Albert Einstein's belief in Intelligent Design!

Dennis Edwards

Albert Einstein rejected Judaism and traditional Christian churchianity, but he was serious scientist willing to accept where the evidence led and change his mind when he was wrong. At one point, he was a believer in the "Steady State Universe" developed by Fredrick Hoyle the British mathematician and astronomer. This idea started with the assumption that the universe was static and had always existed, that it had no beginning. However, after a famous solar eclipse in the beginning of the 20th century, scientists were able to prove through observation that light was effected by gravity. This fact led to the development of the "Big Bang" theory, so named by Fred Hoyle whose theory it overthrew. Einstein stated that it would have been a bigger error to cling to an idea that was shown to be wrong, than to have believed the idea in the first place. 

However, Einstein's work in the mathematics and physics led him to a deep conviction that the universe was not the result of random processes. He said, "We are in the position of a little child entering a huge library filled with books in many different languages. [Here he is alluding to the different scientific equations that we use to describe the various forces of nature that we find, such as: gravity, the strong and weak nuclear forces, the speed of light, the chemical equations of the elements, etc. Einstein continues.] The child knows someone must have written these books. It does not know how. [In other words, Someone must have written the various laws of science - which, following his line of thought, should have led him to a personal Divine Being. But his prejudice against Judaism and organised Churchianity, led him to reject that hypothesis and procure belief in a type of impersonal universal force. He goes on to continue his thought.] It (the child) does not understand the languages in which they (the books) are written. The child dimly suspects a mysterious order in the arrangement of the books, but doesn't know what it is. That it seems to me, is the attitude of even the most intelligent being toward God. We see a universe marvellously arranged and obeying certain laws, but only dimly understand those laws. Our limited minds cannot grasp the mysterious force that moves the constellations."[1]

Werner Von Braun, the German Aerospace Engineer which helped the USA develop the rockets that enabled the launching of America into space, said something very similar to Einstein. He said, "For me, the idea of a creation is not conceivable without invoking the necessity of design. One cannot be exposed to the law and order of the universe without concluding that there must be design and purpose behind it all...My experience with science led me to God. They challenge science to prove the existence of God. But must we light a candle to see the sun?"[2]

Of course these men were not the first to come to this conclusion. Isaac Newton who discovered the law of gravity and is considered by many as the greatest of the early scientists said, "This most beautiful system of the sun, planets, and comets, could only proceed from the counsel and dominion of an intelligent and powerful Being. [Here we see Newton coming to the conclusion of a personal God. However, he did not embrace churchianity of his day.] This Being governs all things, not as the soul of the world,[Here we see Newton refuting the Greek and Eastern concept of "God" being the impersonal force of the natural world.], but as Lord over all; and on account of His dominion He is wont to be called Lord God, or Universal Ruler."[3]

Following Newton, we can read from the writings of Thomas Jefferson on his thoughts relating to this topic. Again, Jefferson was not a traditional believer in the "God" of the Bible and rejected the miracles recorded therein. However, he comes to the same conclusion as Newton. He wrote, "So irresistible are these evidences of an intelligent and powerful Agent [He could have been reading Newton.] that, of the infinite numbers of men who have existed through all time, they have believed, in the proportion of a million to one, in the hypothesis of an eternal pre-existence of a Creator, rather than in that of a self-existent universe."[4]

Sometime later, Abraham Lincoln made the following declaration: "I can see how it is possible for a man to look down upon the earth and be an atheist, but I cannot conceive how he could look up into the heaven and say, 'There is no God.'"[5]

Some 2,800 earlier than Lincoln, in the Book of Psalms found in the Hebrew Bible, we find these words in a Jewish hymn. "The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament shows His handiwork. Day unto day they speak, night unto night they reveal knowledge. There is no land or language where their voice is not heard."[6] The psalmist is eluding to the magnificent celestial bodies that cause us to stand in awe and ponder our significance in lieu of their awesomeness.

Einstein would draw the same conclusion. He wrote, "Scientist's religious feelings take the form of rapturous amazement at the harmony of natural law, which reveals an intelligence of such superiority that, compared with all systematic thinking and acting of human beings is an utterly insignificant reflection."[7] He also said,"Everyone who is seriously interested in the pursuit of science becomes convinced that a spirit is manifest in the laws of the universe - a spirit vastly superior to man, and one in the face of which our modest powers must feel humble."[8] 

Have you come to the right conclusions? Are your biases against the organised religious system of today causing you to reject the intelligent and powerful Being who created the universe? Maybe you need to have another think. When asked to criticize the validity of the New Testament and agree with the conclusions of a skeptic regarding Christianity, Einstein surprisingly responded: "I am enthralled by the luminous figure of the Nazarene....No one can read the Gospels [found in the New Testament] without feeling the actual presence of Jesus. His personality pulsates in every word. No myth is filled with such life."[9]

Have you given the real Jesus, found in the pages of the Gospels a fair chance? Or have you rejected him because of the religious system of today and of the past? Please, take another look. Put aside your prejudice against Christianity and read Jesus for himself. Read his own words found in the writings of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. I assure you, if you take the time to investigate Jesus with an open and honest heart, you will be surprised at what you find.

Notes

[1] Einstein, Albert; 

[2] Von Braun, Werner; 

[3] Newton, Isaac; The Principles; 

[4] Jefferson, Thomas;
[5] Lincoln, Abraham;
[6] Psalm 19, Hebrew and Christian Bible
[7] Einstein, Albert; The World as I See It.
[8] Einstein, Albert;                                                            [9] Einstein, Albert;