RE: Blind scorpions (or fish) as proof of evolution?

Thank you for sharing your views with me, Bill. I'll continue to mull this
over and pray about it.

You mention that you feel nature is "a finely tuned mechanism designed by
God to carry out his commands." Perhaps similar to a computer program
designed to complete a task? I'm aware of computer programs that have been
designed to simulate evolution. Of course, the program had to have a
programmer in order to function. Someone had to write the code. Is this
along the lines of your reasoning?

I also thank you for the book recommendations. I'll purchase a copy of
Howard Van Till's "When Faith and Reason Meet."

In Christ,
Mike

"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path" (Psalm 119:105).

-----Original Message-----
From: Bill Hamilton [mailto:williamehamiltonjr@yahoo.com]
Sent: Wednesday, May 31, 2006 8:20 PM
To: Mike Tharp; 'Dick Fischer'; 'ASA'
Subject: RE: Blind scorpions (or fish) as proof of evolution?

--- Mike Tharp <mtharp@exammaster.com> wrote:

> Hi Dick,
>
>
>
> Thank you for the reply. I mean no disrespect, but wouldn't it also be
wise
> to understand the arguments that creationists, such as AIG, use before
> claiming they're incorrect? Though I lean toward a creationist
viewpoint,
> I confess that there are some things I find troubling, just as I do with
> evolution. But neither side seems to be informed about (or even willing
to
> consider) the opposing arguments, resulting in a dearth of any edifying
> discussion. Each side merely "preaches to the choir."

There is some truth to the above, although people on this list have striven
to
dialog with creationists and gotten nowhere.
>
>
>
> I'm curious as to your statement that God is "the first cause of all
> events." By this, do you mean that God created and then simply allowed
> everything to evolve from non-living matter? Or did God create the first
> life form and then allow life to evolve from that point forward? If such
> evolution was not directed by God, did it arise by mere chance? Though
I'm
> sure there are many different views among the members of ASA, I'm curious
as
> to the general consensus regarding this issue.

You'll find different views on this. My view is that God continually
supervises
the processes that operate in nature. While he may let some processes run
pretty much on their own, he is aware of every detail of every process. He
commands the processes to make or bring about what he wants to happen.
(Psalm
19) So saying that God doesn't directly manipulate things is not saying he
is
not involved. I look at nature as a finely tuned mechanism designed by God
to
carry out his commands. You can read more about this view in Howard Van
Till's
"When Faith and Reason Meet" or in St. Basil's Hexaemeron or St. Augustine's
"On the Literal Meaning of Genesis"
>
>
>
> In Christ,
>
> Mike
>
>
>
> "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path" (Psalm
119:105).
>
>
>
> _____
>
> From: asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu [mailto:asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu] On
> Behalf Of Dick Fischer
> Sent: Wednesday, May 31, 2006 3:58 PM
> To: 'Mike Tharp'; ASA
> Subject: RE: Blind scorpions (or fish) as proof of evolution?
>
>
>
> Hi Mike, you wrote:
>
>
>
> Answers in Genesis indicate that they "delight in using blind cave fish as
> examples of 'downhill' or 'information-losing' mutations causing
> 'devolution'"
> (http://www.answersingenesis.org/creation/v23/i1/eldredge.asp).
>
>
>
> Devolution is permitted, evolution shunned. Sounds like just the
> inconsistency I would expect from AIG. Actually, evolution has no upward
> direction, it just causes change. Nature selects what works. In a world
> filled with light, nature selects sight. In a world of darkness, sight
has
> no natural advantage. I would suggest AIG find out how evolution works
> before pontificating on it.
>
>
>
> The metamorphosis of a caterpillar into a butterfly is something that
causes
> me to question the feasibility of evolution. How can random mutations and
> natural selection account for this? I'm not saying it can't, but only
that
> I don't understand how it can. How does one speculate that this
> metamorphosis process arose? Of course, if evolution was directed by God,
> it could certainly be possible. But the whole idea is to take God out of
> the equation, correct?
>
>
>
> Nobody I know on this list takes "God out of the equation." The idea is
> that God need not take sporadic, intermittent action to cause new species
to
> come into existence or for novel features to appear on creatures of an
> existing species. As the first cause of all events, God does not directly
> cause all events.
>
>
>
> Dick Fischer
>
> Dick Fischer, Genesis Proclaimed Association
>
> Finding Harmony in Bible, Science, and History
>
> <http://www.genesisproclaimed.org> www.genesisproclaimed.org
>
>
>

Bill Hamilton
William E. Hamilton, Jr., Ph.D.
248.652.4148 (home) 248.821.8156 (mobile)
"...If God is for us, who is against us?" Rom 8:31

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Received on Thu Jun 1 11:38:15 2006