Francis Collins
Led the Human Genome Project and the NIH; former atheist turned Christian, author of 'The Language of God'
13 videos analysed · 65 quotes checked word for word · updated 2026-10-18
Key facts
- Born in Staunton, Virginia, in 1950. Led the Human Genome Project (1993-2008) and the NIH (2009-2021). Wikipédia · Francis Collins (Wikipedia)
- Awards include the Presidential Medal of Freedom (2007), the National Medal of Science (2008) and the Templeton Prize (2020). Wikipédia · Francis Collins (Wikipedia)
- Books include The Language of God (2006), The Language of Life (2010) and The Road to Wisdom (2024). Wikipédia · Francis Collins (Wikipedia)
Positions
click a row to see the evidenceHe calls himself an evangelical Christian. Asked whether there is a God, he says: yes, he cannot prove it, but he finds the evidence 'fairly compelling'. He says there will never be a scientific proof, because science studies nature and God is outside it. He calls atheism a 'daring dogma' since science cannot judge the question, and he now sees his old agnosticism as 'a bit of a copout'.
1976 Before this he was, in his words, a fairly hostile atheist. After about a year of struggle he decided to believe, at age 27, while hiking in the Cascade Mountains. Years later he describes the same path as a spectrum he crossed bit by bit, and says that at 27 he could no longer sustain strict atheism. Article · The Question of God: Francis…
- No single pointer to God is enough, but together they get your attention: the beginning of the universe, fine-tuning, mathematics that describes matter, and the moral law. Video 2008 · The Veritas Forum: The Language…23
- Science cannot rule God out, so an atheist cannot claim that reason fully backs him. He calls atheism a daring dogma, a universal negative. Video 2008 · The Veritas Forum: The Language…2
- The beginning of the universe led him to a creator outside space and time. God must be outside time, otherwise 'who created God?' would make sense. Video 2016 · My Journey from Atheism to…23
- He answers 'is there a God?' with yes: not a proof, but fairly compelling evidence. His former agnosticism felt like a copout that settled nothing. Video 2010 · The Language of God: A Scientist…23
A good and all-powerful God would not allow so much suffering, so such a God does not exist.
He admits the arguments about evil never fill the bucket, but answers that God suffers with us, and that natural laws mean a perfect world was perhaps not his aim.
If everything needs a cause, then God needs one too: who created God?
He says God must be outside time and space, because otherwise the question 'who created God?' would make sense.
See 1 more objections
The fine-tuning of the universe can be explained by a multiverse, with no need for a designer.
On fine-tuning, he says he prefers a mind behind it over a multiverse.
Defends : The moral law points to a lawgiver, The fine-tuning of the universe: too perfect a coincidence?, Whatever begins has a cause: the universe too, Freedom has a price: evil does not contradict God
He says God gave us free will, that it is real, and that genetic determinism is far from what science shows. Because God stands outside time, he says, God can give us free will and still know what will happen. On physics, he leans on quantum uncertainty and admits it is 'a bit of a dodge'.
- God stands outside time, so he can know what will happen and still give us a free will. Video 2026 · Embracing Science and Faith in…
- For the physics side he points to quantum uncertainty, and admits it is 'a little bit of a dodge, but a legitimate one'. Video 2009 · The Language of God: A Scientist…
If the laws of physics determine everything, nothing we do is really up to us.
He points to quantum uncertainty, and admits it is 'a little bit of a dodge, but a legitimate one'.
If God already knows what will happen, we cannot be free.
He says God stands outside time, so he can know the outcome while our will stays free.
Lewis's argument for a universal moral law was the one that affected him most. He says knowing right from wrong 'makes great sense as a signpost to God'. If morality were only evolution's side effect, he says, 'you have to say good and evil are basically a mirage', and we would have been fooled. He cites Oscar Schindler: saving strangers makes no sense for evolution, yet we admire it.
- Radical altruism, like Schindler saving strangers, is for him the strongest sign that evolution alone does not explain us. He says it is not a proof. Video 2008 · The Veritas Forum: The Language…2
- If morality were only a side effect of evolution, we would have been hoodwinked, and good and evil would be a mirage. He finds that hard to accept. Video 2020 · Francis Collins answers listener…2
Altruism is a misfiring of evolution, so our moral sense does not point to God.
He disagrees with Dawkins, saying that if morality were only a side effect of evolution, we would have been fooled about good and evil.
One can be moral without God.
He says his scientific and spiritual views are not compartmentalized and are 'entirely compatible'. For him it is 'not only compatibility, it's harmony': reason is part of faith, and God is the author of both the Bible and nature (Bacon's two books). He says nobody reaches belief in God by absolute proof: one takes a leap on incomplete evidence, and doubt stays part of faith.
- Science and faith are two books from one author: God wrote both nature and the Bible. If there is a conflict, our reading must be wrong. Video 2026 · Embracing Science and Faith in…
- For him it is not only compatibility but harmony: the laboratory is a way of worshipping, and a discovery is a glimpse of God's mind. Video 2020 · Francis Collins answers listener…2
- Nobody comes to God by absolute proof. Faith means a decision on incomplete evidence, and doubt is an unavoidable part of belief, not its opposite. Video 2010 · The Language of God: A Scientist…234
- Pushing a conflict between science and faith hurts Christianity, because it asks people to check their brains at the door. Reason is part of faith too. Video 2020 · God and the Pandemic - NT Wright…2
It is wrong to believe on insufficient evidence, and faith is exactly that.
He says nobody reaches belief in God by absolute proof, and that reason belongs to faith as well as to science, with different standards of proof.
Science and religion are two separate areas that do not overlap, so one should not mix them.
He says a firewall between science and spirit makes you less whole, and that the two belong to one worldview, not two compartments.
Asked about human goodness, he answers 'We're basically selfish creatures', often willing to harm others for their own benefit. This fits his Christian view of the fall and of a human need for redemption.
No sourced position yet on: Source of knowledge, Certainty, Mind and body, Meaning of life.
On the big questions
Does God exist?Theism
A Christian who also accepts evolution (theistic evolution). He says science cannot prove God, but that several pointers together make a strong atheism hard to defend: the beginning of the universe, fine-tuning, mathematics and the moral law.
- No single pointer to God is enough, but together they get your attention: the beginning of the universe, fine-tuning, mathematics that describes matter, and the moral law. Video 2008 · The Veritas Forum: The Language…23
- Science cannot rule God out, so an atheist cannot claim that reason fully backs him. He calls atheism a daring dogma, a universal negative. Video 2008 · The Veritas Forum: The Language…2
- The beginning of the universe led him to a creator outside space and time. God must be outside time, otherwise 'who created God?' would make sense. Video 2016 · My Journey from Atheism to…23
- He answers 'is there a God?' with yes: not a proof, but fairly compelling evidence. His former agnosticism felt like a copout that settled nothing. Video 2010 · The Language of God: A Scientist…23
A good and all-powerful God would not allow so much suffering, so such a God does not exist.
He admits the arguments about evil never fill the bucket, but answers that God suffers with us, and that natural laws mean a perfect world was perhaps not his aim.
If everything needs a cause, then God needs one too: who created God?
He says God must be outside time and space, because otherwise the question 'who created God?' would make sense.
See 1 more objections
The fine-tuning of the universe can be explained by a multiverse, with no need for a designer.
On fine-tuning, he says he prefers a mind behind it over a multiverse.
Defends : The moral law points to a lawgiver, The fine-tuning of the universe: too perfect a coincidence?, Whatever begins has a cause: the universe too, Freedom has a price: evil does not contradict God
The question on the site: all the argumentsAre we free?Free will
Free will is real, and it explains much of the suffering humans cause.
- God stands outside time, so he can know what will happen and still give us a free will. Video 2026 · Embracing Science and Faith in…
- For the physics side he points to quantum uncertainty, and admits it is 'a little bit of a dodge, but a legitimate one'. Video 2009 · The Language of God: A Scientist…
If the laws of physics determine everything, nothing we do is really up to us.
He points to quantum uncertainty, and admits it is 'a little bit of a dodge, but a legitimate one'.
If God already knows what will happen, we cannot be free.
He says God stands outside time, so he can know the outcome while our will stays free.
What makes something right?God's will
For him the universal sense of right and wrong is a signpost to a holy God. If it came only from evolution, good and evil would be an illusion.
- Radical altruism, like Schindler saving strangers, is for him the strongest sign that evolution alone does not explain us. He says it is not a proof. Video 2008 · The Veritas Forum: The Language…2
- If morality were only a side effect of evolution, we would have been hoodwinked, and good and evil would be a mirage. He finds that hard to accept. Video 2020 · Francis Collins answers listener…2
Altruism is a misfiring of evolution, so our moral sense does not point to God.
He disagrees with Dawkins, saying that if morality were only a side effect of evolution, we would have been fooled about good and evil.
One can be moral without God.
Should we believe without proof?Faith and reason agree
Faith and science are two ways of knowing that fit together; he sees no need for a conflict.
- Science and faith are two books from one author: God wrote both nature and the Bible. If there is a conflict, our reading must be wrong. Video 2026 · Embracing Science and Faith in…
- For him it is not only compatibility but harmony: the laboratory is a way of worshipping, and a discovery is a glimpse of God's mind. Video 2020 · Francis Collins answers listener…2
- Nobody comes to God by absolute proof. Faith means a decision on incomplete evidence, and doubt is an unavoidable part of belief, not its opposite. Video 2010 · The Language of God: A Scientist…234
- Pushing a conflict between science and faith hurts Christianity, because it asks people to check their brains at the door. Reason is part of faith too. Video 2020 · God and the Pandemic - NT Wright…2
It is wrong to believe on insufficient evidence, and faith is exactly that.
He says nobody reaches belief in God by absolute proof, and that reason belongs to faith as well as to science, with different standards of proof.
Science and religion are two separate areas that do not overlap, so one should not mix them.
He says a firewall between science and spirit makes you less whole, and that the two belong to one worldview, not two compartments.
Why is there something rather than nothing?There is a reason
He says science cannot answer why there is something instead of nothing, and that the cause cannot itself be part of nature, or nothing is solved. Such a creator would be outside space and time.
- Why there is something instead of nothing is his first pointer to God: science cannot help you answer it. Video 2026 · The Road to Wisdom: On Truth,…
- The beginning of the universe needs a cause, and the only plausible one seemed to him a supernatural force outside space and time. Video 2016 · My Journey from Atheism to…2
The universe may simply be there, with no reason at all: there is no necessary being.
A universe can arise from nothing, since the quantum vacuum is not stable; no creator is needed.
Can science explain everything?True, but not everything
Science is the way to study the natural world, but it cannot settle whether God exists.
- Science studies the natural world, but it cannot answer 'why are we here?' or 'is there a God?'. Separate the scientific questions from the faith ones and there is no conflict. Video 2019 · FAITH AND SCIENCE CAN CO-EXIST!…2
- He expects no scientific proof of God and does not think God intended to give one. There are only pointers. Video 2025 · Francis Collins - Can Science…2
- He rejects intelligent design as a 'god of the gaps'. God is greater if he does not have to step in, and evolution was his way of creating. Video 2008 · The Veritas Forum: The Language…23
- Genetics rules out that Adam and Eve were the sole ancestors of humanity; he suggests an ancestral population of about 10,000. Video 2026 · Embracing Science and Faith in…
Science can explain everything that is worth explaining, including why we are here.
He says science cannot answer questions like 'why are we here?' or 'is there a God?'.
The order of living things shows design, so God must have intervened in nature.
He rejects intelligent design as a 'god of the gaps': God is greater if he does not have to step in, and evolution was his way of creating.
In their words
There will never be a scientific proof of God's existence.
As if it knew we were coming.
I can find God in a cathedral but I can find God in the laboratory
God is greater if he doesn't have to step in than if he does
1 more quotes
then you have to say good and evil are basically a mirage
How the ideas evolved
Click a step for details1977 Change of mindFrom hostile atheist to believer
As a medical student he saw patients lean on their faith, and realised he had rejected faith without knowing what it was. A minister gave him Lewis's Mere Christianity. After about a year he decided to believe, at 27 (late 1970s), on a hike in the Cascade Mountains.
1993Heads the Human Genome Project
He leads the National Human Genome Research Institute and the Human Genome Project until 2008.
2006The Language of God
He publishes his book on science and faith. In the same year he tells Salon that evolution is solid science and that intelligent design is 'already showing serious cracks'.
2007Founds BioLogos
He founds the BioLogos Foundation, which promotes the view that science and Christian faith are compatible, with evolution accepted.
2008Berkeley: theistic evolution in one paragraph
At the Veritas Forum he states his view: God, outside time, set the universe's parameters so that evolution could build life, then gave humans free will and a moral law. He calls intelligent design a 'god of the gaps' theory and says 'God is greater if he doesn't have to step in than if he does'.
In their words« atheism as Chesterton says is the most daring of all dogmas the assertion of a universal negative »He calls atheism a daring dogma, because science stays silent on whether God exists. watch
« I don't recognize the faith that Richard Dawkins talks about »He says Dawkins attacks a faith that no mature believer would recognize. watch
« God's plan included the mechanism of evolution that was his creative genius to create the marvelous diversity of living things on our planet »His one-paragraph summary of theistic evolution: evolution was God's way of creating. watch
2009Director of the NIH
He becomes director of the US National Institutes of Health and holds the post until December 2021.
2009Caltech: 'Is there a God? Yes, I can't prove it'
At Caltech he answers yes to the God question, says the evidence is 'fairly compelling' but not proof, that doubt is part of faith, and that his own old agnosticism was 'a bit of a copout'.
In their words« if you want to be an atheist you cannot claim that reason completely supports your position »Science cannot rule God out, so atheism cannot claim to be fully backed by reason. watch
« is there a God my answer to that is yes I can't prove it but I think the evidence is fairly compelling »His answer to 'is there a God': yes, without proof but with fairly compelling evidence. watch
« it doesn't solve the problem of the Creator »Asked why not pantheism, he says it does not answer the need for a Creator. watch
2020Templeton Prize
He receives the Templeton Prize.
2024Dialogue with Alex O'Connor
In a long conversation with the agnostic YouTuber Alex O'Connor he defends fine-tuning ('I don't think God chose to spend the energy of creation on something boring') and the resurrection: not an absolute proof, but the likeliest explanation.
In their words« I think it's really much more of a spectrum and I think I've traveled across that Spectrum during my whole life »Faith and non-belief are a spectrum, and he has moved along it all his life. watch
« for me at 27 having walked down this Trail bit by bit realizing that my arguments of strict atheism really couldn't be sustained »At 27, he saw his arguments for strict atheism could not be sustained. watch
« I don't think God chose to spend the energy of creation on something boring »On fine-tuning: God wanted an interesting universe with complexity and life. watch
202649 years of faith and science
At Oxford with N. T. Wright, and at BYU, he says that in the 49 years since his conversion at 27 he has found no conflict between his science and his faith. He lists his pointers to God: something instead of nothing, the effectiveness of mathematics, the Big Bang, fine-tuning, the moral law.
In their words« I fell on my knees and I gave my life to Jesus Christ »He recalls his decision at 27 on a hike in the Cascade Mountains. watch
« there's something instead of nothing Science doesn't help you answer that question »Pointer to God: why there is something instead of nothing. watch
« why is it that mathematics works to describe the behavior of matter and energy there's no reason that should be »Pointer to God: the unreasonable effectiveness of mathematics. watch
The arguments 4
The site's arguments they defend or criticize, and why. Click a title to see the full argument.
Lewis's case for a universal moral law was the argument that most affected him. He still holds it: evolution does not fully explain altruism, 'a scandal to evolutionary biology'. He calls radical altruism (Schindler, Mother Teresa) the strongest sign that evolution alone does not explain us, 'not a proof' but a pointer. He rejects Dawkins's answer that it is a misfiring of altruism.
He points to the universe's physical constants, which make it look 'as if it knew we were coming': 'the knife edge of improbability'. He prefers a mind behind it to a multiverse, but warns that no single argument from nature proves God. (Our argument page is by the philosopher Robin Collins, not by Francis Collins.)
In the Salon interview he cites the beginning of the universe (the Big Bang) as one of the things that point to a creator. He adds that the cause must be outside space and time.
On evil he gives the free will defense: 'God gave us free will, and we may choose to exercise it in ways that end up hurting other people.' Suffering with no human cause he calls the harder question. For natural evil he adds that God chose stable natural laws, and that 'when a child suffers, God is weeping too'.
—
Allies and opponents
C. S. LewisInfluence
Reading Mere Christianity helped him move from atheism to faith.
Christopher HitchensSparring partner
Hitchens called Collins one of the greatest living Americans and described their friendship, despite their religious differences, as an 'armed truce'.
Richard DawkinsDisagrees
He disagrees with Dawkins's view that evolution leads to atheism. He quotes Chesterton that atheism is 'the most daring of all dogmas', a universal negative, and says it takes someone 'awfully bold' to claim he can exclude the possibility of God.
Debates and big conversations
Signature ideas
Theistic evolution (BioLogos)
Evolution is how God created life. He rejects both Young Earth creationism and intelligent design, and calls the polarised debate unnecessary.
Pointers, not proofs
He builds a cumulative case: something instead of nothing, the effectiveness of mathematics, the Big Bang, fine-tuning, the moral law, then Jesus. No single pointer is enough and none is a proof. At the end one takes a leap, and he says God did not intend to give mathematical proof.
Closest and furthest
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All sources (69)
- Francis Collins (Wikipedia) Wikipedia
- The Question of God: Francis Collins PBS
- The believer (interview with Francis Collins) Salon · 2006
- One of the world's most powerful scientists believes in miracles (2006 Horgan interview) Scientific American blog (republished 2020) · 2006
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins), UC Berkeley YouTube · 2008
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins), UC Berkeley YouTube · 2008
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins), UC Berkeley YouTube · 2008
- The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence of Belief | Francis Collins at Caltech YouTube · 2009
- My Journey from Atheism to Christianity | Francis Collins at Cal Tech YouTube (republication) · 2009
- Francis Collins and N. T. Wright: Evolution, Truth and the Case for God (Unbelievable? live, Oxford) YouTube (Premier Unbelievable?) · 2026
- Francis Collins and N. T. Wright: Evolution, Truth and the Case for God (Unbelievable? live, Oxford) YouTube (Premier Unbelievable?) · 2026
- Francis Collins answers listener questions on evolution & God YouTube (Premier Unbelievable?) · 2020
- Francis Collins answers listener questions on evolution & God YouTube (Premier Unbelievable?) · 2020
- Embracing Science and Faith in Harmony: A Fireside Chat with Francis Collins YouTube · 2026
- Alex O'Connor & Dr. Francis Collins Debate God's Existence YouTube · 2024
- Alex O'Connor & Dr. Francis Collins Debate God's Existence YouTube · 2024
- Alex O'Connor & Dr. Francis Collins Debate God's Existence YouTube · 2024
- FAITH AND SCIENCE CAN CO-EXIST! Dr Francis Collins, Director, NIH YouTube · 2019
- Francis Collins - Can Science Deal With God? (Closer To Truth) YouTube (republication) · 2025
- The Road to Wisdom: On Truth, Science, Faith, and Trust | Francis S. Collins (BYU) YouTube · 2026
- The Road to Wisdom: On Truth, Science, Faith, and Trust | Francis S. Collins | January 27, 2026 YouTube · 2026
- My Journey from Atheism to Christianity | Francis Collins at Cal Tech YouTube · 2016
- The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence of Belief | Francis Collins at Caltech YouTube · 2010
- The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence of Belief | Francis Collins at Caltech YouTube · 2010
- The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence of Belief | Francis Collins at Caltech YouTube · 2010
- FAITH AND SCIENCE CAN CO-EXIST! Dr Francis Collins, Director, NIH, the human genome man! YouTube · 2019
- Francis Collins - Can Science Deal With God? YouTube · 2025
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins) YouTube · 2008
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins) YouTube · 2008
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins) YouTube · 2008
- Embracing Science and Faith in Harmony: A Fireside Chat with Francis Collins YouTube · 2026
- The Road to Wisdom: On Truth, Science, Faith, and Trust | Francis S. Collins | January 27, 2026 YouTube · 2026
- Francis Collins and N. T. Wright: Evolution, Truth and the Case for God YouTube · 2026
- Francis Collins answers listener questions on evolution & God YouTube · 2020
- Francis Collins and N. T. Wright: Evolution, Truth and the Case for God YouTube · 2026
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins), UC Berkeley YouTube · 2008
- The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence of Belief | Francis Collins at Caltech YouTube · 2009
- Alex O'Connor & Dr. Francis Collins Debate God's Existence YouTube · 2024
- The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence of Belief | Francis Collins at Caltech YouTube · 2009
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins), UC Berkeley YouTube · 2008
- The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence of Belief | Francis Collins at Caltech YouTube · 2009
- Francis Collins answers listener questions on evolution & God YouTube (Premier Unbelievable?) · 2020
- Francis Collins - Can Science Deal With God? (Closer To Truth) YouTube (republication) · 2025
- The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence of Belief | Francis Collins at Caltech YouTube · 2009
- Embracing Science and Faith in Harmony: A Fireside Chat with Francis Collins YouTube · 2026
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins), UC Berkeley YouTube · 2008
- Embracing Science and Faith in Harmony: A Fireside Chat with Francis Collins YouTube · 2026
- Embracing Science and Faith in Harmony: A Fireside Chat with Francis Collins YouTube · 2026
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins), UC Berkeley YouTube · 2008
- Embracing Science and Faith in Harmony: A Fireside Chat with Francis Collins YouTube · 2026
- Alex O'Connor & Dr. Francis Collins Debate God's Existence YouTube · 2024
- Embracing Science and Faith in Harmony: A Fireside Chat with Francis Collins YouTube · 2026
- The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence of Belief | Francis Collins at Caltech YouTube · 2009
- Francis Collins answers listener questions on evolution & God YouTube (Premier Unbelievable?) · 2020
- God and the Pandemic - NT Wright and Francis Collins YouTube · 2020
- Embracing Science and Faith in Harmony: A Fireside Chat with Francis Collins YouTube · 2026
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins), UC Berkeley YouTube · 2008
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins) YouTube · 2008
- The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence of Belief | Francis Collins at Caltech YouTube · 2009
- Francis Collins and N. T. Wright: Evolution, Truth and the Case for God (Unbelievable? live, Oxford) YouTube (Premier Unbelievable?) · 2026
- Alex O'Connor & Dr. Francis Collins Debate God's Existence YouTube · 2024
- My Journey from Atheism to Christianity | Francis Collins at Cal Tech YouTube (republication) · 2009
- God and the Pandemic - NT Wright and Francis Collins YouTube (Language of God podcast) · 2020
- Francis Collins and N. T. Wright: Evolution, Truth and the Case for God (Unbelievable? live, Oxford) YouTube (Premier Unbelievable?) · 2026
- The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence of Belief | Francis Collins at Caltech YouTube · 2009
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins), UC Berkeley YouTube · 2008
- Francis Collins answers listener questions on evolution & God YouTube (Premier Unbelievable?) · 2020
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins), UC Berkeley YouTube · 2008
- The Veritas Forum: The Language of God (Francis Collins), UC Berkeley YouTube · 2008