evolution

edited December 1969 in Coptic Orthodox Church
Christians do not believe in evolution . but it a problem because i know it wrong and yet we got it in bio. i am about to take AP bio next year and i am not sure since the last topic is evolution. i already took the normal bio class .the regions had many questions about evolution i knew the answer from class but it was wrong .. i had really hard time . what should i do about that ?

Comments

  • Well there are two ways to handle situations like these. Stand up for what you believe in, or dont believe in, and mark the answers as you feel. Or you can go with the flow and not say anything. The second option will get you a good mark in school, the first will just make your life worse so you will have to be ready to give an answer as to why you dont believe evolution.

    I dont think it is a situation where you have to speak out. Personally, I would, but then again I have been thrown out of schools.

    If you choose to take the hard road here are some books: "The Devils Delusion by David Berlinski" Berlinski has like 3 PhD's and doesnt even believe in God and speaks against evolution. "A Finely Tuned Universe by Alister McGrath" one of my favorite authors. "Genesis, Creation,and Early Man by Fr. Seraphim Rose" also "The Hidden History of the Human Race, which is the condensed version of Forbidden Archaeology both by Michael Cremo and Richard Thompson.

    Those are a few, if you choose to make a little noise. If you need more, let me know. I have tons of quotes, with sources, of the early founders of evolution, that show just how racist they are and evolution is.
  • it's true, the founders of evolution were really racist!
    what i did in school was to answer all questions like this:
    'according to darwin's theory of evolution...etc.'
    the teacher laughed because i always wrote like this, but i got very good marks and also never stated something that wasn't true.
  • There is no reason at all not to follow mabsoota's advice.

    You are being asked questions about a scientific position and it is entirely reasonable to answer those questions fully according to that position.

    It should also be possible in a Religious Education class to answer questions about the beliefs of Hinduism without constantly (or ever) stating what your opinion is about those beliefs, that is not what is required.

    You could also answer questions about the beliefs of any crank without in the slightest accepting them yourself.

    So do your best at answering these questions, while also studying the matter yourself and for your own future peace of mind, especially reading the books that Ioannes has proposed. I can still remember when I was about 6 years old disagreeing with my school teacher who suggested that Noah's Ark was not real. There is a place for making our disagreements known, but in this case you are being asked to answer questions about a particular viewpoint and not to share your own, therefore you can answer the questions honestly.

    If you do become knowledgeable on the weaknesses in the various theories of evolution then it would be possible to point to some of the scientific weaknesses in particular exam answers, but this should still be done in a neutral manner in the context you find yourself in. The answers do not require your personal opinion, and in fact your personal opinions would mark you down whatever they were since you are being asked questions about a particular theory not your opinons of that theory.

    Father Peter
  • Yea Mabsoota, brilliant.
  • well thanks for the reply i will actually use that .



    anther question that came to mind .. if any one knows a preacher called kend hovind . he is a christian and he does not believe in evolution . his statements are all true . but he came to a part which i was not sure . so i stopped the video .
    it about something called the cap theory . Did god make the earth in actual 6 days .. or between them over 10000 or more  years passed ???
    now he proved that earth is less than 10,000 years  but i do not sure if it was actual 6 days or more .
  • accepting evolutionary theory does not necessarily mean you cannot be a Christian at the same time haha, i'm assuming you are referring specifically to macro-evolution, which does present many faults, in fact any scientific theory cannot be ever proven true, a scientific theory can only me falsified, so take all you hear with regards to this particular subject with a grain of salt. Many scientist differ this subject, and it is ever changing day by day. What is presented in textbooks is the most popular theory to date, but is not necessarily the most correct theory. Micro-evolution on the other hand, is prevalent throughout nature today, and believing that this particular theory is true by no means makes you any less of a Christian. Science is man's way of trying to explain God and all of his marvelous works in nature. It is a great avenue to take towards your future professional goals, plus evolution is just a small part of the vast field of biology today.
    With regards to the whole creation think keep in mind the book of genesis does not specify how long a day, time was something created by God, for all we know a day to God during creation could have been a million years or they could have been twenty four hours who knows.....
  • so now ... do i try to deafened my faith or just sit and watch the teacher teaching lies .. right infront me of ....
  • [quote author=kirollos3 link=topic=9557.msg117792#msg117792 date=1281456733]
    well thanks for the reply i will actually use that .



    anther question that came to mind .. if any one knows a preacher called kend hovind . he is a christian and he does not believe in evolution . his statements are all true . but he came to a part which i was not sure . so i stopped the video .
    it about something called the cap theory . Did god make the earth in actual 6 days .. or between them over 10000 or more  years passed ???
    now he proved that earth is less than 10,000 years  but i do not sure if it was actual 6 days or more .


    Kent Hoven is in jail right now because of tax evasion.



  • that does not mean that he is a bad guy .. or his teachings are wrong .... did not he think that tax he paid helped evolution . that is why he stopped to pay them





    [quote author=geomike link=topic=9557.msg118250#msg118250 date=1282023663]


    Kent Hoven is in jail right now because of tax evasion.
  • haha they are not lies my friend but simply what he must say according to the biology book he is using, if you were ask him to prove that macro-evolution is true he could not, not one scientist could, but since this is the most popular scientific theory regarding evolution it is what is used in school's today, although it contains MANY, MANY faults that are recognized by any coherent scientist today . If you begin to study biology more, and study the roots of evolutions who knows you may one day be able to certainly falsify the present popular theory on macro-evolution.....that is the beauty of science is that it is ever changing due to new findings falsifying previous hypothesis'....and there is much evidence that falsifies areas of macro-evolution but it has not been changed because simply there is no other popular scientific explanation regarding this matter so scientist use this one.
    If you become a biologist one day maybe you can come up with a  hypothesis with evidence as to the origins of life that certainly nullify previous claims, after all God is the greatest scientist  in this world but our tinsy winsy brains can not even begin to comprehend the greatest Scientist works, so we int urn hypothesize about the greatest Scientist works....
  • The recently compiled Orthodox Ebooks site is very nice. Thanks for the effort.

    I was reading the contents page of a book "Contemporary Issues" by Father Rueiss Awad who prepared it for the Sunday school program in his church.

    And for a nice surprise:
    http://books.google.com/books?id=91eUuXbnvDoC&lpg=PA166&pg=PA166&output=embed
    this link directly opens the page starting the group of lessons about: "Answering the evolutionists; as supported by the Holy Bible and scientific facts."

    I think this can be considered as a wise and safe official CO teaching.

    The whole book's regular front page link is (write 'evolution' in the search field):
    http://www.orthodoxebooks.org/node/103

    kirollos3, we have discussed a lot this issue in Tasbeha (search the forum if you have time) and I would like to mention that Father Peter has enriched the discussion with a brilliant and extremely logical conclusion! He would explain it to you better than I if you ask him.

    Also note that what mabsoota suggests is a practical neutral scientific way to answer your exam questions (even if they ask 'in your opinion...' but you can still use this approach, if it's an essay q.). Look, just answer what you're expected to answer to get the best marks in the test because it's not a democratic discussion but a curriculum you are supposed to know, even if you disagree. Like Father Peter says you do not have to express a disagreement now. There is a time for everything - and you are not afraid but smarter (it is not a faith course, it is not immediate challenge to your good faith, though it is for others). Also give yourself time to know more about this complex subject later, like reading more books some of them as suggested by Ioannes, and viewing a growing number of serious honest documentaries.

    If you have some time I also suggest you watch at home a famous movie called "Expelled" to understand better the behavior of the academic system regarding this controversial topic. This will take a lot of time and effort to improve. And yes evolution was and it still is racist.

    GBU
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