Today we’ll be having a lunchtime pizza chat entitled “Thank God For Evolution?” Richard Dawkins has expressed gratitude for Darwin’s theory, as making it possible to be an intellectually-fulfilled atheist. But Francisco Ayala is one of many who has expressed gratitude for evolution as making it possible to be an intellectually-fullfilled Christian. If one had to believe that God directly created parasites to feast on other organisms and devour them alive, it would lead to a far more problematic view... Read more

Last night I watched The Brave One, Jodie Foster’s most recent movie. It provides an interesting opportunity to reflect on the meaning of the Bible in a modern American setting. In the Biblical epoch, there was little other than vigilante justice. Murders were not resolved by impersonal criminal investigations by professional police, and tried by professional judges or impartial juries of the accused’s peers. In the Biblical era, and in particular that of the Hebrew Bible, justice was in the... Read more

This post will make available links to all the blogging related to Evolution Weekend that I can find. If I miss something, please leave a comment and let me know there is more to add! A Guy In The Pew: Evolution WeekendAn Evangelical Dialogue On Evolution: Et Tu Tony? A Critique of Tony Campolo’s attack on “Darwinism”Jim West points to a Thoughtful Essay on Evolution and Christianity and also offers a great quote about Intelligent Design.Pastor Bob Cornwall offers an... Read more

Just a warning for all the gullible fools out there. That this one is a scam is very easy to spot. It claims to come from someone in Kuwait yet is sent from an address at Yahoo! Japan. The clearest evidence, though, is the fact that NO ACTUAL PERSON WOULD REALLY CONTACT YOU OUT OF THE BLUE TO TRANSFER MONEY TO YOUR ACCOUNT! If, in a desire to get rich quick you take these e-mails at face value, you will... Read more

A student of mine found the following archived web site on Jericho, the Bible, and archaeology, which I thought I’d share with others who might find it interesting. Read more

I really enjoyed teaching today’s Sunday school class, focusing on the compatibility of the Christian faith and evolution. I was most impressed simply by the spirit of loving fellowship among everyone present, which included (in addition to many of the usual participants in my class) new church members, the youth group, and other guests to the class. There were certainly different viewpoints represented, but the approach to these differences was one of dialogue, humility and exploration. That, in my thinking,... Read more

The following quotes are from the leading Biology professor Francisco J. Ayala, who is also a Christian. His book Darwin and Intelligent Design (Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2006) is the source of the following quotes, which are sure to brighten your Evolution Weekend! “There is probably no other notion in any field of science that has been as extensively tested and as thoroughly corroborated as the evolutionary origin of living organisms” (p.40). “It is now possible to assert that gaps of... Read more

It is Evolution Weekend, and so to help you celebrate this “Evolution Saturday”, here is the text of the latest circular e-mail from the National Center for Science Education, packed full of useful resources and interesting articles: _______________________________________________Kevin Padian argues in the pages of Geotimes for improving evolution education by starting with the textbooks. The United Church of Christ embraces evolution in a major new statement on faith, science, and technology, and the American Fisheries Society adds its voice for... Read more

Recently someone told me they were “not an evolutionist”. I was less surprised by the “not” than by the term “evolutionist”. In my mind, for there to be an “ist” there has to be a corresponding “ism”, yet I am not familiar with the term “evolutionism”. There is “creationism”, which deserves the “ism” at the end. But “evolution” is no more of an ideology than “biology”, unless one treats it (as Daniel Dennett does, for instance) not as the explanatory... Read more

Don’t forget that this is EVOLUTION WEEKEND! If you have a blog, please blog about evolution and religion at least once this weekend! Now, on to a recap of some recent activity in the blogosphere… Stranger Fruit has a post that should not be missed, about a conference at which a scientist connected with the Intelligent Design movement acknowledged he came up with results that support evolution. The International Society for Science and Religion has issued a statement about Intelligent... Read more