Einstein: Science, Religion, Theology - Review

Judaism, Summer, 2001 by Stanley M. Flatte

Einstein created his general relativity theory before we understood from experiment that the universe is expanding. His equations at first predicted this expansion, but he introduced an extra term into the equation in order to make a static universe possible. Some have suggested that it was his attraction to the writings of Spinoza, who said that "God is immutable," and who referenced the verse, "The heavens endure from everlasting to everlasting," that led to this addition, which Einstein later called "the biggest blunder of my life."

The expansion of the universe was established in the late 1920s. It then became crucial to understand (1) whether the expansion will continue forever and (2) what caused the expansion. The best present candidate for its cause is "inflation," which is a mechanism for giving kinetic energy to matter without violating the laws of either gravity or thermodynamics. Present measurements verify the model of inflation, but only at the price of reviving Einstein's extra term.

Chapter 2

Most of Einstein's writings on the philosophy of religion date from a short segment of his life: 1930-1941. These were the years in which his interest in the philosophy of physics was strong. Jammer judges that Einstein's interest in writing was prompted by two conver sations, both in 1930: the first with J. W. N. Sullivan and J. Murphy, and the second with Rabindranath Tagore. There are wonderful quotes from these interviews, which I won't repeat, but they both revolve around whether science can take the place of religion in people's minds.

In response to these interviews, Einstein wrote what became a much-publicized and discussed essay: "What I Believe." He stated that in his view religion had three stages: (1) The religion of fear (the invention of dangerous gods to be propitiated); (2) The God who rewards and punishes, and (3) a "cosmic religious feeling," which summarized his own belief.

Einstein affirmed until the end of his life a strict determinism and a disbelief in any possibility for God to suspend the laws of nature for the purpose of rewarding or punishing individuals, or for the existence of miracles. However, arguments with Bohr over quantum mechanics led Einstein to a quite interesting view of the possibility of miracles. He noted that our present understanding of physics is incomplete, and hence probabilistic. Therefore, many occurrences may be regarded as highly improbable without being totally impossible. (For example, for all the molecules of gas in a container to be found in a small part of the container.) An occurrence of that type, however small its probability, cannot be termed a miracle.

Einstein's essay evoked controversy among theologians throughout the 1930s. In 1939, he addressed a gathering of theological educators in Princeton on "The Goal": that is, the purpose of life. This talk was universally praised, partly because Einstein made obeisance to religious tradition, and to revelation through the medium of powerful personalities.