Re: Kerkut

On Thu, 5 Feb 2004, George Murphy wrote:

> Dick Fischer wrote:
> >
> > Good. Maybe he'll answer a question for you that you can pass to this
> > group. Why is it that the professional, scholarly, scientific expertise
> > that he applies meticulously to astrophysics are totally abandoned when he
> > ventures into biology, genetics and anthropology? If he professes no
> > expertise in these sciences, that's fine, why doesn't he just say that and
> > keep his mouth shut?
> >
> > Because he does have genuine scientific credentials in the area of
> > astrophysics, it is often overlooked that he has no training in the other
> > sciences. But nevertheless, he continues to comment in the other areas of
> > science as if his training in astrophysics qualifies him. Why doesn't he
> > either opt out from making comments in those fields of science where he has
> > continually demonstrated his lack of expertise, or consult with some
> > honest, qualified scientists who can keep him from making obvious blunders
> > in these areas.
> >
>
> & I would add that I don't know whether or not he has any training in biblical studies
> &/or theology. I know that this is a somewhat sensitive point, since many protestants
> think that the priesthood of all believers means that any Christian can open an English
> translation of the Bible and interpret scripture with as much authority as a Christian
> who does have some training in these areas. It doesn't.
>
> Shalom,
> George
>

Since Hugh Ross now has an associate, Fazala Rana, who is supposed to be a
biologist and presumably influences Ross, perhaps determining Rana's areas
of expertise would be relevant in assessing the credibility of Ross's
statements in the areas that Dick mentions.

I have heard that Hugh Ross has studied Hebrew (maybe on his own (?)), but
as far as I know, he has not had any formal theological training. I don't
believe that a layman should always defer to a trained clergyman. Some
have been led astray by doing that. The Bereans (Acts 17:11) were
commended for checking out Paul's statements. I believe that all believers
should seek to be educated theologically, but that doesn't necessarily
mean a formal education with degrees. I perceive that many laymen on this
list are theologically knowledgeable, and I respect their contributions to
the discussions of the theological aspects of the issues discussed here.
Of course, I also respect the contributions of those with theological
degrees and am happy to learn from them what we laymen have missed.

Gordon Brown
Department of Mathematics
University of Colorado
Boulder, CO 80309-0395
Received on Thu Feb 5 16:22:07 2004