by Ben Clausen
Translated for Ciencia de los Orígenes, Enero-Agosto 1995, Ns. 40,41, p.13
Prof. Schawlow received his Ph.D. in physics at the University of
Toronto in 1949. In 1981 he shared the Nobel Prize for Physics with Nicolaas Bloembergen
and Kai Siegbahn "for their contribution to the development of laser
spectroscopy". He is now a professor of Physics at Stanford University.
In understanding the relation between science and faith, Prof. Schawlow
believes that science can neither prove nor disprove religion, because religion is founded
on faith. When confronted with the marvels of life and the universe, one asks why and not
just how, and the only possible answers are religious. For him that means Protestant
Christianity, to which he was introduced as a child and which has withstood the test of a
lifetime. He believes that the context of religion is a great background for doing
science. Psalm 19 says that "The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament
showeth his handiwork". Thus scientific research is a worshipful act, in that it
reveals more of the wonders of God's creation.
As for the origin of the universe and life, he believes that they
should be pursued as vigorously as the scientists' abilities and interests can take them.
From a religious point of view, we assume that God did it and hope to find out something
about how he did it, but the answers will never be final and there will always be further
surprises to come. Deeper questions will eventually have to be referred to religion.
Prof. Schawlow says, "I find a need for God in the universe and in
my own life." Some scientists think of God as a sort of guiding principle, remote
from the concerns of individuals. However, in thinking about God, why can't one use the
metaphor of a time sharing computer or a telephone switching network which give
essentially simultaneous attention to many individuals.
Another useful metaphor is the idea of complementarity. Different
religious individuals have such different views of God due to their varying backgrounds
and knowledge: We know in science that we can only describe or explain things in terms of
other things. We also know that some things cannot be described completely, exhibiting
different aspects under differing conditions. Thus it is not surprising that philosophers
and peasants have different concepts of God. We are fortunate to have the Bible, and
especially the New Testament, which tells us so much about God in widely accessible human
terms, even though it also leaves us some things that are hard to understand.
Reference