To Mattrose - Why I'm Still An Advocate For Evolution
Posted: Fri Nov 21, 2014 2:49 am
Mattrose,
Sorry for not simply responding to you in your thread, I would have but the conversation was already headed in several different directions and I didn't want to add to that. If moderators wish me to delete this and respond there instead I have no problem with that.
Your post was great! It's the sort of thing I really like to see. I try to think of myself as an artist but I also play the role of a science educator. As an educator who teaches evolution, it's extremely valuable to understand people's honest concerns with the theory.
I don't remember how much I've said about my personal story in these forums so I hope this isn't old news for you: I was raised Mormon, I faithfully served a two year proselytizing mission in my early 20s, but have since left religion altogether. Given this fact, you might not want to take my advice on the topic of evolution too seriously. That said, there may be something helpful in understanding what I did when I was still managing my faith and my acceptance of evolutionary theory. After all, I did juggle the two successfully for over 10 years.
I was about 12 when I first heard about evolution in a nature documentary. It immediately grabbed me because it made sense of so many things I had been observing about plants and animals when I was growing up. I can go into more detail on that if you like but for now I'll just say this: I instantly recognized tremendous practical value in the theory of evolution.
My family leaned quietly toward YEC, most of the people in my local congregation did too. In other circles, I met Mormons who mixed evolution with their religion, but like you, I wasn't satisfied with how they did it. It felt shallow, poorly thought out, or at least it was incomplete.
I think the major difference between you and I was that I personally understood the usefulness of evolutionary theory instead of simply seeing that there was scientific consensus on the topic. I actually used evolution to make predictions about biology as I explored. The recent bee article I posted was something I discovered on my own as a kid and later learned that major research had already been done on it. http://statedclearly.com/articles/evide ... -backyard/
At a very young age I knew two things:
1. My faith was extremely valuable to me personally and to my family.
2. The theory of evolution had incredible predictive and explanatory power in biology.
I could not find a solid way to combine the two so I decided not to even try. I held them separate in my head. I believed that somehow the two would eventually make sense together but that I didn't have the puzzle pieces needed to make them fit. I wanted those puzzle pieces, but I accepted the possibility that I might never find them in this life.
I decided that instead of either forcing them to fit, or rejecting one for the other, I would accept them both. I was fully aware that they were not compatible. I took it as my task to keep them separate in my mind, using evolution when pondering mysteries in biology, using faith when pondering life choices and when building my relationship with God.
Being an artist, I drew a picture of what that looked like: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jonathan- ... 459253339/
When I list the reasons why I left the Church, evolution is not one of them. It probably weakened my faith a bit (Matthew 6:24), but I think I actually did a pretty good job juggling the two.
I agree with you fully that nobody should accept a scientific theory in order to fit in or avoid ridicule. In my work I try hard not to pressure people into accepting evolution, but instead, to show them why evolution is valuable.
It is my opinion that, in science, theories should be accepted and rejected based solely on their explanatory power and their ability to lead us to new discoveries.
Sorry for not simply responding to you in your thread, I would have but the conversation was already headed in several different directions and I didn't want to add to that. If moderators wish me to delete this and respond there instead I have no problem with that.
Your post was great! It's the sort of thing I really like to see. I try to think of myself as an artist but I also play the role of a science educator. As an educator who teaches evolution, it's extremely valuable to understand people's honest concerns with the theory.
I don't remember how much I've said about my personal story in these forums so I hope this isn't old news for you: I was raised Mormon, I faithfully served a two year proselytizing mission in my early 20s, but have since left religion altogether. Given this fact, you might not want to take my advice on the topic of evolution too seriously. That said, there may be something helpful in understanding what I did when I was still managing my faith and my acceptance of evolutionary theory. After all, I did juggle the two successfully for over 10 years.
I was about 12 when I first heard about evolution in a nature documentary. It immediately grabbed me because it made sense of so many things I had been observing about plants and animals when I was growing up. I can go into more detail on that if you like but for now I'll just say this: I instantly recognized tremendous practical value in the theory of evolution.
My family leaned quietly toward YEC, most of the people in my local congregation did too. In other circles, I met Mormons who mixed evolution with their religion, but like you, I wasn't satisfied with how they did it. It felt shallow, poorly thought out, or at least it was incomplete.
I think the major difference between you and I was that I personally understood the usefulness of evolutionary theory instead of simply seeing that there was scientific consensus on the topic. I actually used evolution to make predictions about biology as I explored. The recent bee article I posted was something I discovered on my own as a kid and later learned that major research had already been done on it. http://statedclearly.com/articles/evide ... -backyard/
At a very young age I knew two things:
1. My faith was extremely valuable to me personally and to my family.
2. The theory of evolution had incredible predictive and explanatory power in biology.
I could not find a solid way to combine the two so I decided not to even try. I held them separate in my head. I believed that somehow the two would eventually make sense together but that I didn't have the puzzle pieces needed to make them fit. I wanted those puzzle pieces, but I accepted the possibility that I might never find them in this life.
I decided that instead of either forcing them to fit, or rejecting one for the other, I would accept them both. I was fully aware that they were not compatible. I took it as my task to keep them separate in my mind, using evolution when pondering mysteries in biology, using faith when pondering life choices and when building my relationship with God.
Being an artist, I drew a picture of what that looked like: https://www.flickr.com/photos/jonathan- ... 459253339/
When I list the reasons why I left the Church, evolution is not one of them. It probably weakened my faith a bit (Matthew 6:24), but I think I actually did a pretty good job juggling the two.
I agree with you fully that nobody should accept a scientific theory in order to fit in or avoid ridicule. In my work I try hard not to pressure people into accepting evolution, but instead, to show them why evolution is valuable.
It is my opinion that, in science, theories should be accepted and rejected based solely on their explanatory power and their ability to lead us to new discoveries.