It is hard for science to compete with dogma. With dogma all that is required from a person is to believe in the dogma itself and blindly reject everything that contradicts it. Because science is falsifiable it can't provide the definitive proof that a dogmatic approach applied here by Peil provides. But science can present evidence that makes one think deeper about the question, understand the evidence presented and possibly actually believe the evidence (with the caveat that new evidence may eventually adjust or totally disprove the old one).
There was once a Beetle named George. (Could have been Ringo, I dunno.) George lived with a group of about 50 other Beetles about 300 million years ago. They had a good life. But they did have one enemy. The dreaded Scorpion, who regularly attacked George's little group of friends. One day George and 10 buddies were out for a walk and decided to take a dip in a small puddle of hot water. What they didn't know was that this water was infected with bacteria, that caused beetles to suffer extreme flatulence and diarrhea. Well, pity those poor Scorpions when they attacked George and his buds on the way home. They got sprayed with hot poop and piss, and went running away, vowing never to return. When George got back to his den, he found that the Scorpions had devastated his community. Not a single beetle was left alive. Except himself, and his small group of friends. But they survived. And they'd continue to survive and reproduce, because the bacteria that entered their systems would develop a symbiotic relationship with George and his friends. The beetles protected the bacteria, and the bacteria helped to protect them from the dreaded Scorpion. And they all lived happily ever after for the next 300 million years. Now, my Bible thumping friends. Was all of this an accident? Yes, it was. And what was the result? Okay, can we all say together now: "NATURAL SELECTION and SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST". Get it? The beetle who could survive, did in fact survive, and continue to improve. The beetle who could not survive, did not survive or continue to reproduce and evolve. You cannot even begin to conceive of the natural forces at work over hundreds of millions of years. P.S. The study of evolution is no more "Anti God" than is the study of the paints that an artist uses in his creation. One can fully embrace the concept of a creator of the universe, and at the same time marvel at his methods and designs of creation.
This is the closest you've come to thinking like I do. Obviously the Universe has an order. Isn't it amazing that nature functions just the way it has to in order for life to continue? ...that life is designed with this process of mutation.... and that, to me, is the wonder that we should be focusing on. Understanding the Universe through science. And that is what irks me about most religions. They tell us to stop thinking, and stop wondering, and stop searching.....it's all here in this book that I wrote when God talked to me and my kin folk. We had a conversation on the mountain top. God says 'do as I say, without question, or you'll be thrown in a fire.....but I love you!' I'm exaggerating, but not by much. We need to focus our energy on understanding the Universe, I think. I get that tingling sensation of the 'awesome' the 'divine' when I read about some discovery in quantum physics, or see see photos of distant galaxies. Call it God if you like, but it's not the God of the Bible who had all these lame conversations with men. Come on. Oh, and Jesus, real or not, he kicked ass. He's the only reason the Bible has any power whatsoever. The rest of it is quite ridiculous and contradictory. Christianity is dying because we can see with our eyes, and use our critical thinking to see the bullshit. Keep Jesus, toss the rest. Keep the baby, toss the bathwater.
An interesting esasy on the anti science mood that we observe in some people by Ann Druyan (Carl Sagan's wife): " I've been thinking about the distorted view of science that prevails in our culture. I've been wondering about this, because our civilization is completely dependent on science and high technology, yet most of us are alienated from science. We are estranged from its methods, its values, and its language. Who is the scientist in our culture? He is Dr. Faustus, Dr. Frankenstein, Dr. Strangelove. Heâs the maker of the Faustian bargain that is bound to end badly. Where does that come from? We've had a long period of unprecedented success in scientific discovery. We can do things that even our recent ancestors would consider magic, and yet our self-esteem as a species seems low. We hate and fear science. We fear science and we fear the scientist. A common theme of popular movies is some crazed scientist somewhere setting about ruining what is most precious to all of us. I think the roots of this antagonism to science run very deep. They're ancient. We see them in Genesis, this first story, this founding myth of ours, in which the first humans are doomed and cursed eternally for asking a question, for partaking of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge. Itâs puzzling that Eden is synonymous with paradise when, if you think about it at all, itâs more like a maximum-security prison with twenty-four hour surveillance. Itâs a horrible place. Adam and Eve have no childhood. They awaken full-grown. What is a human being without a childhood? Our long childhood is a critical feature of our species. It differentiates us, to a degree, from most other species. We take a longer time to mature. We depend upon these formative years and the social fabric to learn many of the things we need to know. " http://www.csicop.org/si/show/ann_druyan_talks_about_science_religion/ Seneca
even though we are in the internet age of easily available information every sunday in america you have preachers from major religious denominations preaching that scientists are in a vast conspiricy to deny god. that has to have a negitive effect.
Funny how a lot of scientists believe in God. I got this in an email from a scientist friend who has a PhD and holds about 24 patents: ""To get something you never had, you have to do something you never did." When God takes something from your grasp, He's not punishing you, but merely opening your hands to receive something better. Concentrate on this sentence. The will of God will never take you where the Grace of God will not protect you. Something good will happen to you today, something that you have been waiting to hear. Please do not break. Just 27 Words! "God our Father, walk through my house and take away all my worries and illnesses and please watch over and heal my family in Jesus name, Amen.." Seneca
That is the whole point of evolution and natural selection! THERE IS NO PLAN! You get an organism with a set of abilities. If it survives long enough to reproduce, then his set of abilities get passed on. Of an entire population, only a few will reproduce. The rest will die unapologetically. Over time (and I mean about a billion years) you get so many mutations and so many environmental changes that you get the diversity of life that we have today.