Can a good scientist also believe in God? Is it possible for a Catholic priest to also engage in
serious scientific research?
In a previous video, we explored the life and work of Fr. George Lemaître, the Belgian priest
and astronomer who proposed the famous Big Bang theory. The example of Fr. Lemaître by itself
flatly refutes the idea—argued for by figures like Richard Dawkins—that great
scientists do not or cannot believe in God. But is Fr. Lemaître merely an extraordinary
exception to the rule? Are science and faith at odds with each other?
The point of this video series is to show that they are not.
In fact, Lemaître’s dual role as a scientist and priest was not uncommon in centuries
past. Even in the modern era, we can find plenty of examples of men who served God as
either priests or religious and who also were pioneers of their scientific disciplines.
These figures include Fr. James Macelwane,
a brilliant geophysicist, as well as Br. Guy Consolmagno and the late Fr. George Coyne—both
prominent astronomers who studied the heavens using the most sophisticated tools and theories.
Born in 1883, Fr. Macelwane was ordained to the priesthood in 1918 and soon after graduated from
the University of California, Berkeley with a Ph.D. in physics. His area of research was in
seismology, or the study of earthquakes. This consists of measuring the waves that occur on
and under the Earth’s surface when great blocks of the Earth’s crust move—that is, when earthquakes
happen. He soon became highly-sought after in the spheres of academia, government, and industry.
Over the course of his career, Fr. Macelwane established a chain of seismic recording stations
across central and northern California and revitalized a network of worldwide Jesuit-run
seismic stations called the Jesuit Seismological Service. His efforts helped to establish
comprehensive collections of field data used by other scientists. Also a dedicated professor,
department chair, and dean, Fr. Macelwane wrote a renowned textbook on theoretical seismology
and helped to create seismology programs for students at Berkeley and Saint Louis University.
Outside of academia, Fr. Macelwane’s expertise was sought by the U.S. Navy,
by several oil exploration companies, and even by the State Department, which chose him to
head the American Delegation to the International Congress of Geodesy and Geophysics in Rome.
For his remarkable contributions to the field, Fr. Macelwane was elected to the US
National Academy of Sciences in 1944, one of the highest honors in American science.
He was even elected President of the American Geophysical Union in 1953, a professional—and
entirely secular—organization. He also received the American Geophysical Union’s Bowie Prize,
its highest scientific medal, among other prizes and recognitions for his work.
For a few more examples of extraordinary contributions to science by
Catholic priests and religious, let’s turn to the Vatican Observatory.
Run by priests and religious brothers, the Vatican Observatory is one of the
oldest active astronomical observatories in the world, whose roots trace back to 1582.
For centuries, scientists and scholars from both religious and secular backgrounds have come from
around the world to conduct cutting-edge research in modern astronomy and planetary science.
The late Fr. George Coyne, who served as director of the Vatican Observatory until 2006,
oversaw the modernization of the observatory and established the Vatican Observatory Research
Group. These efforts led to a collaboration with the University of Arizona on constructing
the Vatican Advanced Technology Telescope, a multi-million dollar astronomical research
complex with state-of-the-art equipment. He was awarded the prestigious George Van Biesbroeck
Prize by the American Astronomical Society, the U.S. organization of professional astronomers.
The current director of the Vatican Observatory, Br. Guy Consolmagno,
is a seasoned lecturer and researcher, and an expert in meteorites and asteroids.
He has an asteroid named after him, 4597 Consolmagno, and he received the Carl Sagan
Medal for outstanding science communication to the public, awarded by the U.S. society of
professional planetary scientists. He also served as chair of this secular organization, following
in the footsteps of Fr. Macelwane’s leadership roles in secular scientific organizations.
By their lives, work, and accolades, these incredibly accomplished men refute the very notion
of conflict between religious and scientific vocations. Their multifaceted lives—united
by a search for truth about the world we live in—show that the answer is most emphatically yes:
good scientists can and do also believe in God. And furthermore, yes, it is entirely possible
for Catholic priests and religious to also engage in groundbreaking scientific research.
These distinguished careers of Lemaître and Macelwane—plus the Vatican astronomers and
thousands upon thousands of scientist-believers past and present—are the silent testimony that
we as human beings are made in the image of God… and are made
to appreciate the grandeur of his creation through the method and practice of science.
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