Wednesday, May 14, 2008
I Am Evolution
I found this great story about paleoanthropologist Holly Dunsworth's interaction with evolution.
The intersection of faith and reason is tangled up by the inadequacies of language. Somewhere along the line, fundamentalist strains of religion became more concerned with defining belief ("pistos" in Greek) as our ability to claim intellectual certainty about one or more facts that can't be proven. The more unreasonable the claim, the more "faith points" they get. Lost in that translation are the concepts of fidelity, hope, and devotion. Those values were once a primary part of the definition. In the fundamentalist reaction to modern science, those values are often sent to the back of the line behind certainty in doctrines and their ability to suspend reason.
Sometimes it takes an outside view to show you where you are wrong. Holly has a healthy set of beliefs about evolution. She is devoted, yet not enslaved to an imaginary fixed understanding. Faith and reason can coexist when we don't confuse the words certainty, trust, hope, fidelity, and devotion. Each is important, but each is very different. Deconstructing and untangling the language creates a more healthy discussion about faith. I can't imagine a divine being that rewards people for their ability to suspend reason and reject knowledge. In my understanding of God, our questions, skepticism, and devotion to the search for knowledge is not only rewarded, but those things are a part of the reward.
3 comments:
"I can't imagine a divine being that rewards people for their ability to suspend reason and reject knowledge."
IN RESPONSE: A Christian compromises his/her faith if they believe in Darwinism. There is a better way.
THE BIGGER PICTURE IN THE DEBATE ON DARWINISM IS NOT INTELLIGENT DESIGN.
The reason is elementary: the Discovery Institute and other ID proponents leave out the Triune God, Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. Hence, Richard Dawkins can make the case for “aliens” seeding the earth.
A PARAGON OF SCIENTIFIC ACHIEVEMENT!
The Quest for Right, a series of 7 textbooks created for the public schools, represents the ultimate marriage between an in-depth knowledge of biblical phenomena and natural and physical sciences. The several volumes have accomplished that which, heretofore, was deemed impossible: to level the playing field between those who desire a return to physical science in the classroom and those who embrace the theory of evolution. The Quest for Right turns the tide by providing an authoritative and enlightening scientific explanation of natural phenomena which will ultimately dethrone the unprofitable Darwinian view.
The text begins simply enough, tracing the history of Darwin from an impressionable youth influenced by atheists and agnostics on every hand to a full-fledged agnostic in his own right. The matter may be summed up by the inclusion of Darwin’s sentiment regarding the Creator. In a bitter denial of Christianity, Darwin complained that he "could hardly see how anyone ought to wish Christianity to be true; for if so, the plain language of the text seems to show that the men who do not believe, and this would include my Father, Brother and almost all my best friends, will be everlastingly punished. And this is a damnable doctrine." Darwin charged his original belief in God to the "constant inculcation" (instruction or indoctrination) in a belief in God" during his childhood, which was as difficult to cast down as "for a monkey to throw off its instinctive fear and hatred of a snake…. Darwin purposed in his heart that he would no longer retain God in his knowledge. And the scientific illiterate upstart sought to entrap the innocents in the classroom in his web of deceit.
Once past the history of the Darwinist movement, the architecture of the quantum atom is explored in great detail. This is breathtakingly new!
The atom has been compared to a miniature sun-earth system with one or more electrons darting about everywhere at once weaving an electronic shell around the nucleus. In order for this to occur, “Bohr calculated that the electron must move at a speed of no less than seven million billion rotations per second.” Ummmm, "numerous electrons darting about, dodging one another at breakneck speeds would necessarily require the supernatural. The Quest for Right will prove to your complete satisfaction that the electron is directly adhered to the perimeter of the nucleus. “How could it have been otherwise?” The exciting text is remarkably easy to follow even for a lay person.
The book is a virtual smorgasbord of good things to taste: a few of the entertaining subjects include: the earth was created from a watery nebula, the mechanism of gravity which was used to form the earth, the failed photoelectric effect, theory of antimatter, quantum creation (big bang theory), disappearing color, magical application of mathematics to explain certain rudimentary principles, Rayleigh scattering (sunsets), electricity, lightning, electrolyte, the browning of fruit, the mystery of fire, and the role of oxygen in the ignition of hydrocarbons. Then, there’s the desserts which are far too numerous to mention in this limited space; for example, the origin and dimise of the great dinosaurs. Moreover, you will marvel at the comprehensive law of fixed choice.
This is not your parent’s science book filled with distortions of the truth, called “quantum mysticism.” The comprehensive investigation--like none other you will read--quickly escapes into realism by underscoring the numerous experiments and errors responsible for the debasement of scientific theories based on whim. Teachers and students will rejoice in the simplicity of earthly phenomena when entertained by the new discipline.
A review:
"I am amazed at the breadth of the investigation - scientific history, biblical studies, geology, biology, geography, astronomy, chemistry, paleontology, and so forth - and find the style of writing to be quite lucid and aimed clearly at a general, lay audience." ― Mark Roberts, former Editor of Biblical Reference Books, Thomas Nelson Publishers.
The Quest for Right is not only an academic resource designed for the public schools, but also contains a wealth of information on pertinent subjects that seminarians, and Christians in general, need to know to be effective: geology, biology, geography, astronomy, chemistry, paleontology, and in-depth Biblical studies. The nuggets from the pages of Biblical history alone will give seminarians literally hundreds of fresh ideas for sermons and teachings. The ministry resources contained in The Quest for Right serve as invaluable aids that will enrich graduates beyond their highest expectations.
Visit the official website for additional information: http://questforright.com
David,
Did you even read the article?
You said: "A Christian compromises his/her faith if they believe in Darwinism."
What does it mean to "Believe in Darwinism"? It isn't something you are asked to believe in. In science you are asked to question, not believe things without proof.
Here is the another HUGE issue that creationists make all the time...
Where in the the theory of evolution does it describe the origins of life, the origins of the univierse, sub atomic particles, or the formation of deserts?
Please do a little research about your subject before you speak about it. That way you'll be able to have intelligent and fruitful conversations with others. Continuing to talk without understanding the topic simply makes Christianity look stupid. Please don't give our faith a bad name.
Hi, Im from Melbourne Australia.
Please check out a completely understanding of Real God as Indivisible Conscious Light rather than the niave mommy-daddy "creator".
1. www.dabase.org/creamyth.htm
2. www.realgod.org
3. www.dabase.org/tfrbklih.htm
4. www.dabase.org/dualsens.htm
5. www.dabase.org/christmc2.htm
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