A Liturgy for Science

O Lord, you created this world, and you called it good.

Help us now, as we come to know your creation, to uncover that same goodness for ourselves,

And to wonder as we ought at its kaleidoscopic complexity.

Remind us, Lord, that wonder and curiosity are indeed the beginnings of all science,

And as we examine and investigate, that all our questioning has its ultimate root in You,

Both source and object of our highest wonder—the one who has put eternity within our very heart.

As we pore over our reams of data, with their countless variables and observations,

Help us not to overlook Your order within the confusion,

And from the incomprehensible expanse of galaxies to the microscopic detail of a single cell,

Grant that we may understand Your beauty, even within this imperfect cosmos;

Grant that we may hear the music of heaven pervading all spheres of the universe;

Grant that we may taste and see that You are good

And that in delving ever deeper into the attributes of the physical world, 

We will recognize that we are growing deeper in that knowledge of You which comes through knowing Your handiwork.

Remind us, too, that our reason is never at odds with faith rightly placed,

Nor faith at odds with reason rightly placed—

That You cannot be threatened by human arguments,

But that You instead delight in our exercise of the capacities You have gifted us;

For You are the Way, the Truth, and the Life,

And all paths to truth, whether through logic or belief or our experiences in this world

Lead back ultimately to the Truth that is You.

So, Lord, show us how we ought to go about our studies,

Remembering what Truth our finite tests and measurements are truly aiming for,

And that our searching, even for the smallest facts, still touches on infinity.

Teach us, then, to see You in all the minutiae of Your creation, 

Whether in the flight of a bird or the whirling of an atom;

Teach us to see not just information to be collected, 

But rather, the surpassing loveliness that permeates our world;

And grant that in pursuing this knowledge of science, we may also grow equally in our knowledge of You.

Alleluia. Amen.