Science is fantastic. It is amazing what medical science can understand about the human body and healing it. It is mind boggling what physics shows us about the mysteries of the world. It is humbling when a geologist points out a layer of rock that is millions of years old. Science is fantastic.
Science is constantly in pursuit of the truth. Previously I pointed out that when anyone is engaged in truth telling they are in the prophecy business. Prophecy is being able to tell what will happen in the future if the current reality does not change. You can do this at home. What do you think will happen in the future to a person if they stopped eating and drinking? Yes, they will die. When you speak this truth to someone suffering from anorexia this simple truth becomes a very difficult thing to say. Prophets have a simple message that is difficult to say, which is why there are so few prophets.
And this is where science is a great blessing. Science systematizes truth telling. Science gives a weight and authority to the prophet. So much authority is given to the truth telling and prophetic voice of science that it is a bit of a problem. It puts prophets voice as more important than other voices.
In 1 Corinthians 12, Paul talks about different spiritual gifts are needed for the body of Christ to function. In fact he goes on to say that all gifts are equally important even though some in the Corinth church think that the voice of those who speak in tongues are more important than other voices. Paul argues that all gifts are important and no one gift is more important. He then uses the famous body image where the body is more than an eye and more than a hand.
Just as Corinth church had those who put more authority in speaking in tongues, we have a culture now that puts more authority in truth telling (AKA prophecy).
And this is the problem with science these days. It is so wonderful and great that we all give it a disproportionate amount of authority in our lives.
We need truth tellers. We also need those who are able to discern the signals from the noise (the gift of wisdom). We need those who are able to discern the moral from the possible (the gift of discernment). We need those who are able to inspire the downtrodden (gift of faith) we need those who are able to reconcile us together (gift of healing).
Some of these other gifts do not have the measurable data that science benefits from. That does not mean that these other gifts are less important or that those who use these gifts are to be discarded. Science cannot help reconcile people together. Science cannot help us forgive ourselves. Again, this is not to say that science is bad, it just is one voice that is needed in body for the common good.
We need science. We need truth tellers. But we have a problem when we elevate the gift of truth telling over the other gifts. This was true of Corinth and this is true today.