Scientific arrogance?

Dear Editor,

I’ll admit that I was not inclined to lend a sympathetic ear to William Philip’s article, entitled ‘The fanatical arrogance of men of science’ (en June), given his insensitive stance on climate change during COP26 in Glasgow (see http://ne-calltoaction.org.uk/?m=202207). Indeed, it really upset me to see all the good people I’ve worked with over the years maligned in this way and I hate to think of the damage such teaching could do to young people. The article fosters an attitude of fear and antagonism towards the whole scientific community and this is undeserved. ‘Men (and women) of science’ are not generally ‘fanatically arrogant’, any more than are men of politics, lawyers, school teachers – or ‘men of the church’.

In his article, Mr Philip has given prominence to the destructive ways in which scientific knowledge has been exploited by political leaders, as to the often bizarre proposals of totally unrepresentative individuals. In contrast, no mention whatever was made of the immense and countless benefits that science has brought to humanity – benefits which cannot possibly be exaggerated! The discovery of the causation of the damage to the ozone layer, which, if unchecked, would have done terrible damage to all life on earth, is just one example. Nor was any credit given to the dedication shown by researchers recently, working 18 hours a day, for months on end, which resulted in the astonishingly rapid development of effective and safe vaccines for Covid.

Demonising scientists in general, as the article does, implies that a calling to science is incompatible with a robust Christian commitment. On the contrary, as Reijer Hooykaas, Professor of the History of Science at the Free University, Amsterdam (Abraham Kuyper’s university) put it: ‘Modern science is in good part a product of the Judeo-Christian influence on Western thought’ – and, in particular, of the mindset of the Reformation, according to Thomas Sprat, the historian of the Royal Society.

For an alternative point of view, in PDF, of the dangers associated with the relationship between scientists and government, together with a comment on the views of C.S. Lewis, go to: http://ne-calltoaction.org.uk/?m=202207

Yours sincerely,
David W. Golding CBE PhD DSc DCL
Faculty of Science, Agriculture & Engineering, and Honorary Chaplain, Newcastle University (1968-2021)