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Author Topic:   How about teaching evolution at Sunday school?
Zhimbo
Member (Idle past 6041 days)
Posts: 571
From: New Hampshire, USA
Joined: 07-28-2001


Message 41 of 106 (50011)
08-11-2003 6:11 PM
Reply to: Message 40 by Dan Carroll
08-11-2003 6:07 PM


"If any kid honestly thinks they're going to start growing metal claws out of their hands when they hit puberty,..."
Actually, Wolverine's mutation is regeneration. The metal claws were part of a military experiment. People get this wrong all the time.
Don't mind me. Get back to meaningful discussion. I'm just waiting for files to transer.

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 Message 40 by Dan Carroll, posted 08-11-2003 6:07 PM Dan Carroll has replied

Replies to this message:
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Zhimbo
Member (Idle past 6041 days)
Posts: 571
From: New Hampshire, USA
Joined: 07-28-2001


Message 44 of 106 (50020)
08-11-2003 6:38 PM
Reply to: Message 39 by xxdeadmnwalkinxx
08-11-2003 5:53 PM


quote:
Now i realize that there are people who are still in the field, who do it for pure science, but overall its become such a freak show that stem from emotions and the latest theories one strives to completely overcome the other's beliefs.
Could you expand on what you mean by "freak show"? I mean, there are some freaky scientists out there, but I don't think that's what you're getting at.
quote:
Its not a law or fact, but a theory.
And this seems to reflect the mistaken notion that in science, there's a hierarchy of certainty, running: hypothesis->theory->fact/law. Wrong.
A Theory is an explanation. If a certain theory is extremely well supported, or parts of it are, it may be referred to as a fact. The Germ Theory of Disease posits that microrganisms growing in our bodies result in illness. That dysentery is caused by a microorganisms is a fact.
There are controversial aspects of modern evolutionary theory. Other parts are not controversial. Common descent is not controversial. That species are not permanent is not controversial. The existence of natural selection is not controversial. The rough timescale is not controversial. Etc.
Any one of these points is potentially open to debate (see the rest of this site), but you can't say that because the "Theory of evolution" exists that these things I list above aren't "facts".

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Zhimbo
Member (Idle past 6041 days)
Posts: 571
From: New Hampshire, USA
Joined: 07-28-2001


Message 67 of 106 (60269)
10-09-2003 12:22 PM
Reply to: Message 54 by NosyNed
10-08-2003 11:45 AM


As Schraf pointed out, my church's handling of evolution and the age of the Earth was one of the primary reasons I left the faith. It's something I struggled with throughout my teens. But when I looked into things, I found the Hovind-style crap that my Sunday School classes taught me were wrong, sometimes even lies.
My Church taught me evolution and Christianity were incompatible; it was clear my Church was on the losing end of the evolution thing, so I (eventually) rejected Christianity.
If my Church had been less dogmatic and more, well, honest, I may still be Christian. Who knows.
So your scenario is not just hypothetical - it's my life!

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 Message 54 by NosyNed, posted 10-08-2003 11:45 AM NosyNed has not replied

Replies to this message:
 Message 70 by BellaSanta, posted 10-11-2003 10:41 AM Zhimbo has replied

  
Zhimbo
Member (Idle past 6041 days)
Posts: 571
From: New Hampshire, USA
Joined: 07-28-2001


Message 68 of 106 (60276)
10-09-2003 12:40 PM
Reply to: Message 64 by Trump won
10-08-2003 10:58 PM


"Infallible" and "literal" are two different things...Since days and nights occur before there's a Sun in Genesis, obviously absolute literality is impossible.

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Zhimbo
Member (Idle past 6041 days)
Posts: 571
From: New Hampshire, USA
Joined: 07-28-2001


Message 71 of 106 (60523)
10-11-2003 1:19 PM
Reply to: Message 70 by BellaSanta
10-11-2003 10:41 AM


quote:
"But I do wonder what views the majority of religious people take when being asked about the truth of human evolution and how it ties in with religion. Would they just shrug it off, do they seriously consider the facts or do some actually leave the faith as you did?"
I don't know the answer, but I'm sure it depends greatly on the faith. I was taught by my church that evolution was "bad", and incompatible with Christianity. So, with that set-up, if I accepted the veracity of evolution I had little choice in what to do with my faith.
Many, if not most, Churches are at least open to compromises with Evolution (the Catholic Church believes evolution is well-supported, but does not explain the existence of the soul, which is attributed to God); although belief in evolution in the pews runs lower than in the governing bodies of the churches.
Some folks just live with the cognitive dissonance created by education versus their religious beliefs, some modify one or the other. I actually suspect my story is rare in most churches, since most churches don't make, for example, the age of the Earth something of central importance.

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