From: RFaussette@aol.com
Date: Sat Aug 16 2003 - 17:17:56 EDT
In a message dated 8/14/2003 2:30:39 PM Eastern Daylight Time, jaywillingham@cfl.rr.com writes:
> Recent research indicates animals learn and reason, sharks included, and are not mere automatons of instinct.
>
> As a dog trainer, I have seen remarkable examples of animal learning and perception, especially in mature dogs that serve as assistance dogs to the handicapped. Guide dogs for the blind are the least of these phenomenal animals
>
> Perhaps only man is prideful enough to think that his
> reasoning is powerful enough to explain everything.
>
===
Your key phrase that highlights your error is "recent research indicates." I don't care what recent research indicates. The way you interpret genesis is to know what the writers of genesis knew, what their experiences were and how they expressed THEIR revelations in those ancient texts, not ours. To those ancients, the animals they domesticated were dumb and men were intelligent and that's why man is specifically separated from the animals in genesis. They didn't know from recent research. They knew man could talk (In the beginning was the word) and man could learn and their domesticated animals were highly deficient in this regard. Since the pastoralists were responsible for the great bulk of religion, I would look through pastoralists' eyes when interpreting genesis (I've said it before).
It's not pride. Of course, now you can see my very simple logic. Nothing to be especially proud of.
rich faussette
sorry for the late responses - the lights just came on
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.4 : Sat Aug 16 2003 - 17:20:32 EDT