The Islamic cosmology consists of two views the tradition view and the modern view. The traditional view consists of the world being created in 6 days, just like the Christian cosmology. There are no clear statements about the order that the creation happens. They are rather statements about what happens saying that God created the universe. The modern view tells us that God created the universe in six ages rather than six days. This emphasises that the universe could have been created by evolution over large periods of time.
A.II
Scientists have recently come to the conclusion that the beginning of the world happened differently to that thought of by religions. These theories came about as a result of scientific discoveries found in the past 200 years. One of the main discoveries that effected the thoughts about the current cosmologies was that matter is eternal, and that it can neither be created nor destroyed, yet it can be changed.
The scientific cosmology suggests that the universe began 15 billion years ago. It started when a so-called Big Bang occurred. This came about when the matter that was the universe became so compressed that a huge explosion took place. Proof of this can be found in the Red Shift effect when you look at distant galaxies. The force from the explosion gave the matter enough energy to fly apart. When forces such as gravity were placed on the matter some joined together into stars. Around 10billion years later the solar system was formed.
Scientists believe that primitive life began on earth 4.5 billion years ago, which then after long periods of time evolved to create the species that we see around us, including ourselves. Evolution is when primitive basic forms of life such as amoeba develop through the process of natural selection, (That the most suitable evolvement for the surrounding environment will reproduce and become a new species). This theory claims that humans are the evolved forms of animals, an animal that for over 2.5 million years has evolved into the humans that we see around us.
This differs to cosmologies from Christianity and Islam, as it believes that there was no maker of what we see around us. Rather that it happened by chance. Compared to religious views that show a ‘God’ to be the one that created everything. Also the two stories differ in the time scale that the whole process was supposed to take. In the religious cosmology God takes 6 days to create the universe this contrasts to the scientific cosmology as it takes billions of years for the universe to be created.
A.III
The science cosmology can be seen as supporting the religious cosmology as many of the things God did to create the universe can be referred to in the science cosmology. For instance when God said ‘let there be light’ (Genesis: 1). It could have been a reference to when the Big Bang happened. Also the order that the events happen in the Holy Scriptures matches the order that the scientists believe happened in evolution. First came the planets, then the plants and trees, then the fish and the birds, then the animals and the humans. People believe that could have been what happened when God made the universe.
Both cosmologies believe that an underlying force caused the universe to form. For religion it was God. ‘ In the beginning when God created the universe’ (Genesis: 1), in the science cosmology the force reliable for creation was gravity.
B.
I disagree that ‘you can’t be a scientist and be religious’. I think this because science has evidence to back up its theories. However there are people that would agree with this quote. Some people would agree with this quote, these would be the Creationism’s and the tradition Muslims. These people believe that the story in the Bible and the Qu’ran is exactly what happened. No leeway is given towards the science theory and that the word written is final. Alternatively there are religious people who believe that both the science and the religious cosmology’s are correct, and that everything that happened in the Bible and the Qu’ran can be connected to the science theory. For example when God said ‘Let there be light’ the start of the big bang happened. People who believe this are the Conservatism’s and the modern Muslims. However Liberalism’s believe that the story in the Bible is not meant to be regarded as true. It is rather a story told to give peace of mind that God created everything. A lot of Liberalism’s believe that the scientific cosmology is so remarkable that it may have been the way that God created humans.
There are many reasons why a scientist can be a scientist and religious. It can be believed, as science and religion are two ways of looking at the same facts.
Both Christianity and Islam believe that God created the universe, and that if the universe could be investigated in such a way you will see that God has designed everything. In the same way science claims that the universe is such a complex thing with all of its laws and principles that there must be a creator. ‘Science is based on everything having an explanation and religion says that God is the explanation’.
Science and religion often use the same methods to prove something. Scientist would see things happening in the world, and think up a theory for why it happens. The theory is then tested. In the same way if a person claims to be a prophet sent from God, religious experts would test them to see if they match previous prophets, by looking at the lifestyle.
Many scientists have been lead to the awareness of God though the study of the universe. Many look at the structure of DNA and think that it is to complicated and beautiful to have been an accident. Many mathematicians think that the whole world works on mathematical principles that can be discovered through research. If there are principles hidden in the world, who put them there? God must have put them there.
Although science is a lot easier to prove than religion, they both rely on belief and experience. A scientist will test to prove that things do not happen by chance, by using his experience of science. A religious person believes in God and then tests that belief by their experience in life.
‘Nature is as divine a text as the Holy Scriptures. They can’t be in real contradiction to each other.’
Galileo
‘Science without religion is handicapped: Religion without science is blind.’
Einstein
Bibliography
Books
Religion & Society by R. Watton (edexel)
Good News Bible (1994 edition)
Qu’ran
Videos
Big Bang Video
Websites
http://www.atributetohinduism.com
http://www.dictionary.com
