By: Dr. Jerry Bergman
Montpelier, Ohio
German astronomer and mathematician Johannes Kepler (1571–1630) was a central figure in the 17th-century scientific revolution.
Kepler is best known for discovering the three laws of planetary motion that provided a foundation for Isaac Newton’s theory of universal gravitation.
He was not only an outstanding scientist and the founder of physical astronomy, but also was a committed Christian as were the founders of all of the major scientific fields.
It was only after the Darwinian revolution of the latter half of the 19th century that the vast majority of scientists became evolutionists, with most being practicing atheists or agnostics.
After studying both the Earth-centered and the Sun-centered models of planetary motion, Kepler concluded that the evidence favored the Sun-centered system.
As a student, he defended heliocentrism from both the theoretical and theological perspectives, correctly maintaining that the Sun was the principal source of the force that holds the Solar System together.
The first planetary motion law named after him states that the planets do not travel in perfectly circular orbits as commonly believed, but in elliptical paths.
Kepler’s second law, the “equal areas law,” predicts a planet will move faster when it is closer to the Sun and slower when it is farther away.
His third law says the square of the periodic times are proportional to the cubes of their mean (average) distance from the Sun.
Although the third law is only roughly true, it was an important step in achieving the insight about the planets that we have today.
The three laws were not Kepler’s only major scientific contribution to science. He also completed fundamental scientific work in the field of optics and invented an improved version of the refracting (lens-based) telescope today called the Keplerian telescope.
His telescopic discoveries were critical in helping Galileo Galilei overthrow the geocentric worldview, the view that the Sun circles the Earth.
Inspired by His Biblical Faith
Kepler believed that God was the Creator of the Cosmos, and his lifelong goal was “to learn the eschatology of the world,” and to do this he “dared to contemplate the Mind of God.”
This goal “became a lifelong obsession,” and the hubristic longings of Kepler “were to carry Europe out of the cloister of medieval thought,” and into the modern scientific age.
Furthermore, Kepler believed that his study of the Solar System allowed him to glimpse the “image of perfection and cosmic glory” of the universe. He was searching for “ultimate causes of the mathematical harmonies in the mind of the Creator.”
Kepler later wrote that geometry “is co-eternal with the mind of God” because geometry “provided God with a model for the Creation.
If the world was crafted by God, should it not be examined closely? Was not all of creation an expression of the harmonies in the mind of God? The book of Nature had waited more than a millennium for a reader.”
His original goal to become a minister was never fulfilled. Kepler was eventually able to obtain a position teaching mathematics and astronomy at the Protestant school in Graz, Austria.
He later became an assistant to the famous astronomer, Tycho Brahe, and eventually was appointed as mathematician to Emperor Rudolf II.
Kepler was evidently the first scientist to proclaim that his astronomical research was merely “‘thinking God’s thoughts after Him,’ a motto adopted by many believing scientists since his time.”
Kepler also wrote: “Since we astronomers are priests of the highest God in regard to the book of nature, it befits us to be thoughtful, not of the glory of our minds, but rather, above all else, of the glory of God.”
Furthermore, Kepler’s astronomical research also involved the study of Biblical chronology. He concluded that “the world was created about 7,000 years ago.”
Although Kepler’s conclusions garnered much opposition at first, in the end, he “stayed true to his faith … and his scientific discoveries would eventually win him acclaim, legitimize the discoveries of his contemporary, Galileo, and serve as a major influence on the scientists who came after him.”
As Harvard astronomer Owen Gingerich noted, Kepler’s gifts were so great that “any assessment of this man’s genius must be incomplete and imperfect.”
An impressive monument to him exists in Germany, and his home has been preserved as a tourist site. He is a good example of a man of God who did not ignore half of the gospel, as so many today do.
Kepler knew that God reveals himself by His word and His works. Today we focus almost solely on His word, and at our peril we totally ignore His works.
Kepler did not, and was richly rewarded for not ignoring Gods works. Rather, he studied them until he died, a mindset which is required to understand our creator.
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Dr. Jerry Bergman has taught biology, genetics, chemistry, biochemistry, anthropology, geology, and microbiology for over 40 years at several colleges and universities including Bowling Green State University, Medical College of Ohio where he was a research associate in experimental pathology, and The University of Toledo. He is a graduate of the Medical College of Ohio, Wayne State University in Detroit, the University of Toledo, and Bowling Green State University. He has over 1,800 publications in 12 languages and 60 books and monographs. His books and textbooks that include chapters that he authored are in over 1,500 college libraries in 27 countries.
