 In his work, Natural Religion and
Christian Theology, Canon Charles Raven, a naturalist and
a theologian, commented on the joy he derived from studying
butterflies. “Every specimen differed from the rest, in detail
from those of its own group, in total effect from those of
others. Each was in itself a perfect design, satisfying in
whole and parts, inviting one to concentrate one's whole
attention upon it. To move from one to another, to sense the
difference of impact, to work out the quality of this
difference in the detailed modifications of the general
pattern, this was a profoundly moving experience.”
To encounter nature in all of its beauty
and complexity is to wonder about nature's purpose. Today,
biologists and cosmologists have more advanced ways of
studying butterflies and other forms of life than Raven did.
But many are moved, nonetheless, to believe that the highly
complex nature of life and the universe is evidence of purpose
in the world around us. Indeed, as our tools in this search
for evidence of our purpose and of nature’s have become more
sophisticated, it seems our curiosity has only grown more
intense.
Entrants may hail from such fields as
physics, biology, and chemistry. Their task is to explicate
for the general audience how natural purpose and order have
become evident in their field. The confirmation could exist on
the cosmic or the microcosmic level. Applicants need not
demonstrate original scientific research but they should shed
some new light on the base of scientific knowledge available
today. Essays could also include suggestions for other sorts
of studies that might demonstrate natural purpose.
In recent years, there has been a new
symbiosis created between religious belief and science as each
field looks to the other for greater understanding of nature’s
mysteries. An essay in this category might examine some new
points of contact between science and religion.
There is certainly room for personal
reflection in this type of essay, as well. Entrants may try to
connect the natural purpose as observed in science with the
purpose of man. How has discovering this evidence of purpose
either from first-hand research or secondary reading affected
your understanding of your own purpose?
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