Is YEC now the test of orthodoxy?

Rob Wahl (rwahl@kermode.net)
Sat, 31 Aug 1996 16:52:26 -0700

In response to Steven Schimmrich, I'm wondering if it's already too late.
When I was a biology/geology student (1977 to 1981) I attended Trinity
Western University. There a was taught and came to agree that if anything
could be learned from general revelation then the earth couln't be a young
earth (etc). This was a Christian School, mind you. As a Christain I thought
that perhaps I would some day teach Biology in a Christian school, or in a
missionary school, or whatever.(I'm teaching in a public school now.) Now it
seems that YEC is being built into the statements of faith of these
christain schools. What happened? I'm not believing anything I didn't learn
at a Christain school and yet I'm sidelined as unorthodox.

Part of the problem is that I'm somewhat of a closet dissenter. I've gotten
myself into some rather divisive debates in the past and discovered that I'm
better off holding my mouth. Maybe this is the worst mistake. Does anyone
have a similar experience?

Rob

At 12:25 AM 8/28/96 -0500, you wrote:
>
> The recent discussion about YEC on the Evolution reflector leads me to
>propose a question to active ASA members...
>
> The YEC movement sponsors speakers who travel to local churches to present
>creationism and to recruit members for their organizations. In the past year
>or so, there have been at least 4 separate YEC speakers who've come through
>churches in the Urbana-Champaign, Illinois area. I attended several of these
>lectures and, quite frankly, I'm of the opinion that they were grossly
>misrepresenting science and scientists. They also tell people that one can
>not be a Christian and believe in an old earth or evolution. The YEC
>organizations also take an active role in publishing and distributing books
>and pamphlets from a YEC point of view for the general public.
>
> It's clear that the YEC movement wants to win the hearts and minds of the
>average evangelical Christian.
>
> What is the ASA doing to convey to evangelical Christians that there are
>Christians in the sciences who are not YECs? That there is a diversity of
>opinion among Christians in the sciences (real, working scientists with
>legitimate PhDs in science unlike many YEC authors) about origins issues.
>Does the ASA do anything to educate the average non-scientist Christian
>about science (i.e. sponsoring church speakers, publishing and distributing
>books or pamphlets aimed at average Christians, etc.)? The only thing I'm
>aware of (and it may just be that I'm ignorant of other material that does
>exist) is a soon to be released pamphlet on radiometric dating. It's a
>worthy project but it kind of pales next to what's put out by the ICR or the
>Answers in Genesis organization.
>
>
>- Steve.
>
>--
> Steven H. Schimmrich KB9LCG s-schim@uiuc.edu
> Department of Geology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
> 245 Natural History Building, Urbana, IL 61801 (217) 244-1246
> http://www.uiuc.edu/ph/www/s-schim Fides quaerens intellectum
>