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Originally Posted by concheet
Not so sure about that. It is no believed by most scientists that the extinction of the dinosaurs was caused by meteoric impact and its aftermath. Buffalo were hunted to extinction by man. Most animals are uniquely evolved to fill a particular niche and they do it well enough to survive. It is the circumstances that change, thus the extinction is not the fault of 'ignorance'.
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There's been far more extinctions than just dinosaurs and buffalo. Studies show that over 90 percent of the species to ever have existed have become extinct. The changes you mention were not observed by the species. They were oblivious to the changes and died out accordingly. Humans have more developed brains and we can at least realize changes (sometimes) and act accordingly. Of course that does not mean we can survive every change that is thrown at us.
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Laws also evolved slowly, as did intelligence.
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True, and they still are.
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I tend to be sympathetic to your view regarding the Catholics. I understand the Pope even gave Hawkings a warning regarding delving too deeply into cosmological beginnings.
Furthermore, during the dark ages the church edited religious material and was active in the persecution of Jews as well as Muslims. There were Papal Bulls that were very cruel toward the Jews. The Church is very secretive to this day, and will not open up the Vatican archives for scholars. (probably with plenty of reason!)
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Yep, it's all about power and control.
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It is still called a THEORY of evolution, doncha know?
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No, it's a process that has and still is happening. Evolution has been observed. While we cannot explain every detail about it yet, it has been proven to be happening.
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As far as I am aware, although the story of Adam and Eve came from the Old Testament, the Jews do not believe in its 'literal' interpretation. Nor do most Christians. Every peoples have beginnings myths. It was an early attempt to understand our beginnings.
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That really depends on which people you are talking about. Many do believe the literal interpretation of the old testament. I'd say most do but I don't have stats to back that up. Why would they believe the new testament and not the old? The reason the old testament is irrelevant to christian practices of today is because Jesus's life and death changed everything.
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Just as we once believed that thunder and lightening was a warning sign from Zeus, there are many such examples. At one time people believed that tomatoes were poisonous. Did you ever wonder what you might believe if you had been born 1000 or 5000 years ago? Would you believe that the stars were the peepholes into the night-blanket that covered the sky so that you could not see into gloriously bright Heaven above? Today many of these Bible stories are wonderful springboards to understanding things of a different nature from science. We are more than simply the interaction of our cells and molecules.
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All good points to be made. More and more religious beliefs continue to fall apart as we progress and learn.
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The human being is more than the sum of its parts. The very spirit that leads us to discovery and science and ethics is nebulous and not to be found in the science or the atom....
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The essence you are trying to define is found within our skulls.
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Even secularists have faith don't forget.
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True, true.
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They have faith in their secularity. Millions were killed to appease the god of Secularity as well. "Religion is the opiate of the people" -- remember that? Think Stalin and Mao.
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Ahh but us secularists cannot justify these actions rationally. We can only condemn them today. The same cannot be said about the atrocities carried out in the name of a god. Those atrocities are still justified today by that god's followers. One could say that a person like Stalin considered himself to be somewhat of a god. A truly evil person indeed.
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And by the same token it was the ethical nature of religious observers that has saved the lives of many people as well, whether the 'righteous gentiles' during WWII
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People can do great things no matter what religious beliefs they have or don't have. One could say that the Vatican definitely could have done more during WWII.
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or the mostly Christian movement to free slaves in the U.S.
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Is it christianity that deserves such recognition? After all, it was christians that enslaved them.
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or the humanitarian spirit in many churches that leads to helping others in famines or other terrible humanitarian disasters.
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Good things can be done by all types of people. With that said it's not out of the question that in some instances churches have gained followers by offering them the reward of humanitarianism. A trade off where both parties gained something.