>My question, then, is to why the evangelical church, to which
>I belong, is so dogmatic.
In matters of faith, any seemingly contrary evidence is seen as a
threat. Someone may love their spouse but they trip over evidence of
cheating, for example. The evidence is discounted or disbelieved
because the consequences are too terrifying.
The church and its believers are in similar straits. They pretend to
seek the truth but are really searching for confirmation of what they
already believe. If the church espouses that we are specially created
beings with no roots to the animal kingdom, for example, then only the
arguments in support of that stance are allowed in. Anything else is
viewed as heretical.
I don't see this as a particularly religious problem. It's a human
problem. Where faith is involved, reason takes a back seat.
Dick Fischer
THE ORIGINS SOLUTION
http://www.orisol.com