Secondary Causes

Christians throughout history have thought that God works, in the main, through secondary causes: that He serves us our daily bread on the table, not in defiance of natural law, but in accord with it. The natural world we see around us is no chaotic swamp, but a law-abiding commonwealth. Natural law is not alien to God, because He is the law-giver: "The earth is the LORD’S, and the fulness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein." (Psalm 24:1). The "ordinances," or laws, of the heavens, are those ordinance which He has proclaimed: "Do you know the ordinances of the heavens? Can you set their dominion over the earth?" (Job 38:33).

Though there are occasions when God works in a way contrary to common expectation, as when He multiplied the loaves and fishes, we also thank Him for our daily bread when no laws of physics have been defied in its production. As Paul pointed out, the created world proclaims its Creator (Romans 1:20), not in spite of, but because the world is lawful, and because the world is intelligible. Intelligibility implies intelligence. Some unbelievers will allow God a role only in that which is contrary to nature:

"'We no longer turn to God for answers as to why the skies drop hail or why plagues spread. Science has answered those questions,' Brown said."
(On His Home Turf, Public Discussion: Dan Brown, Maine Sunday Telegram, April 30, 2006, p. E3).

But it isn't only natural events contrary to law that reveal God's mighty hand. The lawfulness of nature is itself testimony to its legislator, who calls His creation by name: "He counts the number of the stars; He calls them all by name." (Psalm 147:4).

Enlightenment thinkers sought to tie God's own hands by the very lawfulness of His creation. Though they admitted God had set the system up, they tried to make its very abundance of order squeeze out His providential care of the world. No room was left for God's free action, they alleged, in a natural order whose sequence of cause and effect rolled on inexorably.

But this boast proved impossible to sustain. Science could not demonstrate an iron-clad determinism without exit or entrance, but was ultimately obliged to admit some events, especially those very small, could be predicted only to a level of statistical likelihood. God's freedom is preserved, because in fact there is no random event: "Are not two sparrows sold for a copper coin? And not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will." (Matthew 10:29).

God is not embarrassed or put to shame that His creation follows laws; it is He who wrote the laws. Man should be embarrassed that he fails to follow suit.

Da Vinci Code

Deep Europan Sea

In the nineteenth century, Louis Pasteur closed the door on the old idea of spontaneous generation. Prior to his time it had been widely assumed that there were worms not parented by other worms:

". . .for a worm which is generated from animals has not the aspect of generation and sonship. . ." (Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Part 1, Question 27, A(2).)

. . .namely, worms which arose, spontaneously, from putrefaction:

"The senses are witness that something is generated out of the sacramental species, either ashes, if they be burned, worms if they putrefy, or dust if they be crushed." (Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologica, Part 3, Question 77, A(5).)

Imagine believing that the mystery life-forms pulsating within the forgotten jars in the back of your refrigerator started right there. To show that this is not so, place a steak out in the open air, and another in sterile conditions, under a bell jar. Soon the steak left out in the open will be crawling with maggots and worms, but not the steak isolated from the environment. Life comes from life; it does not arise spontaneously when conditions are favorable.

What is striking is that, during all the long centuries prior to Louis Pasteur when many able men labored to interpret and understand the Bible, the Bible verse which states life cannot arise in this way escaped their view. And by the way, what is that verse? If you believe what you hear on Christian radio, you would think the Bible says little fishes cannot swim within the blue Europan sea. It says no such thing. Joining hands with the secularists, they have expelled God from nature, allowing Him just one chance to intervene in His own creation.