Re: Proving Hitler wrong

Steve Clark (ssclark@facstaff.wisc.edu)
Sun, 17 Nov 1996 22:32:00 -0600

Hi again Randy,

You wrote the following provocative message:

>Evolution is basically a religious philosophy.

Randy, do you know enough about evolution science to make this claim?

Both creation and evolution
>are religious views of life upon which people build their particular models
>of philosophy, science or history. The issue, therefore, is not science
>versus religion but religion versus religion (the science of one religion
>versus the science of another religion).

How do you explain the remarkable number of devout Christians who hold
firmly to their religious belief but still are willing to consider the
scientific evidence for evolution? Their view of history, science and
philosophy, and especially theology, is very much like your own. But for
them, the issue is not religion vs religion, but religion vs intellectual
honesty.

By this I mean that evolution science will and should stand or fall based on
the evidence rather than based on preconceived world views. Note that this
is a criticism of both evolutionists and creationists. I think that it is
best to realize that knowledge of the universe represents a process rather
than an unequivocal statement of biblical knowledge.is true. From history,
it seems to me that science (as reticent as it is) is still more willing to
accept learning about the universe as a process of exploration. Exploration
needs the freedom to take wrong turns at time, and to take different turns
at times (that may be illuminating).

Unfortunately, Christianity seems to demand that everyone be on the same
page. And right now. The process of learning and the discovery of new
truths is not only unappreciated by many Christians, it is also discouraged.

I plan to post a response to an earlier message of yours that will, I hope,
illuminate how truth can be a complicate thing. It will deal with how the
church misused scriptural knowledge to silence Galileo. Look for it.

Shalom

steve
____________________________________________________________
Steven S. Clark, Ph.D . Phone: 608/263-9137
Associate Professor FAX: 608/263-4226
Dept. of Human Oncology and Email: ssclark@facstaff.wisc.edu
UW Comprehensive Cancer Center
CSC K4-432
600 Highland Ave.
Madison, WI 53792

"It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings to
search out a matter." Proverbs
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