"Would this mean that a dog-kind gave rise to all the dog like beings?
Like coyotes, foxes, jackals, hyaenas etc?
Would this mean that a horse-kind gave rise to all the horse like
beings? Like zebras, donkeys, kulans, onagers etc?"
Speaking for myself, the short answer is "yes". But I would like to
elaborate a little.
I have suggested that the phrase "after their kind" is a-scientific
and should not be loaded with technical meaning. I can
understand Terry Gray when he says:
"I don't know of single evolutionist who doesn't believe that
organisms reproduce after their own kind. The progeny is of the same
species as the parent."
Whereas the evolutionist has a theory about how one "kind" can change
into another with time, this theory fails (in my opinion) to do
justice to biblical revelation about the creative design input
provided by God. If such has taken place, by inference, natural
processes cannot substitute for this design input and fundamental
gulfs exist between "kinds". This is where I see some technical
constraints on the meaning of the term coming in.
However, the Bible does not inform us about the boundaries which have
resulted from God's creative design. For that, we must do some
scientific investigation. This is a specific case where it does make
a difference whether one is a Methodological Naturalist or a
Christian Theist.
In my earlier post, I referred to the German group who put together
the symposium "Typen des Lebens". They demonstrate that the dog
family and the horse family do constitute "Basic Types" - linked
genetically within the family but with no linkages outside the
family. This volume does not claim that these "Basic Types" are to
be equated with the Genesis kinds - for that is loading the biblical
text with a technical meaning which (some of us think) it does not
have. One strong inference from the scientific analysis of the data
is that the members of the dog-family show evidences of having
descended from a common ancestral population. Similarly for the
horse-family. Evidence for genetic linkages from these populations
to any other population is totally lacking. This is fully consistent
with the scenarios developed by PCs and YECs.
Best wishes,
*** From David J. Tyler, CDT Department, Hollings Faculty,
Manchester Metropolitan University, UK.
Telephone: 0161-247-2636 ***