As you may be aware, one creationist retort to this one is, "How long does
the sun have to shine on a pile of lumber to turn it into a house?" While
I agree with your example, it is the kind of example that is lost on many
creationists because something is missing. What's missing from the
discussion is that the material elements have characteristic behaviors,
described by the laws fo chemistry and physics, that allow them to do
things like freeze, thaw, crystalize, dissolve, etc. The position that
abiogenesis occurred, followed by evolution -- stripped of any atheistic
baggage -- is simply a statement that the properties of matter are such
that when energy is supplied, life can come about. The claim some people
make, that _therefore_ there is no God, does not logically follow, and is
not a scientific claim. One might ask why it is that matter has such
properties. After all, I have a difficult time accepting that mere chance,
operating over any period of time could produce, say, a painting by Georgia
O'Keefe. But that's not a scientific question.
Bill Hamilton
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William E. Hamilton, Jr, Ph.D. | Staff Research Engineer
Chassis and Vehicle Systems | General Motors R&D Center | Warren, MI
William_E._Hamilton@notes.gmr.com
810 986 1474 (voice) | 810 986 3003 (FAX) | whamilto@mich.com (home email)