SCIENCE contradict the
BIBLE?
D o e s
First Article in a New Series by Harry Rimmer
Reproduced, by permission from the book T he H armony of S cience and S cripture Copyright by Research Science Bureau, Inc.
W E find in nature a revelation of God, but in the Bible we have the revelation of Him. The difference that now exists between schools of philosophical opinion has to do with the harmony of these two revelations. Many men who have the power to read the signature of Deity in the works that He has wrought do not go suffi ciently into the problem of inspiration to make a complete harmony of fact and record. Therefore it is not uncom mon to hear certain men who are not without standing in the scholarly world maintain that the Bible and science contradict each other. Those who concede the existence of contra dictions between science and Scrip ture accept science as the more au thoritative of the two, and are quick to charge error to the writers of the Bible. This attitude of mind necessarily manifests no small egotism on the part of the objector. The budding knowledge of man in the world of science makes no claim to infallibility, so the controversy is really over the credibility of the two authorities. The true student is one who approaches the problem of alleged contradictions in his field of correlation in a humble attitude of mind, admitting that in stead o f a mistake by the writers of the Scripture, it may be simply an error in his understanding. Some time ago we heard an emi nent theologian apologize for the Bi ble, saying, “ Of course there are sci entific errors in the Bible. However, we can excuse such mistakes on the ground that the Bible is not a text book of science, and therefore we do not expect it to be scientifically accu rate.” The premise of this learned gentle man is sound, but his conclusion is utterly indefensible. Certainly the Bible is not a textbook of science. We are happy to agree, for if it were, it would have to be rewritten at least once in every generation; a textbook of science ten years old is obsolete. The findings of one generation are Page Eight
it is the Word of God. In a book that owes its origin and authority to the perfect knowledge of Deity, no error of any kind could be admissible. Regardless o f the reason for the writing, Almighty God knew the facts in all cases. Therefore, if errors of science are found in the Bible, its claims to inspiration are proved false and its divine authority has been disproved. We would hasten to remind the reader, however, that only a science that is free from error will agree with a true and accurate rendition of the text of the Bible. Years ago, the Re search Science Bureau offered the sum of one hundred dollars to anyone who could demonstrate an unquestioned contradiction between a fact of sci ence and a statement of the Scripture. Into our office files there poured an amazing number of queries and appli cations from those who fancied that they had found a scientific mistake in the old Book. Upon analysis, how ever, every one of these so-called “mistakes” of the Bible turned out to be the result of the contender’s igno rance o f the Scriptures. As an illustration, there was the young lady in Detroit, a graduate of the University of Michigan. This young lady stated that she would take the one hundred dollars offered for the proof of a scientific mistake in Holy Writ, and cited the following data: “ It is inferred in the Scripture that the Garden of Eden was in the land of of Mesopotamia. Science has recently demonstrated that apples will not grow in the climate of Mesopotamia. But the Bible states that Adam and Eve were put out of the Garden of Eden for eating an appl,e, in a climate where science has now proved that apples will not grow!” On this basis she demanded the one hundred dol lars. The committee replied to her very simply by asking for the citation in Scripture that stated that the fruit of Adam’s misdemeanor was an apple. Of course, the Bible nowhere uses the T H E K I N G ' S B U S I N E S S
Dr. Rimmer
subject to the broader research of the following generation, and scientific knowledge is in a constant state of flux. A book which has remained un changed for centuries, still retaining its grip upon the heart and intelli gence of the entire human family, is not temporary and fallible as would be a scientific textbook. Dr. R. A. Millikan, director of the Norman Bridges Laboratory of the California Institute of Technology, •has formulated the following state ment: “ The purpose of science is to develop, without prejudice or precon ception of any kind, a knowledge of the facts, the laws, and the processes of nature. The even more important task of religion, on the other hand, is to develop the consciences, the ideals, and the aspirations of mankind.” How few textbooks of science are composed entirely of facts, written without prejudice or preconception of any kind! How few of the laws and processes of nature have been abso lutely mastered in their entirety by the mind of man! The Bible, however, not evolving from the gradual accumulation of human wisdom, but being an involu tion of the mind of God into the thinking of men, is free from this continual correction and change. Re gardless of the purpose of the Bible,
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