“Almost every scientist on earth would have to be engaged in a fraud so complex and extensive it involved every field from archaeology, paleontology, geology and genetics to biology, chemistry and physics. And yet this massive concatenation of lies and delusion is so full of obvious holes that a pastor with a Bible-college degree or a homeschooling parent with no degree at all can see right through it.”

They “can” see through it, if they choose to, but they don’t.

You don't have permission to flag this entry.

I think you misunderstood the statement :]

You don't have permission to flag this entry.

Sadly the creationism/evolution conflict has polarized attitudes about our past. “Being a good Christian” and checking the box “creationism” simply means a vote for the team - not an inability to use one’s brain. Any fan of the never-winning Eagles would switch to the Steelers or the Giants if they just used their brains. But changing sides can be like a slap in the face of one’s heritage, given that so much fan loyalty is based on family tradition. Most atheists I have met fail to realize this point, and continue to gleefully chastise belief in creation as childish, naive and silly, thereby automatically alienating potentially valuable allies. A different approach should be enlightening for both sides. Recent scientific research in geology, astrophysics, anthropology and neuroscience (to name but a few) hints that seemingly crazy stories in ancient myth might actually have some basis in truth (read cataclysmic Ice Age break up for Global Flood). If creation stories from around the world can be linked to real scientifically observable and dateable phenomena then we should be grateful for those who have preserved traditions from the past which might have origins in real events from tens of thousands of years ago. They could give some very important clues to our past in ways that archaeological remains never can. Together we could solve some puzzles about how we think, and how we came to behave as we do.

You don't have permission to flag this entry.

Howard, the problem is the belief that things that may in fact have basis in truth (the flood story, etc) are believed to be the act a magical god. That is what is dangerous. And “moderate” Christians by allowing this belief in magic to continue, not only undermine the actual work of real scientists, but also give credence to the nuts who blow up abortion clinics and slaughter heritics. This is what is dangerous about believing in fantasies like creationism.

You don't have permission to flag this entry.

I’m going to have to agree with Grace here. Even in the last two decades much has been fielld in by way of “missing links” in the fossil record regarding the evolution of man. April - Humans didn’t evolve from apes, we share a common ancestor that we branched off of millions of years ago. How would one, otherwise, explain the fact that we share over 95% identical DNA with chimpanzees and share a common “broken” gene? God must have either been uninspired or really like chimps. If that’s not evidence of a common ancestor, I don’t know what is.Evolution is non-directional. It’s the result of a number of different influences (genetic, environmental constrictions, random mutations etc.) and there is no end “goal”. Not for betterment or degradation. So, the idea that evolution is faulty because it doesn’t produce something “better” shows a misunderstanding. I went to a lecture with Stephen Jay Gould a number of years ago and, at the end of the 2 or so hours, someone stood up and asked where evolution was headed, what was the end goal. Stephen was visibly annoyed and chastised him with the statement, “weren’t you paying attention at all to what I’ve been saying?” Anyway, life on Earth has had billions of years to develop. Humans have been around for a mere blip in terms of geologic time. Dinosaurs ruled the Earth for hundreds of millions of years and we are lucky to last more than a hundred thousand. I can’t say there’s anything divine in that. Again, God must have really liked dinosaurs. Brad - “Considering the heads of the companies ACTUALLY destroying the environment are probably atheists. Also the atheist havens of China, Russia and other countries are not really doing the environment any favors either. Atheism does not inherently lead to environmentalism and in the case of Gordon Gekko “greed is good” seems to exclude caring for the earth.“Wow. Do you want to back up any of these statements here because those are just highly offensive. All the atheists I know are more likely to protect the planet because they don’t have the idea of “it’s God’s will” to defend their actions or believe that God will fix things. Further, they cherish their time on Earth more because of the fact they don’t believe in an afterlife.All those evil atheist run big businesses you speak of are more likely to be headed by right wing Christians or better yet, how ‘bout some Jews? Sound racist? It’s no different than pulling the same card with atheists. Environmental issues with China and Russia have less to do with their religion (or lack thereof) and more to do with their politics and economy. Let’s not turn atheists in the 21st century bogeyman.Personally, my environmentalism stems from my understanding of evolution and the desire to leave the world a better place than when I first stepped foot here.

You don't have permission to flag this entry.