---
title: "List of Christians in science and technology"
chunk: 2/17
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Christians_in_science_and_technology"
category: "reference"
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
date_saved: "2026-05-05T04:31:01.455026+00:00"
instance: "kb-cron"
---

== 18th century (1701–1800) ==
John Ray (1627–1705): English botanist who wrote The Wisdom of God Manifested in the Works of the Creation (1691) and was among the first to attempt a biological definition for the concept of species. The John Ray Initiative of Environment and Christianity is also named for him.
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1632–1723): Dutch Reformed Calvinist who is remembered as the "father of microbiology".
Gottfried Leibniz (1646–1716): He was a philosopher who developed the philosophical theory of the Pre-established harmony; he is also most noted for his optimism, e.g., his conclusion that our Universe is, in a restricted sense, the best possible one that God could have created. He also made major contributions to mathematics, physics, and technology. He created the Stepped Reckoner and his Protogaea concerns geology and natural history. He was a Lutheran who worked with convert to Catholicism John Frederick, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg in hopes of a reunification between Catholicism and Lutheranism.
Pierre Varignon (1654–1722): French mathematician and Catholic priest known for his contributions to statics and mechanics.
Guido Grandi (1671–1742): Italian monk, priest, philosopher, theologian, mathematician, and engineer.
Stephen Hales (1677–1761): Copley Medal winning scientist significant to the study of plant physiology. As an inventor designed a type of ventilation system, a means to distill sea-water, ways to preserve meat, etc. In religion he was an Anglican curate who worked with the Society for the Promotion of Christian Knowledge and for a group working to convert black slaves in the West Indies.
Firmin Abauzit (1679–1767): physicist and theologian. He translated the New Testament into French and corrected an error in Newton's Principia.
Emanuel Swedenborg (1688–1772): He did a great deal of scientific research with the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences having commissioned work by him. His religious writing is the basis of Swedenborgianism and several of his theological works contained some science hypotheses, most notably the Nebular hypothesis for the origin of the Solar System.
Albrecht von Haller (1708–1777): Swiss anatomist, physiologist known as "the father of modern physiology". A Protestant, he was involved in the erection of the Reformed church in Göttingen, and, as a man interested in religious questions, he wrote apologetic letters which were compiled by his daughter under the name .
Leonhard Euler (1707–1783): significant mathematician and physicist, see List of topics named after Leonhard Euler. The son of a pastor, he wrote Defense of the Divine Revelation against the Objections of the Freethinkers and is also commemorated by the Lutheran Church on their Calendar of Saints on May 24.
Roger Joseph Boscovich (1711–1787): Jesuit priest and physicist who produced a precursor of atomic theory
Maximilian Hell (1720–1792): Jesuit priest and astronomer
Mikhail Lomonosov (1711–1765): Russian Orthodox Christian who discovered the atmosphere of Venus and formulated the law of conservation of mass in chemical reactions.
Antoine Lavoisier (1743–1794): considered the "father of modern chemistry". He is known for his discovery of oxygen's role in combustion, developing chemical nomenclature, developing a preliminary periodic table of elements, and the law of conservation of mass. He was a Catholic and defender of scripture.
Herman Boerhaave (1668–1789): Dutch physician and botanist known as the founder of clinical teaching. A collection of his religious thoughts on medicine, translated from Latin into English, has been compiled under the name Boerhaaveìs Orations.
John Michell (1724–1793): English clergyman who provided pioneering insights in a wide range of scientific fields, including astronomy, geology, optics, and gravitation.
Maria Gaetana Agnesi (1718–1799): mathematician appointed to a position by Pope Benedict XIV. After her father died she devoted her life to religious studies, charity, and ultimately became a nun.
Carl Linnaeus (1707–1778): Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, "father of modern taxonomy".
Thomas Bayes (1701–1761): British statistician. Known for Bayes' Theorem.

== 19th century (1801–1900) ==