Re: [asa] C. S. Lewis and evolution

page 153, but do note that Numbers is regarded as totally unreliable
by AIG
and some atheists on Pandas Thumb!!! Here is my list of Numbers'
unreliability.

Lewis did not have the scientific expertise to take on the case , but
objected strongly to materialist presentations of evolution.

Still we are told that BB Warfield would have been YEC if he had TGF.
Well
he did have Ellen G White!!

Sadly we don't have a modern day Lewis

Michael
----- Original Message -----
From: "Mervin Bitikofer" <mrb22667@kansas.net>
To: "Austerberry, Charles" <cfauster@creighton.edu>; <asa@calvin.edu>
Sent: Wednesday, June 28, 2006 12:56 PM
Subject: Re: [asa] C. S. Lewis and evolution

> Numbers also stated in his book: "The Creationists" that Lewis
> near the
> end of his life did express some doubt over his earlier position [that
> evolution is compatible with Christian faith], not so much because of
> any new or good arguments from the creationists, but because of the
> proliferation of anti-Christian arguments for which so many seemed to
> enlist evolution. However, it sounds like despite his alarm, even
> then
> he stopped short of jumping on to the warfare bandwagon. I don't have
> the book with me to cite the page number.
>
> --merv
>
> Austerberry, Charles wrote:
>
>> The Episcopal Church's statement on evolution (and reactions from
>> Keith,
>> Randy, and others) reminded me of a famous Anglican who keenly
>> understood what's wrong with saying that philosophical/metaphysical
>> naturalism and atheism are inevitable correlates of evolution. C. S.
>> Lewis was asked by others to speak out against evolution, but to my
>> knowledge he never categorically rejected evolution. If he were
>> alive
>> today, I think he would still assume the same stance he did during
>> his
>> life: descent with modification from common ancestors (of humans
>> too) is
>> compatible with Christianity.
>>
>> As long as they were theologically orthodox, I think Lewis could
>> agree
>> with both theistic evolutionists and intelligent design
>> enthusiasts. His
>> views on miracles suggest how he would approach ID: don't expect to
>> have
>> scientific evidence of God's specific actions, but ... God has acted,
>> and may continue to act, in specific, extraordinary (non-natural)
>> ways
>> on occasion. Where ID proponents base their arguments on the
>> supposed
>> implausibility of all (even as yet unimagined) natural explanations,
>> Lewis seemed to base his apologetics more on the argument that Reason
>> itself cannot emerge from unreasoning matter, and on the argument
>> that a
>> hunger for God suggests the existence of One who can satisfy that
>> hunger.
>>
>> The following quotation comes from "C. S. Lewis on Creation and
>> Evolution: The Acworth Letters, 1944-1960" by Gary B. Ferngren and
>> Ronald L. Numbers (Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith,
>> Volume
>> 48, Number 1, March 1996, 28-33, available at
>> http://www.asa3.org/asa/PSCF/1996/PSCF3-96Ferngren.html):
>>
>> "I believe that Christianity can still be believed, even if
>> Evolution is
>> true. This is where you [Acworth] and I differ. Thinking as I do, I
>> can't help regarding your advice (that I henceforth include arguments
>> against Evolution in all my Christian apologetics) as a temptation to
>> fight the battle on what is really a false issue . . ."
>>
>> Who is the modern-day Lewis? Alistair McGrath? John
>> Polkinghorne? My
>> pro-ID friends point to Phillip Johnson, Alvin Platinga, or William
>> Dembski, but I don't think Lewis would have disdained theistic
>> evolution
>> as have those ID proponents. Lewis would not have disdained pro-ID
>> folks
>> either, but I also don't think he would have joined them.
>>
>> Chuck
>>
>> Charles (Chuck) F. Austerberry, Ph.D.
>> Assistant Professor of Biology
>> Hixson-Lied Room 438
>> Creighton University
>> 2500 California Plaza
>> Omaha, NE 68178
>>
>> Phone: 402-280-2154
>> Fax: 402-280-5595
>>
>> e-mail: cfauster@creighton.edu
>>
>> Nebraska Religious Coalition for Science Education
>> http://nrcse.creighton.edu
>>
>>
>>
>>
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>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
>
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Received on Thu Jun 29 00:52:37 2006