Science vs. religion : what scientists really think - File PDF

Suppression or Engagement 75science professors who teach them. Traditional forms of religion as well asspirituality are prevalent on our nation’s top campuses. The results of onenational study reveal that students are very interested in spirituality, with wellover 70 percent of college students saying that “we are all spiritual beings” andthat they “gain strength by trusting in a higher power.” A four-university studyshows that students are interested in traditional religion and especially interestedin nontraditional forms of spirituality. 5 Yet, a majority of science professors—nearly65 percent—come to their positions without a belief in God orwith a belief that is much less certain than that found among the broader public.This is in sharp contrast to the nation in general, where only 6 percent donot believe. How will scientists retain interest in science among students whoare more religious than they are? If the scientists are too heavy-handed, theymight turn the potential leaders of American society off from an interest in sciencealtogether. The solution is not obvious. We must first get a better look atthe work lives of scientists and their relationships with their students. A comprehensiveunderstanding of how scientists are currently interacting with studentswould allow us to assess where scientists interested in achieving dialoguecould go from here.A political scientist6in her mid thirties admitted that because she generallydoes not spend a lot of time thinking about whether or not God exists, she wassurprised by a recent encounter with a religious student: “I wanted him torespond to the readings analytically and intellectually, but he took issue withwhat one writer said and made a statement in his work, something like, ‘Whatshe doesn’t understand is that Jesus Christ is in fact the son of God.’” Withexasperation in her voice, she told me, “Responding to that as a teacher ishard!”THE CULTURAL SCRIPTS OF SCIENTISTSKnowing how science professors interact with those in their classrooms aboutmatters of faith involves understanding their particular cultural scripts . Wemight think of a script as a blueprint or road map that tells us what to do. Inthis context, cultural scripts are the different ways that the training and socializationscientists receive has taught them how to interpret and talk about theworld of religion. Some—frequently those who teach at large state institutions—uselanguage focusing on the separation of church and state to suppressall discussion of religion. We could call this a script of suppression. Others usea script that revolves around being a nonspecialist. They are not professors of