I have been thinking a lot recently about what I want to do with my life and what major I see myself pursuing. I know that we are only freshmen and we have time to experiment and decide; however, most of my trouble has been deciding which of my interests to pursue because many of them differ dramatically, or so I thought. Growing up, and even occasionally at Middlebury, I have felt pressure to choose between either stem or humanities. It upsets me to think that I might not be able to study what I am truly passionate about because a border exists between my interests. As a way to remedy my diverging interests, I am interested in potentially transcending some of those borders as a way to gain a better understanding of both.

A specific roadblock for me thus far has been choosing to study either religion or science, which are notoriously conflicting fields. I do not see myself as a particularly religious person, but I do view myself as somewhat spiritual, and I enjoy studying other religions and their origins. Recently, I have been wondering if there is a common denominator between religion and science. A common thought is that as one becomes more scientifically aware, they begin to lose touch with religion because it is deemed no longer relevant in explaining previously inexplicable phenomena – and this is especially the case as science and technology continue to advance at an exponential rate. But there is more to religion than just believing in a God, and sometimes religion can just be about feeling spiritual and in touch with the world. I find that as I learn more about the world and how it works, I am reaffirmed spiritually because only a God of some sort could have created such complex creations. I do not necessarily see myself as a creationist, but I do believe that there is more to the origin of life than just evolution. In Charles Darwin’s Origin of Species, he concluded by saying “There is grandeur in this view of life, with its several powers, having been originally breathed by the Creator into a few forms or into one; and that, whilst this planet has gone cycling on according to the fixed law of gravity, from so simple a beginning endless forms most beautiful and most wonderful have been, and are being, evolved.” Whether life was created by a Creator or through scientific processes, there is something spiritual about the world’s beauty, and I have found that I feel most spiritual when I am outside surrounded by nature, or when I am experiencing the world’s intricate creations.

I am curious as to how we can further bridge the gap between the disciplines because I think that we have much to learn from crossing the pre-existing borders. I am not sure how religion’s presence or lack thereof plays a role in many of your lives, but I am interested to know if you think that religion and science can or should converge, and if so where?

-Isabelle