> Christianity is relational, and I've noticed that most of the messages on
>this list are too impersonal. I would be honored to get acquainted with you.
>I think we all would.
>
> (In fact, for those of you who are doing a lot of writing here, I would
>appreciate any additional information about how you came to believe, where you
>work, your family, your church, or any other personal data (but not too
>personal). Let's get acquainted before we end up flaming each other.)
Paul's right. So is Steve (BTW, welcome to the reflector, Steve. It's
nice to see your signature).
A few years after I became a Christian in 1972 the pastor's wife in the
church I attended, a Wesleyan church south of Buffalo, NY, got on an
"objective truth" kick. Being new in the faith, I kept my mouth shut about
the fact that this bothered me. I agreed that what the Bible teaches
regarding salvation, God's dealings with men, the identity, life, atoning
death and resurrection of Jesus Christ are objective truth. But I was
keenly aware that the difference between Christians and nonChristians
amounted to far more than assent to a set of propositions. Eventually,
with the help of some Calvinists in my current church, an Evangelical
Presbyterian church north of Detroit, I came to realize that the truth of
Christianity cannot be separated from the work of the Holy Spirit.
According to John 16:13 it is the Holy Spirit that enables us to recognize
truth. So there is a very personal, relational element of Christianity
that simply cannot be separated from it. While we were still sinners the
Holy Spirit went to work and enabled us to recognize that Jesus Christ is
indeed Who He claims to be. Then and only then can we accept the gift of
salvation.
I got involved in creation/evolution issues when I was a new Christian in
the 70's. I took quite literally the view that secular thinking is
bankrupt because it does not have a Godly basis. I naively thought that
all I had to do was show the world this bankruptcy and it would cave in and
accept Christ. Hey, everyone is allowed to be young and foolish once.
Today, having realized the crucial role of the Holy Spirit and the very
personal role Jesus Christ has in each of our lives, I no longer attack
unbelief exclusively with facts. The best thing I can do for a nonbeliever
is pray for him. Sometimes I have the opportunity to tell him/her what
Jesus Christ has done in my own life. The objective is to reflect the love
of Jesus Christ to worldly people. As I began to realize that Christianity
is about Jesus Christ and that "mere facts" weren't going to win the day
with most nonbelievers, and as I discovered that most of the creationist
reasoning that gets publicly aired is flawed, I found myself frequently in
fights with creationists. That doesn't happen as often as it used to.
While I'm convinced the geologists are correct about the age of the earth,
and while I'm convinced that there is enough of a science of evolution to
merit study, I don't think disagreements over mechanisms ought to stand in
the way of Christian brothers loving one another. So rather than fight
with creationists over evolution I try to make two points: 1) Christianity
is about Jesus Christ and as such includes spiritual elements that are not
subject to naturalistic analysis. Therefore no naturalistic field of study
is a credible threat to a Christian who is truly trusting in Jesus Christ;
2) People do not become Christians by assenting to facts, but by trusting
in the Lord Jesus Christ. Some creationist attempts to teach creationism
without reference to God do bother me a great deal. Chris Stassen, who
sometimes posts to the evolution reflector, said it very well on
talk.origins a number of years ago: "The problem with teaching scientific
creationism in the public schools is that it removes the one ingredient
that would make it valuable to Christians: Jesus Christ."[loose quote from
long-term memory] The additional fact that many of the arguments are
flawed leaves little redeeming value, IMO. That doesn't mean there is no
place for a healthy skepticism about the current paradigms in the sciences.
That's just good science. Christians who have concerns about evolution
(or about the age of the earth for that matter) should study the
disciplines which deal with these issues -- study them to the point they
are able to do original research and contribute to the fields. There
certainly are philosophical problems that come with some views of
evolution. But to make a credible case for them, you have to have more
than a superficial knowledge of evolution. There certainly are instances
in which scientists rely on earlier claims without examining them as
critically as they should. There are plenty of gaps and voids in the
sciences that are crying to be explored, and Christians can glorify God as
well as advance the sciences by exploring them. But that doesn't mean
taking potshots from the sidelines. It means getting involved as a player.
Well, this was going to be a more personal introduction to me. In a way it
is -- where I'm coming from intellectually. But it's gotten long and
rambling.
Let me just finish by saying I live in Rochester Hills, MI. My wife,
Linda, and I have two sons, one of whom is a freshman at Wheaton College,
the other a Junior at Calvin College. I attend Faith Church, an EPC church
in Rochester Hills, where I am Clerk of Session. I am a EE (Ph. D. Control
Theory 1970 Purdue) by training, and I primarily do simulation,
optimization studies and analyses aimed at developing the next generation
of car suspensions. I've also worked in the electronic warfare, radar,
telemetry and machine tool industries.
Bill Hamilton | Chassis & Vehicle Systems
GM R&D Center | Warren, MI 48090-9055
810 986 1474 (voice) | 810 986 3003 (FAX)
hamilton@gmr.com (office) | whamilto@mich.com (home)