So please do not include us in this crusade against evolution. Jewish theology dictates that we should revere education. It is paramount for us to understand the Torah laws, but it is no trivial pursuit to study the natural world and accept what we find in this world as truth. For while we do not hold evolution to be incorrect as a process, we do believe in a G-d intelligent enough and powerful enough to be able to start things with a big bang and to know quite accurately what the outcome will be, and to have started it thus intentionally. As a result, Jewish theology holds that our natural world is a gift to be treasured and examined without fear of the knowledge we may gain.
I am so heartened by this comment. It was obviously written with thoughtfulness and consideration. As I said earlier, and as this commentator stated in a more concise way, evolution and creationism are NOT mutually exclusive! (I promise not to write that again on this blog). I have studied a few different religions and I have heard what this person said earlier in the post. 7 days? And how do we know what was meant by a day? I have even heard people suggest that whatever happened to the earth to allow 40 days and 40 nights of rain could have changed our atmosphere. To be honest, none of us have a clue. We can make educated guesses. But we shouldn’t pontificate about something that we couldn’t possibly know.
It is much better just to look up into the sky and wonder. We have all done that, haven’t we? I’ve looked up into the night sky and gazed at the stars and tried to imagine infinity. I couldn’t do it. I can’t grasp the thought that there is no end to time or space. I always imagine that there must be a wall at the end. I know there isn’t, at least I’m pretty sure there isn’t. I imagine that if there was, the stupid wall would have to be infinite. I can grasp the concept of other dimensions...something that we have no evidence of (except for the people that I occasionally see through the corner of my eyes for just a millisecond).
Suppose a group of people woke up on an island and had no clue who they were or where they came from. What should they do? Should they wonder at the beauty around them and see each other as the amazing beings that they each are? Or should they sit around bickering about how they got there?
I realize that it is human nature to want to be right and to even firmly believe they we are right. What I don’t understand is why we feel that we must call another person wrong. What harm does it do to any single person to let another person believe what they want? It does no harm outside of the first person’s mind and ego. Are you diminished by someone else’s success or happiness? Nope.
It’s difficult enough to live in a society full of people who not only want to be right but enjoy calling other’s wrong. How we ever get by in a marriage thinking like that is beyond me. Only the most mature of men and women can handle that. To have a successful marriage, someone in the relationship must occasionally have the maturity to walk away with some mutual respect. It would be nice if we could all do that rather than to enter arguments about things that we couldn’t possibly know. It almost seems as though this particular debate (evolution vs. creationism) is entered into by people who don’t wish to learn, but rather to make enemies of people that they never even heard of yesterday. Debate is a good thing, some friction creates light which allows us to see more clearly and some creates heat which will just burn you. When I was on the Speech and Debate team in high school, our coach would occasionally, during the middle of a debate, tell us to switch sides and debate the other person’s side of the argument. It taught us to think in a more open and mature manner. I think it would be a good idea, for everyone, to take an issue that they have a firm belief in and argue for the other side. It would be an excellent lesson in maturity and critical thinking. And who knows, you may just gain a little bit of respect for the other side. And that could NOT POSSIBLY be a bad thing.
Well, I am off to court (and no, there are no 10 Commandments at this one), see ya!
Meg
I am so heartened by this comment. It was obviously written with thoughtfulness and consideration. As I said earlier, and as this commentator stated in a more concise way, evolution and creationism are NOT mutually exclusive! (I promise not to write that again on this blog). I have studied a few different religions and I have heard what this person said earlier in the post. 7 days? And how do we know what was meant by a day? I have even heard people suggest that whatever happened to the earth to allow 40 days and 40 nights of rain could have changed our atmosphere. To be honest, none of us have a clue. We can make educated guesses. But we shouldn’t pontificate about something that we couldn’t possibly know.
It is much better just to look up into the sky and wonder. We have all done that, haven’t we? I’ve looked up into the night sky and gazed at the stars and tried to imagine infinity. I couldn’t do it. I can’t grasp the thought that there is no end to time or space. I always imagine that there must be a wall at the end. I know there isn’t, at least I’m pretty sure there isn’t. I imagine that if there was, the stupid wall would have to be infinite. I can grasp the concept of other dimensions...something that we have no evidence of (except for the people that I occasionally see through the corner of my eyes for just a millisecond).
Suppose a group of people woke up on an island and had no clue who they were or where they came from. What should they do? Should they wonder at the beauty around them and see each other as the amazing beings that they each are? Or should they sit around bickering about how they got there?
I realize that it is human nature to want to be right and to even firmly believe they we are right. What I don’t understand is why we feel that we must call another person wrong. What harm does it do to any single person to let another person believe what they want? It does no harm outside of the first person’s mind and ego. Are you diminished by someone else’s success or happiness? Nope.
It’s difficult enough to live in a society full of people who not only want to be right but enjoy calling other’s wrong. How we ever get by in a marriage thinking like that is beyond me. Only the most mature of men and women can handle that. To have a successful marriage, someone in the relationship must occasionally have the maturity to walk away with some mutual respect. It would be nice if we could all do that rather than to enter arguments about things that we couldn’t possibly know. It almost seems as though this particular debate (evolution vs. creationism) is entered into by people who don’t wish to learn, but rather to make enemies of people that they never even heard of yesterday. Debate is a good thing, some friction creates light which allows us to see more clearly and some creates heat which will just burn you. When I was on the Speech and Debate team in high school, our coach would occasionally, during the middle of a debate, tell us to switch sides and debate the other person’s side of the argument. It taught us to think in a more open and mature manner. I think it would be a good idea, for everyone, to take an issue that they have a firm belief in and argue for the other side. It would be an excellent lesson in maturity and critical thinking. And who knows, you may just gain a little bit of respect for the other side. And that could NOT POSSIBLY be a bad thing.
Well, I am off to court (and no, there are no 10 Commandments at this one), see ya!
Meg
posted by Meg Kelso | 4:41 AM
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