Is Darwin's Theory of Evolution True? Part 4.0

[ericc]

In the Catholic Church that I belong to, none of the theologians think evolution is compatible with the Bible.

I have to disagree. The then Cardinal Ratzinger , a theologian, in his “In the Beginning: A Catholic Understanding of the Story of Creation and the Fall” believes in the mechanism of evolution. However his reasoning is different from that of evolutionists.

“Now let us go directly to the question of evolution and its mechanisms. Microbiology and biochemistry have brought revolutionary insights here. They are constantly penetrating deeper into the inmost mysteries of life, attempting to decode its secret language and to understand what life really is. In so doing they brought us to the awareness that an organism and a machine have many points in common. For both of them realize a project, a thought-out and considered plan, which is itself coherent and logical. Their functioning presupposes a precisely thought-through and therefore reasonable design.”

“It is the affair of the natural sciences to explain how the tree of life in particular continues to grow and how new branches shoot out from it. This is not a matter for faith. But we must have the audacity to say that the great projects of the living creation are not the products of chance and error. Nor are they the products of a selective process to which divine predicates can be attributed in illogical, unscientific, and even mythic fashion. The great projects of the living creation point to a creating Reason and show us a creating Intelligence, and they do so more luminously and radiantly today than ever before. Thus we can say today with a new certitude and joyousness that the human being is indeed a divine project, which only the creating Intelligence was strong and great and audacious enough to conceive of. Human beings are not a mistake but something willed; they are the fruit of love. They can disclose in themselves, in the bold project that they are, the language of the creating Intelligence that speaks to them and that moves them to say: Yes, Father, you have willed me.”

I think they call this theistic evolution although I haven’t seen the official definition.

BTW, Pope Francis, don’ think he is a theologian, embraces evolution as well. But obviously leaving faith and science intact. I think it is safe to say that the Church knows what evolution is but differs from the conclusion of intent. She believes behind science, God is there willing it. Non believers think otherwise, they think it is only maths.

 

[edwest211]

Pope Benedict

"In the book, Benedict reflected on a 1996 comment of his predecessor, John Paul II, who said that Charles Darwin’s theories on evolution were sound, as long as they took into account that creation was the work of God, and that Darwin’s theory of evolution was “more than a hypothesis.”

“The pope (John Paul) had his reasons for saying this,” Benedict said. “But it is also true that the theory of evolution is not a complete, scientifically proven theory.”

"Benedict added that the immense time span that evolution covers made it impossible to conduct experiments in a controlled environment to finally verify or disprove the theory.

“We cannot haul 10,000 generations into the laboratory,” he said."

 

[Glark]

According to evolution, pineapples and human beings share a common ancestor … LOL!! Even funnier, there are people who actually believe this nonsense!

 

[edwest211]

Well, yes. There was that first cell that became everything, eventually. I wouldn’t write comic book stories like this. People want plausible.

 

[Glark]

In choosing Lewontin, you promoted the implication that he, a famous evolutionist, actually supports creationism,

LOL! Here you go again, jumping to an erroneuos and frankly bizarre conclusion. I thought you were more intelligent than that.

Tell me, is the Exodus account of the parting of the Red Sea meant to be an historical fact or a myth?

But feeding five thousand people with two fish - nah. Myth.

Can you name one Biblical miracle that you do believe in?

What sort of fool follows a religion whose so-called Holy Book is littered with hundreds of myths and lies?

Is the following Scripture a myth or a fact? "with God all things are possible” (Matthew 19:2).

Why are you worried that I am more intellectually sophisticated than you are?

It’s a strange fact of life that the most intelligent poeple can also be the silliest and least wise.

“There are ideas so absurd that only an intellectuals can believe them” - George Orwell.

 

[Glark]

he is not doing the faith of Christians any favors either. Rather, he is ironically helping the atheist agenda.

As far as Catholicism is concerned, I don’t think so - those Neandethal Catholics who reject evolution don’t get much publicity … or many promotions.

 

[Glark]

This would indicate and intelligence guiding everything.

… to a rational mind, yes.

 

[edwest211]

The other question you will never see answered is, Why is this so important? Why so many man-hours? Why thread after thread - here - for years? If every person on the planet rejected evolution - nothing would happen.

 

[ratio1]

before you go online, don’t take LSD.

Whilst you have made some really good points on this thread, I don’t think this forum is a place for mockery of this sort.

 

[Glark]

You’re probably right; but when an otherwise intelligent person jumps to bizarre and erroneous conclusions, one must consider the possiblity that that person is intoxicated.

 

[Glark]

Not once but twice!

This could be described as “economy of myths” - a myth that repeats is surely better than a myth that doesn’t.

 

[Glark]

If every person on the planet rejected evolution - nothing would happen

Exactly. It’s removal from human consciousness wouldn’t make the slightest difference to any aspect of applied science. The scientific relevance of macrovolution is ZERO. So it’s patently obvious that what drives the totalitarian obsession with (microbe-man) evolution isn’t science.

 

[Glark]

if you know of any theologians who do not think evolution is compatible with the Bible, perhaps you’ll name one

The late Paula Haigh

… who had “the conviction that “Theistic Evolution” is heresy, debilitating the Church today and causing more harm ultimately than atheistic evolution because of its reduction of God to a mechanism for the supposed natural processes of evolution, its lack of reverence for Holy Scripture as the revealing Word of God, and its insidious attack upon Catholic doctrine and tradition” - from Thirty Theses Against Theistic Evolution

 

[benjamin1973]

Step 1) Don’t bother to understand how things work.
Step 2) Sarcastically misrepresent the claims of those who DO understand.
Step 3) Provide even less evidence for your own claims.

There are a million pages in which evolutionary scientists explain myriad connections among various species, on the basis of living features, of genetics, of fossil records, etc. ID has what, exactly? What features or observations do ID detail and explain? There are only so many times you can parrot the words “Goddidit” before your lack of understanding gets boring.

Why do whales have finger bones? Goddidit.
Why do we have a blind spot, when other animals don’t? Goddidit.
Why do we have lust and rage, when they are so clearly counterproductive to our society? Goddidit.

And you find this a compelling and satisfying answer. How can someone be so disinterested in the workings of the Universe? It boggles the mind.

 

[Glark]

How do I decide: Faith, reason, an informed conscience, the bible and the teaching of the Catholic Church, as laid out in the Catechism, Encyclicals and other documents at Vatican.va.

Evidently, all these things are insufficient, since many of your points of view are not Catholic (or even Christian).

the bible

That’s a laugh!

 

[Glark]

I think God invariably works rationally

… whatever that means.

Miracles are, by definition, irrational; yet you accept some and not others. Your miracle-detector seems rather faulty to me. It produces very inconsistent results.

 

[Glark]

Are you aware that this is a CATHOLIC forum? Maybe you’d feel more at home on an atheist site.

Denying the miracles described in Scripture is very typical of someone who is losing their faith.

 

[Glark]

The then Cardinal Ratzinger , a theologian, in his “In the Beginning: A Catholic Understanding of the Story of Creation and the Fall” believes in the mechanism of evolution … “It is the affair of the natural sciences to explain how the tree of life in particular continues to grow and how new branches shoot out from it. This is not a matter for faith”

Well, I’m very glad it’s “not a matter of faith” (and never will be), because in my humble opinion, the good Cardinal is barking up the wrong “tree of life”. The only Tree of Life that exists is the one mentioned in the Bible, and it has nothing to do with evolution. Darwin’s “tree of life”, on the other hand, is a fiction and an atheism-inspired myth.

 

[Glark]

There are a million pages in which evolutionary scientists explain myriad connections among various species, on the basis of living features, of genetics, of fossil records, etc.

Yet, microbe-man evolution is baloney. Welcome to the greatest scientific myth in history

 

[Glark]

Catholics understand God to be almighty.

Well, except when it comes to writing books - according to fellow Catholc, Hugh F., God’s book is full of silly childish myths.