Recently, I read a very thoughtful article about the often-heated debate between science and religion, titled “Science and Religion:A false divide created by rhetoric“ in the Vancouver Sun.

Written by sociologist John H. Evans of the University of California, San Diego, it talks about a study he did which compared the most conservative of Christian Protestants with those who profess no religion. What his research found was that conservative Protestants are equally likely as non-religious people to understand scientific methods, know scientific facts, claim knowledge of science, or to have majored in science or have a scientific occupation.

Apart from issues of evolution, Prof. Evans found that “there is actually very little conflict between religion and science.” The greatest conflict, he says, is not over facts but over values and morals. People who are more conservative religiously do not want to see science alone leading the discussion of morality in our society.

Prof. Evans’ findings are fascinating to me, especially considering what we hear on TV about the ‘division’ between science and religion. And in a world filled with so much inflammatory rhetoric and anger, on almost any subject at issue, it prompts me to ask a larger question: How do we heal the divide caused by our words?

“I hear you… but do I understand?”

Listening to each other is certainly one fundamental place to start. Yet sometimes even that is difficult, because often we misunderstand the language that others are using. For example, when someone hears, “I’m a Christian Scientist,” they frequently mistake me for being a Scientologist, a totally separate religion. So that begs another question: Even when we use (or hear) ‘simple’ words like “Christian” or “Science,” do we really know what that means to someone else? And do we ever stop to ask, or simply assume that we know?

Words have come to mean so many different things to each of us that it takes listening (and questioning) at a deeper level to really understand one another.

What is a Dongle, Anyway?

I recently found a hilarious example of this on YouTube. Called “My Blackberry isn’t working,” this short English comedy sketch shows how easily we can leave our listeners either laughing, embarrassed or just plain bewildered. (If you have 3 minutes, I invite you to watch it.)

If you’ve already seen it – and found yourself chuckling, and assuming you know what an “orange” or a “dongle” means because of the way that Ronnie Corbett uses those words – you might be surprised to find out what those words really mean, and begin thinking about how this applies to the way we listen to each other, and make assumptions about language, especially over dearly held issues such as science and religion.

Which One of Us will be First…?

At the end of his article, Dr. Evans makes a key point. “To move forward,” he says, “we, as a country, need to lower the political conflict” by going past our rhetoric.

Instead of seeing Christian conservatives as “know-nothings” because they don’t have exactly the same beliefs about science – or seeing all scientists as having no values or morals – perhaps we need to stop assuming that we know what other people believe. A little less ready to jump to conclusions, defend our viewpoint at all costs, or to attack someone else’s without really understanding what’s in their mind or heart.

Crossing the many divides among us – whether political, social or religious – requires us to be willing to build bridges with one another, including learning each other’s “language.”

I have to admit that Dr. Evans’ article opened my eyes by educating me about both sides of the religious/scientific divide and showing me the misconceptions I’ve held about both. It also tells me that, if we really want to heal the big problems of our world — the political conflicts, tragic wars, famines and poverty — maybe we need to begin with the little things of life, such as understanding what exactly our neighbor might be trying to say.

Anna  Bowness-Park has been a Christian Science practitioner of spiritual healing for twenty years. She is also the spokesperson for Christian Science in British Columbia and loves connecting with people in conversations about religion, spirituality and the role of prayer in healing and health care.

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