tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-143614252024-03-08T16:35:37.059-05:00Evolution Creation DebateExplores all sides of the continuing debate on the origin of lifestmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comBlogger47125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1153486187816760972006-07-21T07:47:00.000-04:002006-07-21T08:49:47.826-04:00Scopes Monkey TrialOn this day in 1925, John T. Scopes, a Tennessee biology teacher, was tried for violating the Butler Act, a 1925 state law banning the teaching of evolution. This so-called "Monkey Trial" became a flashpoint for debate among religious scholars and scientists as well as the general public. Scopes was found guilty and fined $100, though the verdict was later reversed. Despite the outcry stemming from the case, the Butler Act was not repealed until 1967.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1153149916437761712006-07-17T07:23:00.000-04:002006-07-17T11:25:16.453-04:00Emergence Enters the Evolution/Creation DebateEmergence refers to nature's tendency to organize unpredictable and complex things out of simple components. Examples include: carbon atoms forming a diamond, water coalescing into snowflakes, neurons creating a memory.<br /><br />Unlike intelligent design, which argues that only a supernatural architect could construct the universe, emergence scientists, hailing from physics, chemistry, and life sciences, say that since the big bang, just about everything has demonstrated an innate bent for processing information to create complex systems.<br /><br />The Institute on Religion in an Age of Science will explore the subject at its 53rd annual Star Island Conference, Saturday, July 29, to Saturday, August 5, 2006 on Star Island, New Hampshire.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1150809791128372442006-06-20T07:18:00.000-04:002006-06-20T09:30:49.833-04:00Katharine Jefferts Schori<img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/6588/3064/400/jeffertsschori.jpg" border="0" alt="Katharine Jefferts Schori" />Katharine Jefferts Schori, Bishop of Nevada, was elected June 18 to head the Episcopal Church. She becomes the first female head of an Anglican denomination anywhere in the world.<br /><br />She was raised a Roman Catholic, is a qualified pilot and graduated in marine biology with a doctorate specialization in squids and oysters.<br /><br />On the Evolution Creation debate, she said: "Evolution most definitely should be taught in school. It's a well-tested premise and the best model that fits the data available. Creationism can't make that claim. I believe in the creeds. They say God created the world, but they don't say how."stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1150285483761051712006-06-14T07:41:00.000-04:002006-06-14T09:24:41.310-04:00Language of God<img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/6588/3064/400/languageofgod.jpg" border="0" alt="Language of God 0-7432-8639-1" /><br />A new book The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief makes the case for God and for science.<br /><br />Its author is Dr. Francis Collins, head of the US National Human Genome Research Institute. In the book Dr. Collins considers and rejects several positions along the spectrum from atheism to young-earth creationism, including agnosticism and Intelligent Design. Instead, he proposes an active, caring God who created humankind through evolutionary processes. <br /><br />The book will be published in July by Simon and Schuster.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1146671707976472592006-05-03T07:51:00.000-04:002006-05-03T11:55:08.003-04:00Teaching Evolution at Christian CollegesThe online version of Science & Theology News says that U.S. Christian college and university professors are teaching evolution with rigor equal to their colleagues at secular colleges. <br /><br />However, the article does say evolution is not treated as a purely academic pursuit. Quoting Curt Blankespoor, a Biology professor at Calvin College, Grand Rapids, MI.<br /><br />"It’s not strictly an intellectual process, I’m engaging not only minds, but hearts."<br /><br /><a href="http://www.stnews.org/news-2807.htm">more</a>stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1145062529258023322006-04-14T20:51:00.000-04:002006-04-14T20:56:49.130-04:00Portsmouth UK Genesis Expo<img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/400/museum.jpg" border="0" alt="Creation Science Movement Genesis Expo" /><br />The Creation Science Movement have opened a free creation themed exhibition in Portsmouth, England.<br /><br />The organization started in London in 1932 as the "The Evolution Protest Movement". They believed then and continue to believe that there is scientific evidence against evolution and supports the biblical account of creation. They publish and distribute the quarterly journal 'Creation', pamphlets, books, video and audio tapes. They also provide speakers to lecture at universities, schools and churches in the UK.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1144165023626754052006-04-04T07:30:00.000-04:002006-04-04T11:48:03.093-04:00Creation and/or Evolution: An Islamic Perspective<img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/400/1413465803.jpg" border="0" alt="Creation and/or Evolution: An Islamic Perspective" />In his book Creation and/or Evolution: An Islamic Perspective' T.O.Shanavas writes that for Muslims modern science is less problematic than for Christians. There is much agreement between Qu'anic revelation and scientific discovery.<br /><br />'Both maintain that the universe originated from nothing and evolved into its present state over a long period of earthbound time. They agree that the universe is expanding and that at some future, it will collapse into a single entity or singularity where existing physical and chemical laws become nonexistant, mathematics would not add up, and numbers become infinite'<br /><br />T.O.Shanavas was born India and is a naturalized U.S citizen. He is a practicing pediatrician in Michigan. He is a member of Islamic Center of Greater Toledo, Ohio and the vice president of Islamic Research Foundation, Louisville, Kentucky. His book is self-published through Xlibris Corporation.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1143031743602060702006-03-22T07:30:00.000-05:002006-03-22T08:37:46.263-05:00Archbishop of Canterbury<img style="float:left; margin:0 20px 10px 0;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/400/williams.jpg" border="0" alt="" />The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, spiritual leader of the world's 77 million Anglicans has said that only evolution should be taught in science classes. In an article published March 21 in The Guardian newspaper Dr Williams says also teaching creationism diminishes rather than enhances the biblical story of the origins of the world. <br /><br />"I think creationism is ... a kind of category mistake, as if the Bible were a theory like other theories ... if creationism is presented as a stark alternative theory alongside other theories I think there's just been a jarring of categories ... My worry is creationism can end up reducing the doctrine of creation rather than enhancing it," he said.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1142641006360145312006-03-17T19:15:00.000-05:002006-03-22T07:51:14.473-05:00Shroud of TurinWhat do science and scientists have to do with the Shroud of Turin, an old piece of cloth which folklore describes as being the very linen that wrapped the body of Jesus as it laid in the tomb over 2000 years ago? <br /><br />This article shows the extent to which some scientists will ignore scientific evidence to ensure that scripture is not historically accurate, and that all physical phenomena can be explained by natural, not supernatural, causes.<br /><br /><em>You can post your views here.</em>stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1141215660088243832006-03-01T07:19:00.000-05:002006-03-22T08:38:37.860-05:00The Clergy Letter ProjectIn the fall of 2004 Michael Zimmerman, a professor of Biology and currently Dean, College of Letters and Sciences, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, along with some Wisconsin clergy prepared a statement for clergy to sign in support of teaching evolution. It currently has more than 10,000 signatures of clergy from across the United States at <a href="http://www.uwosh.edu/colleges/cols/clergy_project.htm">The Clergy Letter Project</a>. The letter reads:<br /><br />"Within the community of Christian believers there are areas of dispute and disagreement, including the proper way to interpret Holy Scripture. While virtually all Christians take the Bible seriously and hold it to be authoritative in matters of faith and practice, the overwhelming majority do not read the Bible literally, as they would a science textbook. Many of the beloved stories found in the Bible - the Creation, Adam and Eve, Noah and the ark - convey timeless truths about God, human beings, and the proper relationship between Creator and creation expressed in the only form capable of transmitting these truths from generation to generation. Religious truth is of a different order from scientific truth. Its purpose is not to convey scientific information but to transform hearts. <br /><br />"We the undersigned, Christian clergy from many different traditions, believe that the timeless truths of the Bible and the discoveries of modern science may comfortably coexist. We believe that the theory of evolution is a foundational scientific truth, one that has stood up to rigorous scrutiny and upon which much of human knowledge and achievement rests. To reject this truth or to treat it as 'one theory among others' is to deliberately embrace scientific ignorance and transmit such ignorance to our children. We believe that among God's good gifts are human minds capable of critical thought and that the failure to fully employ this gift is a rejection of the will of our Creator. To argue that God's loving plan of salvation for humanity precludes the full employment of the God-given faculty of reason is to attempt to limit God, an act of hubris. We urge school board members to preserve the integrity of the science curriculum by affirming the teaching of the theory of evolution as a core component of human knowledge. We ask that science remain science and that religion remain religion, two very different, but complementary, forms of truth."stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1140884671091502462006-02-25T11:21:00.000-05:002006-03-22T08:39:27.123-05:00Bill Gates and the Discovery InstituteThe Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has given or commited to give the Discovery Institute more than $10 million. The Foundation donated $1 million in October 2000 and in July 2003 pledged $9.35 million through to 2013, including $50,000 of the Institute's founder and president Bruce Chapman's annual salary.<br /><br />The Discovery Institute is a conservative Christian foundation, founded in 1990 based in Seattle, Washington. Its main division is the Center for Science and Culture which lobbies aggressively for wider acceptance of intelligent design and against the theory of evolution. Since 2001 it has compiled at list of 500 scientists who agree with the statement:<br /><br />"We are skeptical of claims for the ability of random mutation and natural selection to account for the complexity of life. Careful examination of the evidence for Darwinian theory should be encouraged."<br /><br />The Gates Foundation has said their grants are not used in the creation / evolution debate but to support research, development, promotion, and implementation of a long-term transportation plan for the Puget Sound region.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1140534261448303132006-02-21T09:59:00.000-05:002006-06-28T18:15:06.096-04:00Hans Kung (b.1928)<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/1600/hans-kueng.jpg"><img style="FLOAT: left; MARGIN: 0px 10px 10px 0px; CURSOR: hand" alt="" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/400/hans-kueng.jpg" border="0" /></a>Swiss priest Hans Kung was in the news last August when he was invited to meet with Pope Benedict. He has long been a critic of Benedict, who as Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger was the Vatican's orthodoxy chief since 1981. Kung was stripped of the right to teach Catholic theology at the University of Tuebingen in Germany in 1979 after challenging Roman Catholic doctrines such as papal infallibility.<br /><br />Kung is back in the news having recently published a book in Germany on evolution called "Der Anfang aller Dinge" (The Beginning Of All Things) that tries to reconcile theology with the latest scientific insights.<br /><br />In a telephone interview with Reuters he said.<br /><br />"There's no use casting doubt on (scientific) results with some little problems, as the intelligent design people or the creationists do. What's there is there. A theologian should not cast doubt on a scientific consensus, but see how he can deal with it.<br /><br />"For science, God is not a valid category because God is by definition a reality beyond time and space and therefore does not belong to the world of our scientific experience.<br /><br />"But there are questions that science cannot answer .... The fundamental question of philosophy, according to Gottfried Leibnitz, is 'why is there anything at all and not simply nothing'? Science can't answer that."<br /><br />"The fundamental cause is God."<br /><br />LINK: Blog post <a href="http://gchiang.blogspot.com/2006/02/science-and-faith-scientific.html">Science and Faith</a> presents a view of the evolution / creation debate from a christian scientist.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1139746211961487352006-02-12T07:05:00.000-05:002006-06-26T07:21:30.640-04:00Charles Darwin's Birthday<img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/400/mount.jpg" border="0" alt="" />Charles Darwin was born 12 February 1809 at The Mount, Shrewsbury. The house was built by his father Robert, a wealthy doctor and speculator. The house is currently used as offices for the District Valuers, a government agency that among other things value properties for the purposes of taxes.<br /><br /><a href="http://down-house.blogspot.com/">Down House, Bromley, London</a> was where Darwin lived from 1840 until his death in 1882. It was there Charles Darwin worked on his theories of evolution.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1138855611398535202006-02-01T23:40:00.000-05:002006-06-28T18:16:10.406-04:00Episcopal Church on Evolution / CreationIn March 2005 The Committee on Science, Technology and Faith of the Episcopal Church published on-line "A Catechism of Creation: An Episcopal Understanding." It is posted at <a href="http://www.episcopalchurch.org/science/">www.episcopalchurch.org/science</a> and is organized in question-and-answer format.<br /><br />In 1982, the Episcopal General Convention passed a resolution (a) to “affirm its belief in the glorious ability of God to create in any manner,” (b) “and in this affirmation reject the rigid dogmatism of the ‘Creationist’ movement” and (c) <br />further affirmed “our support of the scientists, educators, and theologians in the search for truth in this creation that God has given and entrusted to us.”<br /><br />The Episcopal Church has about 2.4 million members and 7,400 separate congregations in the United States. It derives its orders, doctrine, liturgy, and traditions from the Church of England. George Bush Sr is a member.<br /><br />UPDATE: <a href="http://evolutioncreation.blogspot.com/2006/06/katharine-jefferts-schori.html">Katharine Jefferts Schori</a> was on the Committee on Science, Technology and Faith. June 18, 2006 she was elected head of the Episcopal Church.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1138283318064610962006-01-26T06:45:00.000-05:002006-06-28T18:17:45.983-04:00Britons unconvinced on evolution<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/1600/horizon.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/400/horizon.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>The Evolution Creation Debate will be examined on todays broadcast of the BBC's flagship science program <a href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/sn/tvradio/programmes/horizon/war.shtml">Horizon</a>. For the series over 2000 Britons were surveyed, and were asked what best described their view of the origin and development of life: <br /><br />22% chose creationism <br />17% opted for intelligent design <br />48% selected evolution theory <br />and the rest did not know.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1138229325065844882006-01-25T06:44:00.000-05:002006-01-25T17:48:45.110-05:00Evolution in California Caves<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/1600/woodlouse.gif"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/400/woodlouse.gif" border="0" alt="" /></a>It was announced Tuesday that 27 new animal species have been discovered in the caves of the Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks in California. Among the discoveries is a wood louse so translucent that its internal organs are visible, including its bright yellow liver.<br /><br />Park officials said the cave-dwelling invertebrates can tell scientists a lot about evolution because of their sensitivity to surroundings.<br /><br />Joel Despain, who helped explore the caves, is quoted as saying 'Not only are these animals new to science, but they're adapted to very specific environments — some of them, to a single room in one cave'stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1138024094226235942006-01-22T08:46:00.000-05:002006-01-23T08:48:14.240-05:00Utah Senate VoteFriday the Utah Senate voted 17-12 for bill SB96 which requires teachers to discuss alternatives to evolution. It still needs approval from the state's House of Representatives and Governor to become law.<br /><br />Sen Scott McCoy proposed an ammendment that replaced reference to 'origins of life' with 'scientific'. He said evolution shouldn't be singled out if the aim of the bill was to critically analyze scientific theories upon which some scientists disagree on. The amendment failed.<br /><br />If the law passes it is expected to be challenged in court by the American Civil Liberties Union. They contend that courts look not only at the letter of the law but the intent of lawmakers when determining if legislation is constitutional.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1137073914498618842006-01-12T06:45:00.000-05:002006-01-12T08:51:54.523-05:00'Philosophy of Design' Class Taken to CourtAmericans United for Separation of Church and State on behalf of 11 parents filed suit January 10 against the <a href="http://www.el-tejon.k12.ca.us/">El Tejon Unified School District</a> in Lebec, California to stop a course they say advocates Intelligent Design and other concepts of creationism. The course taught at the Frazier Mountain High School is categorized as a philosophy class and is elective.<br /><br />On the <a href="http://www.au.org/site/News2?JServSessionIdr006=sz2zdzob41.app5b&abbr=pr&page=NewsArticle&id=7783&security=1002&news_iv_ctrl=1241">American United website</a> Executive Director Barry Lynn says "Religious Right activists are looking for every opportunity to proselytize students into their doctrines. The so-called ‘philosophy’ course in Lebec is the latest maneuver in a long line of misguided schemes. This situation has nothing to do with academic freedom or teaching critical thinking."stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1136904481399096802006-01-07T09:42:00.000-05:002006-01-10T12:15:59.206-05:00Evo-devo next big thing<a href="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/1600/eye.jpg"><img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/400/eye.jpg" border="0" alt="" /></a>Science popularizer Jay Ingram has an article in today's <a href="http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1136589010456&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968793972154&t=TS_Home">Toronto Star</a>. He asks the question: If there is intelligent design, why do imperfections abound? For instance, the human eye is built backwards, with the light-gathering retina positioned behind nerves and blood vessels.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1135184793051072392005-12-21T19:03:00.000-05:002006-02-25T14:35:00.933-05:00Judge Rules Against Dover School BoardYesterday, U.S. District Judge John E. Jones III struck down the Dover, Pa. school board's decision to require biology students to hear about the concept of Intelligent Design.<br /><br />He said “We find that the secular purposes claimed by the board amount to a pretext for the board's real purpose, which was to promote religion in the public school classroom, in violation of the Establishment Clause.”<br /><br />More comments from his 139-page opinion are at: <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20051220.wexerp1220/BNStory/International/?query=evolution">Globe and Mail</a><br /><br />The actual text read to grade 9 students is at <a href="http://evolutioncreation.blogspot.com/2005/09/dover-pensylvannia-school-district.html">Dover Pensylvannia School District</a><br /><br />UPDATES: The new School Board elected in November decided not to appeal and on January 3, 2006 unanimously voted to rescind the policy.<br /><br />February 21, 2006 The Dover Area School Board agreed to pay $1 million in court costsstmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1134740595278735192005-12-15T07:39:00.000-05:002005-12-16T17:48:06.240-05:00Textbook Warning LabelThe <a href="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/12/10/AR2005121000911.html">Washington Post</a> is reporting that the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will hear arguments today whether stickers on text books calling evolution a theory, not fact, are unconstitutional.<br /><br />In January, schools in Cobb County in suburban Atlanta were forced to remove the stickers by a federal judge. The labels read:<br /><br /><i>"This textbook contains material on evolution. Evolution is a theory, not a fact, regarding the origin of living things. This material should be approached with an open mind, studied carefully and critically considered."</i>stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1133645662452641812005-12-03T07:21:00.000-05:002005-12-12T14:02:13.026-05:00Proposed Kansas University Course CancelledKansas University has cancelled a proposed course titled 'Intelligent Design, Creationisms and other Religious Mythologies'. The motives of religious studies department chair Paul Mirecki were called into question when he posted the following email on a Yahoo list-serv discussion board moderated by the student organization for which he served as faculty adviser :<br /><br /><i>To my fellow damned,<br /><br />Its true, the fundies have been wanting to get I.D. and creationism into the Kansas public schools, so I thought “why don’t I do it?”<br /><br />I will teach the class, with several other lefty KU professors in the sciences and humanities. Class is:<br /><br />REL 602 Special Topics in Religion: Intelligent Design, Creationisms and other Religious Mythologies.<br /><br />Tuesdays 7:00-9:30pm. Smith Hall room 100. Open to undergrads and grads.<br /><br />Enrollment limited to about 120. 3 credit hours.<br /><br />The fundies want it all taught in a science class, but this will be a nice slap in their big fat face by teaching it as a religious studies class under the category “mythology.” I expect it will draw much media attention. The university public relations office will have a press release on it in a few weeks, I also have contacts at several regional newspapers.<br /><br />Of course, I won’t actually be teaching I.D. and creationisms, but rather I’ll be teaching ABOUT I.D. and creationisms as modern mythologies, indicating that these ideas have no place in a public school science class, but can certainly be analyzed in humanities classes for their function in society. Basic approach is my usual: anthropology with a focus on religious thought and behavior.<br /><br />Any ideas for textbooks, guest lecturers and panels would be appreciated.<br /><br />So far, six faculty have eagerly signed up to lecture. I can probably pull Chancellor Hemenway into this also, especially in the light of his public comments supporting evolution.<br /><br />Doing my part to piss of (sic) the religious right,<br /><br />Evil Dr. P.</i><br /><br />UPDATE: The Associated Press reported December 6 that police are investigating a roadside beating of Paul Mirecki 6:40 a.m. Monday on a rural road south of Lawrence, Kansas. Mirecki told the Lawrence Journal-World that the two men who beat him were making references to his proposed course.<br /><br />December 7 the university announced Mirecki had resigned as chairman of the religious studies department. 2 days later Mirecki told the Lawrence Journal-World he had been forced to step down.stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1133644896159126302005-11-27T07:18:00.000-05:002005-12-03T16:21:36.170-05:00Web Site For Teachers Being SuedA pro-Intelligent Design lawyer, Larry Caldwell, has sued the operators of a University of California-Berkeley web site designed to help teachers teach evolution. He says portions of the web site amount to a government endorsement of certain religious groups over others. Because the site is partly funded through a public money grant from the National Science Foundation (grant no. 0096613) that violates the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution and the religious freedom clauses of the California Constitution.<br /><br />The website is <a href="http://evolution.berkeley.edu/evosite/evohome.html">Understanding Evolution For Teachers </a>stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1132790791367032832005-11-23T06:55:00.000-05:002005-12-08T16:35:04.476-05:00By Design Or Chance?<img style="float:right; margin:0 0 10px 10px;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/blogger/1984/1297/400/dueckchiang.jpg" border="0" alt="Lorna Dueck interviews Gary Chiang" />On Nov 24, the <a href="http://www.listenuptv.com/programs/051120intelligent.shtml">Listen Up</a> television program on Trinity Broadcasting Network will look at Evolution versus Intelligent Design. Guests are Gary Chiang, Professor of Biology, Redeemer University College; William Dembski, Associate Research Professor, Conceptual Foundations of Science, Baylor University; Pamela R. Winnick, author of 'A Jealous God: Science's Crusade Against Religion'; Alanna Mitchell, author of 'Dancing at the Dead Sea'; Robert Mann, Chair of the Physics Department at the University of Waterloo.<br /><br />Comments to Gary Chiang can be left at <a href="http://gchiang.blogspot.com/2005/12/intelligent-design-is-not-intelligent.html">http://gchiang.blogspot.com/2005/12/intelligent-design-is-not-intelligent.html</a>stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-14361425.post-1132407858754690402005-11-19T07:39:00.000-05:002005-11-19T13:30:41.810-05:00Rev. George Coyne on God's Role in CreationThe Rev. George Coyne, the Vatican’s chief astronomer, reaffirmed God's role in creation, but said science explains the history of the universe.<br /><br />In an 6 August 2005 article, <a href="http://www.thetablet.co.uk/cgi-bin/register.cgi/tablet-01063">God’s chance creation</a>, in the British Catholic magazine <a href="http://www.thetablet.co.uk/">The Tablet</a>, he said"If they respect the results of modern science, and indeed the best of modern biblical research, religious believers must move away from the notion of a dictator God or a designer God, a Newtonian God who made the universe as a watch that ticks along regularly."<br /><br />Rather, he argued, God should be seen more as an encouraging parent.<br /><br />"God in his infinite freedom continuously creates a world that reflects that freedom at all levels of the evolutionary process to greater and greater complexity," he wrote. "He is not continually intervening, but rather allows, participates, loves."<br /><br /><i>( Father Coyne, an American Jesuit, is an astronomer who divides his time between teaching astronomy at the University of Arizona and directing the Vatican Observatory. The Vatican Observatory is one of the <a href="http://clavius.as.arizona.edu/vo/R1024/History_p1.html">oldest astronomical institutes </a>in the world. It is headquartered in Castelgandolfo, Italy and operates a 1.8 metre telescope atop Mount Graham, Arizona.)</i>stmaryshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13498677436871006827noreply@blogger.com0