> There is nothing that Darwin said
> that really posed much of a problem
> for basic Christian faith.
John Queen replied...
> Evolution does not fit into the
> Bible in the least amount.
Sorry John, but you misunderstood my statement. I did not say what you
think I said. I said that "basic Christian faith" is not harmed in any
way by the theories of Darwin. Whether those theories fit in with what
scripture teaches is another matter.
It is almost universally agreed (even by the folks at ICR) that *some*
evolution has occurred. What creationists--YEC or OEC--do not believe
is that natural mechanisms tell the whole story.
You said...
> Just read the first few chapters of
> Genesis. There was lots of living
> things on the earth even before there
> was a sun or moon!
Sorry again John, but you are wrong on this one. The Hebrew language of
the text makes it clear that G-d did not create the luminaries before
plant life. The sun was created during the first day (epoch). By the
third day (epoch), enough light was filtering through the thick cloud
layer to make early plant life possible. During the fourth day (epoch)
the clouds thinned enough to make the luminaries visible to the
earth-bound observer.
You raised some other points about G-d's omniscience and omnipotence and
about His ability and obvious willingness to use supernatural means to
accomplish His will and purpose. These things are not under attack.
Because I believe in His all-knowing, all-caring, all-powerful nature, I
will never accept any view that diminishes it. There is nothing in my
view of creationism that diminishes Him at all.
You said...
> He created women from man using a RIB!
> Explain that with Darwanism.
I don't think it's possible to do so, but I don't recall anyone trying
to either. I do not discount G-d's supernatural work in creation, I
only say that He also may have used natural mechanisms as well. You can
site something that is clearly supernatural, but this does not eliminate
the use of natural means elsewhere.
You said...
> If God is all-knowing do you think he
> needed Darwanism?
I consider the existence of G-d, His omniscience, and His omnipotence to
be self-evident truths. He did not *need* to use natural or
supernatural mechanisms to create anything. He did not *need* to create
at all. He *chose* to create, and whether He used natural or
supernatural means, He did so by choice.
You said...
> Do you think our Creator need[ed]
> random mistakes or processes?
I never said that G-d made "random mistakes". As far as "random
processes" are concerned, I believe that the things Darwinists think are
random processes are in fact "guided" or "chosen" processes. When the
Darwinist speaks of natural selection, I think "supernatural selection"
more adequately explains the evidence. This is all part of G-d's work
for His purposes and in accordance with His will.
You said...
> God said "let there be light..and
> there was light" "let there be..."
> It's very clear and takes faith just
> like the rest of the Bible.
The problem is that some people cannot accept creationism as easily as
you did. Must everyone have exactly the same quantity and quality of
faith that you have to be accepted into the Kingdom? Must everyone come
to Y'shua (Jesus) by the road to Emmaus? May no one come by way of
Galilee? Must all come by way of an empty tomb? May no one come by
touching and handling?
By the position you take, you exclude thousands of people from falling
at the feet of the Savior. The YEC doctrine has served to marginalize
Christianity in the modern, scientifically literate world. It has left
us with nothing to say but "Accept it by faith." I'm sorry, but Y'shua
(Jesus) never said to accept YEC by faith. We are to approach Him by
faith. We are to seek the Truth and the True One by faith. We are told
that "without faith, it is impossible to please Him." (Heb. 11:6). That
faith is not about creationism--it is about the Creator. It isn't
necessary to believe that He created everything a certain way, just that
He created.
May the L-rd bless you and keep you, John.
Russ
Russell T. Cannon
rcannon@usa.net