Re: The YEC's have won

I watched the segment on "Christian theme parks and holiday activities" on
NBC News this evening. The film included Kent Hovind and his Dinosaur theme
park and the new AIG creationist museum at Florence, KY, with a few words
from Ken Ham. According to a poll quoted in the segment over fifty percent
of Americans polled said that they believe in the creation account in the
Bible and 44% in a young earth, while only 33% said that they accepted
evolution. It was another of these skewed polls with badly worded questions
that assume an either/or choice; but it shows how the situation in this
country has gotten worse for science, compared with earlier polls in the
1990s. Yesterday on MSNBC Ron Reagan (the late president's liberal son) had
a segment on the bruhaha over opposition to showing IMAX films in theaters
in the American South that include references to evolution or big bang--that
some theaters have censored themselves out of fear of angry mobs of
creationists storming their ramparts. The two persons in the debate were a
dean of theology from Liberty Univ. (Jerry Fallwell's school) and the
producer of one of the films. Once again the creationist had his ducks in a
row and the film producer was trying to be balanced. Ron Reason was clearly
unsympathetic to the creationist agenda, but he had a badly constructed
program to work with. I have yet to see any nightly news or cable TV
program that escapes the either/or structure and offers the public a face
that can speak theologically of an evolving creation. If the YECs are
winning, they are getting plenty of help from the shallow media coverage of
the issue in the US.

Bob Schneider

----- Original Message -----
From: "Randy Isaac" <rmisaac@bellatlantic.net>
To: <asa@calvin.edu>
Sent: Friday, March 25, 2005 7:03 PM
Subject: Re: The YEC's have won

> Burgy,
>
> I have to weigh in with George on this one. Without appropriate
> qualification, the headline "The YEC's have won" is incorrect, conveys the
> wrong impression, and fails to motivate us. To be sure, your specific
> clarifications help somewhat (though even those, I believe, might be
> overstatements), and I agree that in certain segments of society and in
> some aspects the YEC's have, so to speak, "won." But that overlooks vast
> areas of society where YEC isn't even given the time of day, let alone
> "having won." Maybe it's just because I live in a blue region, but here
> in the Northeast the YEC influence, though present, isn't nearly as strong
> as you indicate. At the same time, I agree with the rising influence of
> YEC's and am alarmed at the rapid inroads the movement has taken.
>
> Above all, there is still a very significant portion of our population
> that is open and willing to listen and learn. We must continue to
> encourage each other to reach out and teach them.
>
> Finally, shortly after reading your post, I came across the following
> comments from Josh Wolfe in his Forbes investment newsletter:
> "Voltaire observed accurately that, "it's dangerous to be right in matters
> on which the established authorities are wrong." And Thomas Jefferson
> (ironically, a now expired but established authority figure) very wrongly
> said, "The people, when given the facts, will never make a mistake." We
> have more facts than we need. More information only serves to give us
> false confidence in the mistakes we make. This is a theme I'll never cease
> repeating: we are not rational. And yes--we includes you too."
>
> He didn't have this topic in mind but it might apply.
>
> Randy
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "John and Carol Burgeson" <burgytwo@juno.com>
> To: <asa@calvin.edu>
> Sent: Friday, March 25, 2005 10:50 AM
> Subject: The YEC's have won
>
>
>>
>> Cahrles wrote: "What victory have the YECs had recently anyway? I'm not
>> sure what you
>> are referring to, Burgy."
>>
>> Several things, Charles.
>>
>> 1. The YECs have won a permanent place in one of our political parties,
>> and, as such, are going to have an every increasing say in the American
>> culture.
>>
>> 2. The YECs have won legitimacy as a Christian sect, and there is now no
>> possibility of reason to counteract them.
>>
>> 3. The YECs have permanently co-opted evangelical Christianity, and, as
>> the mainstream denominations fade away, will eventually "become"
>> Christianity. Splinter movements will exist; they will be small.
>> Megachurches like that of James Kennedy will rule.
>>
>> I think the turning point for all this passed last year. I don't see any
>> possibility now to turn the tide.
>>
>> Burgy
>>
>
>
Received on Fri Mar 25 20:15:13 2005