love the title of Evangelical Leader....

 “Woe to you, religious leaders and evangelical pastors, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people’s faces....  You have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. 

Luke 9: 25 - 37
On one occasion a religious leader stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?”...

“What does the Bible say?” Jesus asked. “How do you read it?”

The religious leader answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ”

“You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.”

But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?”

In reply Jesus said, “A black family lived in an apartment in Houston's Fifth Ward when a terrible flood destroyed their home. Trapped and drowning in the rising flood waters, they called out for help. 

A large nearby church had water damage and said, 'We are not ready yet.' 

FEMA said, 'Shipments are on the way.' 

But two Dreamers, illegal immigrants, got out their fishing boat and rode the waves and waters into the apartment complex.  They pulled the family out, took them and their pets to dry land and found shelter for them. These two paid, out of their own small savings, for food and water for the family and prayed with them.

Which of these three, the church, the government, or the illegal immigrant, was their neighbor?"

The religious expert replied, “The one who had mercy on them.”

Jesus told him, “Yes. Go and do likewise.”

(Sadly, as I write this, a Dreamer has died helping others in the Houston flood waters. See this article.)

Conclusion

"Most people want Jesus as a consultant rather than a king". 

 (A quote of Tim Keller, passed on to me by a friend.)  

If we seek to have Jesus as king, instead of a comfortable consultant, we will struggle.  We will not fit into the current religious system. We will recognize that the religious system loves prestige and power and ignores the poor. But if Jesus is King, we have no choices here. He rejected prestige and power and he cared for the poor. We must have the same view.

I make no claims that this is easy or that I manage to accomplish this. But I must try.

On the Confederate Flag

My ancestors fought for the confederacy; one served in the Georgia 53rd Infantry Regiment throughout the Civil War. Prior to the Civil War he was an overseer on a Georgia plantation; after the war he moved his destitute family to Cass County, Texas.

I grew up in east Texas with a confederate flag in my bedroom. I was taught that that symbol represented the regional pride of the South.

I was proud of my Southern heritage ... until I became a Christian in high school. Through the work of the Holy Spirit, I then understood that ALL of us are equally loved and adored by God. God favors NO race. Indeed, my Savior, Jesus, was the brown-skinned Messiah of the Jews!

Every culture has its strengths; every culture has it sins. A love for the South is part of my heritage and I embrace that. But the South also has its sins. I am especially moved by the Christian forgiveness encapsulated in a speech of Dr. King:

"I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 

'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal'. 

I have a dream that one day on the red hills of Georgia, the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood."

God has allowed me to sit at the table of brotherhood -- amongst the red hills of Georgia! -- with sons and daughters of former slaves. It was a joyful experience for me.

As a follower of the Messiah, I repudiate the symbolism of the confederate flag. It is today a symbol of racism and race hatred. I react to it with nausea. I have no respect for that flag and I pray for those who see anything positive, in this day, in displaying that flag.