I don't think it has as much to do with the findings of evolution being incompatable with the teachings of the church as mr Keane seems to insinuate.
Honestly, I don't think the majority of the people who oppose evolution have even the most rudimentary understanding of the concept. Look at the Chick tracts and other pieces of anti-evolutionary literature. There is no attempt what so ever to make evolution fit with scripture, even though as Keane shows, it does not take a whole lot of word mincing to come up with a non literal interpretation of genesis that fits with the fossil record.
So why then do Christians hate evolution? I think it is more related to who they turn to as the "purvayer of truth". All individuals, scientists, christians and everyone in between, have certain contextual characteristics that to them, tell them what they are hearing is true.
For most people, a piece of information told to them by a random stranger on the street is less pursuasive than the same information told in the context of a newsbroadcast. The same way people give increadable amounts of authority to their doctor, seeing as they "should know".
For Christians, these contextual cues have been built in from a very young age. Even in the least active and manipulative church services, one still engages in standing and sitting, reading and responding, all at the whim of an individual in a ceremonial costume, standing in front of everyone, normally on an elivated stage type thing.
Note, the only thing I am saying at this point is that Christians from a very young age are indoctrinated to believe the words that a pastor or priest utters more than those uttered by someone else. So when it comes to evolution, most Christians are just doing what their priest tells them.
Clearly it isn't this simple. There are economic factors to consider, cognitive dissonance effects, and many other reasons why the church would want people to furvently believe what they are selling, but for the most part, I would say christians hate evolution because they have been told to.
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Re: Re: Why do christians hate evolution?
So the world is flat?
People can only have the skin tone of Adam and Eve, because it would not change through evolution?
"Below" the Earth is Hell? Would that be the center?
Heaven is in the clouds?
The sun rotates around the Earth?
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Apr 10th, 2007 05:56 PM
