Albert Einstein submitted his theory of relativity 100 years ago. According to physicist Robbert Dijkgraaf, it was “perhaps the greatest achievement of a single human mind.” The theory opened the door to mysteries such as “black holes that tear stars apart” and “cosmic gravitational lenses that distort images of faraway galaxies, as if seen through a funhouse mirror.” Thanks to Einstein, scientists have uncovered 13.8 billion years of cosmic history in the last 100 years.

Most of this is beyond my grasp. I still can’t understand why we’re not upside down half the time or why we don’t fall off the Earth. But I understand enough to be impressed by Einstein-derived pronouncements such as, “Matter tells space how to curve and space tells matter how to move.” Or this: A small percentage of the static on a blank television screen is caused by light particles from the beginning of time. Or this: All of the “stuff” of the universe — including the Earth, the sun and us — makes up just 4 percent of the total. The rest is made up of “dark energy” and “dark matter.” It’s wonderful — but what does it mean? Most of us must take science the way we take religion — on faith.

Speaking of religion, one scientist suggests that our universe could be “a sort of holographic image projected from some higher reality.” In other words, what we take for reality isn’t really real. This sounds suspiciously like religious metaphysics. And it raises an interesting question: Are science and religion destined to wind up on the same page? Is the “higher reality” another name for God? And is science heading towards the mystical notion that God alone exists, that only God is real?

According to Dijkgraaf, the most important new discovery since Einstein is the knowledge of what we don’t know. That’s a valuable kind of knowledge, a check on hubris. But how do you reconcile enlightened unknowing with religious certainty? What are we to make of people who say they “know” God or preachers who talk confidently about God’s “plan?” Can religion and science co-exist?

After the release of the latest “Star Wars” epic I heard a panel of grown-ups discussing what the movie series has meant to them. One woman said that when she saw the first episode, she had a powerful sense that “The Force” was within her and that if she concentrated hard enough she could find and harness it. Others said that “Star Wars” had changed their lives, awakened a sense of spirituality and love for the Earth. Is “Star Wars” the new secular religion? Is “The Force” the same as “Dark Energy?” If it takes a multi-million dollar sci-fi fantasy to inspire spirituality, so be it. But does “Star Wars” teach compassion, thanksgiving, forgiveness and love?

Regardless of the revelations of science and religion, I insist that this world is real. I can prove it, like Samuel Johnson did, by kicking a stone. When I go outside and look up at the stars I’m glad I’m here rather than there. I don’t think there is a “better place.” And in spite of all the sins our species is guilty of, I’m thankful that I’ve experienced life as a human being rather than as an angel or a worm.

— George Gurley, a resident of rural Baldwin City, writes a regular column for the Journal-World.