Wood: The importance of faith – The Hutchinson News

Phil Wood| Special to The News

"Believing is Seeing" is the title of a new book by Michael Guillen, Ph.D. On the front cover, "A Physicist Explains How Science Shattered His Atheism and Revealed the Necessity of Faith." This subject has been of great interest to me since discovering this quote from the Baha'i writings.

The fourth teaching of Bah'u'llh is the agreement of religion and science. God has endowed man with intelligence and reason whereby he is required to determine the verity of questions and propositions.

If religious beliefs and opinions are found contrary to the standards of science they are mere superstitions and imaginations; for the antithesis of knowledge is ignorance, and the child of ignorance is superstition. Unquestionably there must be agreement between true religion and science. If a question isfound contrary to reason, faith and belief in it are impossible and there is no outcome but wavering and vacillation. (Baha'i World Faith, p. 240)

Guillen begins this book with the story of how he became a scientist. He became interested in science when he was in the second grade. He went on to get a BS in physics and mathematics from UCLA and a Ph.D. in physics, mathematics, and astronomy. After graduating he went to Cambridge, Massachusetts, to teach at Harvard. After several years he left Harvard to work in broadcasting. His last job was as News Science editor at ABC news. He gives a fascinating account of his travels and adventures as a science newscaster and commentator.

The most interesting aspect of his story is his encounter with religion. He came to the conclusion that science did not answer all his questions and began to study religion. He studies the major religions of the world and ended up with a year-long study of the Christian Bible. He found many teachings in the Bible which were completely compatible with his understanding of science. After intensive study, he became a Christian.

The last section of the book is "Your Destiny." He begins with some comments made by college students who are attending a prestigious college in the eastern United States. They are being interviewed and presented with some strange comments about people and their beliefs.

The students accept these strange comments without comment indicating that whatever you believe is OK, without any consideration for facts or truth. He continues to consider the importance of these beliefs in relation to your worldview and how this can influence your actions. This emphasizes the importance of worldview in relation to conditions in the world.

I was not surprised by the results of Guillen's search and his decision to become a Christian and his comments on the importance of religion. The importance of religion is one of the basic Baha'I teachings.

"Religion is, verily, the chief instrument for the establishment of order in the world, and of tranquillity amongst its peoples. The weakening of the pillars of religion hath strengthened the foolish, and emboldened them, and made them more arrogant. Verily I say: The greater the decline of religion, the more grievous the waywardness of the ungodly. This cannot but lead in the end to chaos and confusion. Hear Me, O men of insight, and be warned, ye who are endued with discernment!" (Baha'u'llah, Epistle to the Son of the Wolf, p. 27)

Phil Wood, a Baha'i, from New England, resided 12 years in Barbados, 4 years in China, 35 years in Hutchinson. pwood1937@gmail.com, Phone: 620-314-8571

More:
Wood: The importance of faith - The Hutchinson News