Christian Scientists:
The Faith Behind the Reasoning
Many of the most influential scientists in history have had strong Christian backgrounds. From old world theorists to modern day physicists, there has been a long commonality between our observations of the natural world and our understanding of scripture. The people below are just a few examples of Christian scientists who have made enormous contributions to both the church and society.
Real World People
Galileo Galilei
Galileo was an astronomer and mathematician who was born in the 16th century. He was a member of the Roman Catholic church, whom he later disputed on their views concerning the Copernican and Aristotelian systems. While Galileo had several disputes with the church, he remained strong in his faith even saying, “Do not make me say I have not been a good Catholic, for I have been one and will remain one no matter what my enemies say”.
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Gregor Mendel
Gregor Johann Mendel is considered the Father of Modern Genetics. Born in 1822, Mendel was the son of a farmer and grew up interested in science, especially in botany. He later entered the Augustinian Abbey of St. Thomas where he was a monk. It was here that Mendel bred pea plants and discovered the Laws of Inheritance. His theories on the genetics of pea plants was originally rejected, but over time it has become the basis for all modern day genetics.
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Lise Meitner
Lise Meitner was born in 1878 into a Jewish family in Vienna Austria. She converted to Christianity in 1908 and was the second woman to earn a PhD in Physics at the University of Vienna. She helped to discover the element protactinium with colleague Otto Hahn in 1917. After enduring many hardships during WWII from Germany she fled in 1938 to Sweden. Before she was forced to leave Germany she worked with Hahns and discovered nuclear fission. When Hahn won the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1944 for nuclear fission, Meitner was not included even though she had made significant contributions to the discovery of nuclear fission.
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