The Big Bang Controversy

The Big Bang Controversy

Not long ago, a popular bumper sticker had the following catchy phrase, “I believe in the Big
Bang Theory - God said it, and ‘Bang!’ it happened.” Although one may differ concerning the
intent of this message, it seems clear that the original intent was not in support of the “The Big
Bang Theory” of cosmology, a commonly accepted theory among scientists concerning the
origin and development of the universe. The bumper sticker was merely expressing a widely
held skepticism on the part of believers who hold that the Bible gives us the correct account of
how it all began, regardless of what the scientific community believes. This skepticism towards
science in general appears rather widespread in the Christian churches of America today.
There is even a more common practice, which reveals a deep-seated distrust of science. It began
with the Christian fish symbol, frequently seen on the back of cars owned by Christians. This
symbol goes all the way back to first century Christians, who used it to identify themselves with
a codeword, since the Greek letters in the word fish “ιχθυσ,” pronounced “ichthus,” also were the
first letters of the words Jesus Christ, God’s Son, Savior. Outspoken supporters of Darwinian
evolution recently began placing a symbol on their cars showing a bigger fish sprouting legs,
outlined with the word “Darwin”, eating the smaller fish symbol. This certainly conveyed the
meaning that Darwin’s theory is replacing the need for Christian beliefs. In response to this, yet
another bumper sticker shows a larger fish, outlined with the word “Truth”, eating a smaller
“Darwin” fish. All of this punching and counter-punching is revealing the hostility between
those who hold to traditional Christian beliefs and those who believe that modern science has
rendered the Christian faith merely empty mythology.