On July 4, while Americans were celebrating the independence of our nation, a different sort of celebration was taking place worldwide. Research findings presented that day show that the elusive Higgs boson particle, nicknamed the “God particle,” almost certainly exists. The research supports a theory proposed decades earlier to explain the presence of mass. One wonders if God was sitting back and saying, “It’s about time, you guys.”
Should Christians be excited about the discovery of the so-called “God particle”? Notwithstanding its nickname, the Higgs boson particle doesn’t prove the existence of God. The discovery of the particle, however, does remind us yet again of the microscopic complexity of our universe. A person must explain this complexity basically in one of two ways: 1) It is the work of a designer, or 2) it is the result of impersonal, unguided forces interacting with one another. The Bible, of course, gives explanation #1, and I find that explanation much more logically satisfying than explanation #2, which is inconsistent with my own exposure to complexity. As the now-famous argument states, if we find a watch lying in the desert, we naturally conclude that the watch did not simply assemble itself.
Let me throw out something else that I believe is worthy of our consideration. If God actively controls the universe and the laws that govern it (see, for example, Ephesians 1:11; Colossians 1:16–17), then scientific discovery is, in itself, a good thing, consistent with the stewardship mandate (Genesis 1:28), and an opportunity for us to marvel at the majesty of creation, and thus at the infinitely greater majesty of the Creator.
What was your reaction to the Higgs boson news? Feel free to leave a comment.
–Beau Stanley
