Revd Mark Gallagher shares his twin passions of science and faith
Revd Mark Gallagher has been able to share his twin passions of science and faith as he ministers in North Down.
Mark is a trained research and development chemist with academic and industrial experience. He was ordained in 2015 and is Curate Assistant in Bangor Abbey.
In June we congratulated him on his admission as a full member of The Society of Ordained Scientists. Congratulations are once more due as Mark has become a full member of the Royal Society of Chemistry (MRSC).
“One of the real blessings of my curacy has been working in a parish, and under a rector, Canon Ronnie Nesbitt, where I have been given freedom to explore in day–to–day ministry how the worlds of science and faith can exist hand in hand. This is not just in principle, or for the academic, but in real world contexts where people’s lives are touched by both on a daily basis.”
Mark’s preaching offers one such opportunity to explore science and faith, but the Abbey’s Holiday Bible Club in August gave the chance to connect with a younger audience.
“The theme this year was ‘Faith Builders’,” explains Mark. “We had up to 75 children each day engaging with Bible stories where we integrated the STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) with living a life of faith. The children also had the opportunity to carry out their own experiments, each of which were linked to the stories and brought them alive in new and exciting ways. As always, they especially enjoyed anything with added mess, or if it exploded, went fizz, pop, or bang! According to the “yell–o–meter”, going outside for these stories and experiments was the highlight of the week.”
Mark’s MRSC designation is a scientific professional accreditation in recognition of achievements in his scientific career pre–ordination, and his continued work in the science and faith dialogue, both in written academic output and hands on engagement with primary school children.
For kids especially, the tactile nature of science experiments and hands–on learning about faith is a good reminder that the Bible is not just an old book of stories, but alive, important, and as full of life today as it ever was.