(no subject)
Jun. 7th, 2006 08:02 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
mari4212Well, since I've been asked this twice in recent days, I think I should go ahead and answer it.
The question was, how do I deal with science and the theory of evolution when I'm known to be Christian and very religious?
To start off with, this may be an obvious point, but all Christians and Christian denominations are not the same. I come from a denomination known as Episcopalianism. We're sort of right in the middle between Catholicism and Prodestantism, which means we get sniped at from both sides. In the Episcopal church, you don't have to take the Bible literally, and the vast majority of us do not. We consider it inspired by God, yes, but also a human creation, with all the fallacies and issues and various interpretations that come from being the creation of human beings. It's rooted in its cultural context, and reacts to the issues of its own time. So while we as Christians still do believe that the Bible is important and tells us important things and informs us about God, we don't think that its truth comes primarily from a literal understanding of the text.
So, from my religious background, I can look at the Genesis creation stories (and may I just point out, there are two separate accounts in there, at some points mutually contradictory?) and take what I consider the main point of the account, ie God created the universe and called it good, without getting bound up in the whole seven days of Creation as the exact, literal truth.
I look to my religion to tell me the whys of the world, and to tell me how to live morally.
I look to science to understand how the world works and what processes function in that world. The theory of evolution, with all of the evidence working to support it, makes logical sense, and is scientifically valid. Therefore, I believe in evolution, until such time as sufficient evidence exists to invalidate the theory. I don't think it makes me a bad Christian to believe in it, any more than believing that a geocentric model of the universe was incorrect makes me a bad Christian.
There you go,![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
elvisvf101, I hope that answers your question fully.
The question was, how do I deal with science and the theory of evolution when I'm known to be Christian and very religious?
To start off with, this may be an obvious point, but all Christians and Christian denominations are not the same. I come from a denomination known as Episcopalianism. We're sort of right in the middle between Catholicism and Prodestantism, which means we get sniped at from both sides. In the Episcopal church, you don't have to take the Bible literally, and the vast majority of us do not. We consider it inspired by God, yes, but also a human creation, with all the fallacies and issues and various interpretations that come from being the creation of human beings. It's rooted in its cultural context, and reacts to the issues of its own time. So while we as Christians still do believe that the Bible is important and tells us important things and informs us about God, we don't think that its truth comes primarily from a literal understanding of the text.
So, from my religious background, I can look at the Genesis creation stories (and may I just point out, there are two separate accounts in there, at some points mutually contradictory?) and take what I consider the main point of the account, ie God created the universe and called it good, without getting bound up in the whole seven days of Creation as the exact, literal truth.
I look to my religion to tell me the whys of the world, and to tell me how to live morally.
I look to science to understand how the world works and what processes function in that world. The theory of evolution, with all of the evidence working to support it, makes logical sense, and is scientifically valid. Therefore, I believe in evolution, until such time as sufficient evidence exists to invalidate the theory. I don't think it makes me a bad Christian to believe in it, any more than believing that a geocentric model of the universe was incorrect makes me a bad Christian.
There you go,
elvisvf101, I hope that answers your question fully.
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-06-07 03:46 pm (UTC)Proof-texting, or using selected passages from something to prove your point regardless of their original meaning, should not be done at all, though sadly it happens all too often.
My problem with taking the Bible completely literally is that so much of the text is not in a historical literal format. The book of Job, for example, is a folktale. There are songs and poems and parables, metaphorical language, similies, apocalyptic writings, and all of those are formats that are not meant to be taken literally, but which tell some truth, regardless of their factuality.