Discovery & Faith was conceived and born of our founder’s 16 years in professional church ministry following her graduate studies in ecology and evolution; it’s a classic “necessity is the mother of invention” tale.

Jennifer Secki Shields grew up in a Christian family and from an early age had a passion for natural history and science. Perhaps, then, it was not surprising that during graduate school she often found herself fielding all manner of “God-and-science” questions from those around her.

What did surprise Jennifer, however, was sensing a call to professional church ministry, which she answered in 2000, becoming a Christian education director for a local United Methodist Church. It was here that her graduate school experience in evolutionary biology, teaching, teaching consulting, and science education outreach found a truly meaningful new home of purpose, faith, and challenge.

Perhaps most challenging was the immediate realization that all those seemingly random “God-and-science” questions she’d heard so many times before in graduate school weren’t so random anymore; they quickly became a weekly staple of her life and work as members of her congregation (adults, youth and children alike) sought guidance in the context of practicing the Christian faith. She was, after all, a science-trained Christian and the Director of Christian Education now. If she could not help with this guidance, then who?

So, Jennifer set out to locate the materials and resources she’d need to help her church members explore the nexus of science and biblical faith. As she quickly discovered, however, such teaching materials were rare indeed, and —in most cases— simply did not exist.

Frustrated by the lack of resources for helping people to explore these types of important questions, she did the only thing an enterprising Christian educator could do—she began developing her own in-house resources.

The first series of science-and-faith lessons that she developed emerged in response to questions from the church youth about evolution and creation (a truly common thread for those exploring perceived conflicts between science and biblical faith). Then, over the next 15 years, as she fielded more and more questions from people of every age about biblical faith in an age of science, she went on to develop a wide variety of curricula and lesson plans for children, youth, and adults, all designed to address key questions surrounding the relationship between science and faith in our modern world and spiritual lives.

Over the years she has facilitated many faith-and-science discussions, classes, and events for other local churches; denominational district and conference-wide events; and Christian organizations. She has participated in “Q&A” on many occasions, including with visitors to the Hall of Human Origins at the National Museum of Natural History, and often finds herself providing pastoral care to those struggling at the intersection of faith-and-science. 

While Jennifer has experienced firsthand the fruits of bringing the faith-and-science dialogue into Christian worship and discipleship for spiritual learners of all ages, she would be quick to tell you that it’s much more than that, and far more personal.

“When your four-year old son asks, ‘Mommy, how does God hold the wind and the rain in this hands?’, how does a Christian mother who has been a scientist and a Christian educator answer?”

That was just the first of many such questions her own children would ask about how faith and science fit together. In deeply personal terms, Jennifer has long understood this simple precept:


“How we help our children understand the relationship between science and biblical faith will forever impact their ability to practice Christian faith while living in a culture that is increasingly shaped by science, and to embrace science while practicing that faith.”

Realizing that the perceived conflict between faith and science persists in our culture and our churches, and witnessing the success of her personal efforts in her own areas of ministry, Jennifer answered another call to action. In August 2016 she began working with WesleyNexus, Inc., to launch Discovery & Faith to provide others with the kinds resources and materials she has created and used in her own ministries with learners of all ages.

In late 2022, Discovery & Faith became an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Virginia.