Re: Student perceptions re evolution

From: douglas.hayworth@perbio.com
Date: Fri Aug 22 2003 - 11:38:27 EDT

  • Next message: Kathy Greaves: "Re: Student perceptions re evolution"

    Loren:

    This is a great idea...except for the suggestion of giving lectures to
    church groups. Anti-evolutionists have no problem getting their people into
    the pulpits (even Sunday morning sermons!) of many evangelical churches,
    but how many of these same churches are going to allow the likes of Howard
    VanTill, or George Murphy, or even Terry Gray through the doors even on a
    Wednesday night?

    Many of us manage to win a hearing in our own churches only after years of
    attendance, membership and building of trust. Our ability to get a hearing
    in other churches is very limited. If we hope to gain a hearing in more
    conservative churches, we will have to find evolutionary biologists from
    those conservative church denominations to join our "veritas crusade". Such
    people probably do not exist in many conservative church groups. There are
    only a few denominations, like the PCA, that have fairly conservative
    elements while still allowing for and cultivating academic freedom and
    respect for evolutionary biologists (and other science fields).

    Douglas

                                                                                                                          
                        Loren Haarsma
                        <lhaarsma@calvin To: _American Sci Affil <asa@calvin.edu>
                        .edu> cc:
                        Sent by: Subject: Re: Student perceptions re evolution
                        asa-owner@lists.
                        calvin.edu
                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                          
                        08/22/03 08:58
                        AM
                                                                                                                          
                                                                                                                          

    On Wed, 20 Aug 2003, John W Burgeson wrote:

    > Having followed this issue for ~ 30 years, I see no reversal in the
    > future; rather, the margin by which the young-earthers are winning the
    > hearts and minds of the population will ever increase.
    >
    > If anyone has a solution to the problem, speak up. Please.

       I have a suggestion which is both slightly cynical and seriously
    practical. Borrow one particular tactic from the ICR and the Discovery
    Institute: Locate a few rich benefactors who will pay the salaries of
    half a dozen or a dozen people whose entire job it will be to promote this
    one particular agenda by writing letters, articles, and books, pushing
    those books onto bookstore shelves, and traveling around the country
    giving lectures and debates to church and campus groups.



    This archive was generated by hypermail 2.1.4 : Fri Aug 22 2003 - 11:46:05 EDT