From: RFaussette@aol.com
Date: Sun Dec 08 2002 - 09:50:02 EST
In a message dated 12/7/02 8:29:45 PM Eastern Standard Time,
jeisele@starpower.net writes:
> Nobody believed in evolution when the Bible was written.
> Although I admire your tenacity, we have trouble finding
> a starting point for discussion when we can't even agree
> about this.
>
> Jim
>
I don't know that 'nobody believed in evolution' when the Bible was written.
Nobody knew the processes of natural selection but the Biblical authors knew
that species could be modified over time. That is in genesis 28-29. They also
knew there was a difference between human behavior and animal behavior
because as breeders of animals they domesticated, Biblical pastoralists could
observe the differences very closely and even become immersed in them as they
trained animals and had to learn animal behavior to domesticate their flocks.
Someone on this list noted correctly that even Darwin did not understand how
traits were passed from generation to generation. It took Gregor Mendel to do
that. But it is obvious that Biblical pastoralists knew that traits were
passed down from generation to generation. Today, we know the evolutionary
processes but can't see the differences. They (the ancients) could see the
differences without knowing the processes just the way Darwin did.
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