The Religion of Scientists - The Drawbridge survey
The Religion of Scientists - The Drawbridge survey
In god they trust
In 1932, The Rev. C.L. Drawbridge, secretary of the Christian Evidence Society, published a survey of religious beliefs of members of the Royal Society (Macmillan Co., New York). In the introduction he concludes (prematurely) that "The controversy 'The Bible or Darwin' has ended, except, perhaps in Tennessee, but other similar controversies are apt to arise."
The survey consisted of six questions:
1- Do you credit the existence of a spiritual domain?
2- Do you consider that man is in some measure responsible for his acts of choice?
3- Is it your opinion that belief in evolution is compatible with belief in the Creator?
4- Do you think that science negatives (negates) the idea of a personal God as taught by Jesus Christ?
5- Do you believe that the personalities of men and women exist after the death of their bodies?
6- Do you think that the recent remarkable developments in scientific thought are favourable to religious belief?
Answers:
1- 121 affirmative, 13 negative
2- 173 affirmative, 7 negative
3- 142 affirmative, 6 negative
4- 26 affirmative, 103 negative
5- 47 affirmative, 41 negative
6- 74 affirmative, 74 negative
Not all respondents answered all questions. Many respondents gave ambiguous answers suggesting many, complex religious perspectives. The book contains details, including many respondent comments. The survey is less formally documented than the Leuba survey of 1916 and its more recent follow-up, but it indicates clearly that scientists in 1930 were neither overtly hostile to religion nor convinced that evolution was incompatible with religious belief.