RE: Schaefer's Book.

At 05:38 PM 14/08/2004 -0500, Glenn Morton wrote:

> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu
> > [mailto:asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu] On Behalf Of Michael Roberts
> > Sent: Saturday, August 14, 2004 3:23 PM
>
> > I do have grave problems and doubts about the attempts you,
> > Glenn and others make trying to find some CONCORD between
> > modern science and Genesis one. The writer had no knowledge
> > or concern about science and beyond the fact that God is
> > creator of all that is and a very superficial concord (which
> > breaks down if we attempt any detailed harmony) there are no
> > links between Gen 1 and science.
>
>And if the account is only the work of the human writer, I would agree
>with you and then decide that Genesis isn't worthy of being considered
>for any serious use at all. The fact is, the Bible is supposed to be
>divinely inspired, what ever that means in practice. If God inspired it,
>but he inspired stupidity, then how do we have any confidence in
>anything he wrote.
>
>I have grave concerns about your view that there is no concord. In my
>book, it makes the Bible false. Simply false and our atheist critics
>are correct.

I tried hard to stay out of this discussion, which I know from experience,
will lead to no agreement whatsoever. (My experience was being in a
study-committee for the Chr.Reformed Church to study the first 11 chapters
of Genesis, and lasted more than two years.) People who insist thatGod
spoke to people 5000 years ago in a scientific language cannot be convinced
of their error. God spoke to them in a language they understood, and about
situations they understood. God uses for us science as well, but we know
from history that the surroundings people thousands of years ago did not
include the knowledge that the earth is round, nor was the general
knowledge so that they knew that the earth did not have four
corners. Insisting that God spoke to them in a language they would not
understand makes the Bible a book that is doubtful. Luckily there are
Christian theologians (even in the 19th century) who are willing to admit
that God could create using evolution, and who are willing to realize that
God did not speak in 21st century English to people who could not read or
write. So God did not intend to teach them modern science.

Let us drop the subject, and agree that we are God's children, because
Jesus, God's Son died for our sins.

Jan de Koning

Jan de Koning
Received on Sat Aug 14 22:33:22 2004