God is not a testable hypothesis

I think the biggest reason religious folks get all hot and bothered when it comes to science is because of the perception that it is inherently atheistic–that scientists work under the assumption that there is no God. This is most apparent in Darwinism, which not only contradicts the book of Genesis (this is unremarkable since most branches of science contradict Genesis in some way), but more importantly, calls into question the fundamental belief that we are God's special creation. I guess it really bothers people when you tell them they share a relatively recent common ancestor with chimpanzees and the historical Adam was probably a DNA-like molecule that "accidentally" acquired the ability to self-replicate. Anyway, my point...

Science is not atheistic. In fact, one of my favorite scientists, Ken Miller, is a Roman Catholic. Rather, science is non-theistic (for now). Scientists do not "allow" God into their work because God is not a testable hypothesis. The scientific method calls for hypotheses to be test by experiment. This is how scientists "know" things. Ideas are tested until they fail. Darwinism, for example, has been tested for over 100 years and has yet to be invalidated. That's how science works.

I said "for now" because the day may come when actual physical evidence of God's existence is found, and if that happens, science will assuredly become theistic, so long as the God hypothesis holds up to experiment. Until that day comes, don't expect good scientists to jump the gun.

"God did it" may be a satisfying answer for some, and it may even be true, but it is impossible to test. And when you rely on an explanation that is impossible to test, investigation and learning ends, and ignorance takes over.