Stephen Hawking: Brilliant Scientist, Bitter Atheist or Both?

When Stephen Hawking sneezes, the scientific world catches a cold! - Anonymous

For those of you who don't know, Stephen Hawking is the most well renowned scientist in Britain and perhaps, the entire world. Last Sunday, The Guardian(UK) published the following article from Ian Sample, science correspondent; "Stephen Hawking: 'There is no heaven; it's a fairy story'"

Here is a direct quote from that article;

You had a health scare and spent time in hospital in 2009. What, if anything, do you fear about death?

I have lived with the prospect of an early death for the last 49 years. I'm not afraid of death, but I'm in no hurry to die. I have so much I want to do first. I regard the brain as a computer which will stop working when its components fail. There is no heaven or afterlife for broken down computers; that is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark.

:-)

I know emoticons or "smiley faces" are not acceptable in professional documents but I just couldn't resist. Is this man a brilliant scientist or is he a bitter atheist? Let's start by answering a fundamental question;

What is science?

From Faith Science;

Merriam-Webster Dictionary defines the scientific method as, “principles and procedures for the systematic pursuit of knowledge involving the recognition and formulation of a problem, the collection of data through observation and experiment, and the formulation and testing of hypotheses.”

In addition, it gives the following four applicable definitions of science:

1. The state of knowing: knowledge as distinguished from ignorance or misunderstanding

2. a) A department of systematized knowledge as an object of study

b) Something (as a sport or technique) that may be studied or learned like systematized knowledge

3. a) Knowledge or a system of knowledge covering general truths or the operation of general laws especially as obtained and tested through the scientific method

b) Such knowledge or such a system of knowledge concerned with the physical world and its phenomena: natural science

4. A system or method reconciling practical ends with scientific laws

The foundational principles of science have enabled humanity to understand the world around us. Through the systematic pursuit of knowledge, the collection of data, and subsequent testing of formulated hypotheses, we have established “definitive” conclusions about ourselves and what can be perceived. Hence, established scientific laws must either be proven inconsistent, using the scientific method or fully accepted.

In other words, you have two options: beat them or join them. By definition, science as a whole is an approach to gaining understanding. It is systematic and objective so that the conclusions can be reproduced if the same steps are followed under similar conditions.

Let me ask a few simple questions: 

1. Is the statement made by Stephen Hawking that there is no heaven or afterlife a scientific conclusion or a non-scientific assertion? 
2. If it is a scientific conclusion, then by the standards of natural science within which he is supposed to operate, where does his analytical procedure fit into The Scientific Method? 
3. If it is a non-scientific assertion, when a scientist goes outside the limitations of The Scientific Method and brings his personal non-scientific opinion into consideration should it still be accepted as science?
4. In other words, because Stephen Hawking is a renowned scientist, can he just say whatever he feels like and get a free pass from the scientific community? 

“I do not feel obliged to believe that the same God who has endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect has intended us to forgo their use”
(Galileo Galilei: 1564–1642 Italian physicist).

There is no question that Stephen Hawking is a brilliant scientist. I've read some of his work and it is indeed amazing. Check out the transcript from his public lecture; "Does God Play Dice?" Hence, I don't feel the need to pick apart his writings in detail in order to prove a point to anyone. In fact, I really have no personal issue with him. He is using his God given mind to find answers to universal questions. Galileo Galilei said it best. God expects us to use our sense, reason and intellect because He gave it to us. However, when any man states his personal opinion without the support of any scientific evidence, I am free to oppose it.

Here's another quote from  "Stephen Hawking: 'There is no heaven; it's a fairy story'"

In his bestselling 1988 book, A Brief History of Time, Hawking drew on the device so beloved of Einstein, when he described what it would mean for scientists to develop a "theory of everything" – a set of equations that described every particle and force in the entire universe. "It would be the ultimate triumph of human reason – for then we should know the mind of God," he wrote.

Since he can give his opinion, I can give mine. I will now propose what I believe to be a "Theory of Everything" which will reveal the mind of God that is as scientific as Stephen Hawking's statement; "There is no heaven or afterlife for broken down computers; that is a fairy story for people afraid of the dark."

Genesis 1:1, 26(NLT) - In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth..... Then God said, “Let us make human beings in our image, to be like us. They will reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the livestock, all the wild animals on the earth, and the small animals that scurry along the ground.”

I know that creation is not scientific but I believe it's true. Since it is impossible for us to definitively prove or disprove it using The Scientific Method I don't need to defend it. However, I'm not finished. I also have another non-scientific statement that needs to be shared.

Matthew 10:28(KJV) - And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.

Is Stephen Hawking a brilliant scientist, bitter atheist or both? Honestly, in the big scheme of things, it really doesn't matter. What matters is not what you, I or any other person on this earth thinks about him but what God thinks about each of us. Whether or not we believe in His existence doesn't change anything. One day, we will each have to answer to God. Yes, the same God some of us choose to ignore during our lives will be quite visible at the end of it. When you stand before Him on that fateful day, what will you say for yourself?

Romans 14:11-12(NLT) - For the Scriptures say, “‘As surely as I live,’ says the Lord, ‘every knee will bend to me, and every tongue will confess and give praise to God.’” Yes, each of us will give a personal account to God.

John 3:3(NLT) - Jesus replied, “I tell you the truth, unless you are born again, you cannot see the Kingdom of God.”