Why is the theory of evolution considered a threat by certain Christians?

Originally posted by Surtur
Well you again just touched on why some people have a problem with it. In the bible God specifically created us, but with evolution all you could say is God created the primitive life that eventually evolved into humans over a very long period of time.

Eh, method isn't specified.

If one can accept that god moved the continents into place via tectonic drift, why is evolution so hard?

On top of that it makes humans seem not very significant.

Really, I think people have kinda a weird view on that sort of thing. I'm secular, so I'm perhaps not the best one to talk, but I think a lot of people think saying "We came from something less advanced, that means we are that thing and no better!" rather than, "We came from something less advance, we are better, we got to our current position- which is what it is no matter how we got here- and we don't have to stop here."

I view the fact that we can change to be a positive rather than a negative.

Heck, the Bible says people were made from dust, so that already has us coming from something much less significant than we are now.

Originally posted by psmith81992
No, it does not, unless you're claiming the theories contradict one another and aren't two different ways to explain the process.

Here you go:

http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/10/30/5-facts-about-evolution-and-religion/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theistic_evolution

https://biologos.org/blogs/archive/what-do-most-christians-really-believe-about-evolution

Oh, here's another one from the big cheese.

http://www.rawstory.com/2014/10/god-is-not-a-magician-pope-says-christians-should-believe-in-evolution-and-big-bang/

I believe in creationism. I also believe in evolution (5th-6th biblical day). The two do not contradict. So while nobody is arguing the validity of your poll, the argument seems to be the conclusion you're making from it.

pay a little closer attention to the poll options... the options essentially range from "evolution with no god involved" to "evolution with god involved" to "god with no evolution involved." to claim that the 43% in question who professed a belief that god created humans in their present form leaves room for evolution is to ignore the other options the poll gives you. those who believe in evolution explicitly fall into one of the other two options.

Originally posted by red g jacks
again... the survey was specifically about how many people believe/disbelieve in evolution. the people who believe in both god and evolution were listed as "believe in evolution with god guiding the process." the people who disbelieve in evolution were listed as believing that god created humans in their present form. to say that he created humans in their present form is not the same as saying he created evolution which eventually led to humans in their present form... i.e. "theistic evolution" and the other links you gave. those people are included in the survey under "believe in evolution with god guiding the process." the 43% figure that the survey title refers to are literally saying they believe god directly created human beings as they exist today. i.e. no evolution was involved, it was a direct moment of creation, as is described in genesis.

We can go back and forth but my position is the survey does not follow "Why is the theory of evolution considered a threat by certain Christians?".

We can argue ad nauseam whether creation and evolution can coexist/etc but that's not the conclusion you were drawing here.

Originally posted by Surtur
Well you again just touched on why some people have a problem with it. In the bible God specifically created us, but with evolution all you could say is God created the primitive life that eventually evolved into humans over a very long period of time.

On top of that it makes humans seem not very significant.

Originally posted by psmith81992
We can go back and forth but my position is the survey does not follow "Why is the theory of evolution considered a threat by certain Christians?".

We can argue ad nauseam whether creation and evolution can coexist/etc but that's not the conclusion you were drawing here.

you're being dishonest and pretending those surveyed might believe in evolution... but all you have to do is read the survey question to see that you're wrong. the 3rd option that those people selected is that god created humans more or less in their present form roughly 10,000 years ago. there's no sidestepping the fact that this option contradicts some prominent aspects of modern science, especially evolution.

here's the survey again, for reference. try reading the survey question and tell me i'm wrong.

i was citing stats on how many christians disbelieve in evolution in the united states, nothing more. that was in response to the claim that christians who reject evolution are a small minority.

you're being dishonest and pretending those surveyed might believe in evolution... but all you have to do is read the survey question to see that you're wrong. the 3rd option that those people selected is that god created humans more or less in their present form roughly 10,000 years ago. there's no sidestepping the fact that this option contradicts some prominent aspects of modern science, especially evolution.

PSmith what religion do you subscribe to ?

maybe you aren't pretending, but in that case you're just mistaken. the poll question makes it pretty clear the 3rd option is a rejection of evolution. if for no other reason than the fact that it specifies 10,000 years or so. but honestly most creationists realize what "god created humans in their present form" is supposed to mean... and it doesn't involve the idea that humans descended from bacteria.

Originally posted by psmith81992
God having a hand in evolution =/= evolution and creationism being two different explanations for the same thing. To believe in only creationism is dumb, and I'm pretty religious.

PSmith what religion do you subscribe to ?

that's a strange idea to me. how can they be two different explanations for the same thing with both being literally true and god not having a hand in evolution?

but specifically you're saying evolution happened... and you call it god? but thats not god having a hand in evolution?

Originally posted by red g jacks
but specifically you're saying evolution happened... and you call it god? but thats not god having a hand in evolution?

No, god having a direct hand in evolution isn't the same thing as substituting "god" for "evolution". Both work.

right but i'm curious what the specific difference is.

do you think evolution is all there is to god? or is it just one aspect of god?

Originally posted by red g jacks
right but i'm curious what the specific difference is.

do you think evolution is all there is to god? or is it just one aspect of god?

One aspect. I don't actually believe God had a hand in evolution. That is, after the 6 days of creation, evolution took its course.

by the 6th day of creation, humans already existed right?

Originally posted by red g jacks
by the 6th day of creation, humans already existed right?

Adam and Eve were created on the 6th day. That doesn't account for neanderthals.

A show that's currently on Netflix has a wonderful brief explanation why evolution isn't just a theory and is solid proven science. Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey
Season 1 episode 2 around 24-30 minutes into the episode they explain why certain features of certain species have evolved. Those who deny this are rather simplistic and ignorant. It's downright laughable to oppose this solid science.

The ant eater.. That is all.

Originally posted by psmith81992
Adam and Eve were created on the 6th day. That doesn't account for neanderthals.

so assuming by 6 days you mean roughly however many billion years... then humans came about through evolution. and then god "let evolution take its course." but god is evolution. so god let god take its course?

either way it sounds like you're saying god basically guided the process up until the 6th day. which is when u say humans came about. so regarding the question on human origins... your view would ostensibly be that god guided the process of evolution, no?

Originally posted by psmith81992
Fair enough

I'm not pretending anything. In fact, what I believe doesn't fit into any of those criteria. God having a hand in evolution =/= evolution and creationism being two different explanations for the same thing. To believe in only creationism is dumb, and I'm pretty religious.

It's only dumb if you don't believe the Bible is the Word of God. Up until a few days ago I believed the same thing u did concerning creationism/evolution. I also thought that the six day creation was not a literal 6 days but millions or perhaps even billions of years but I was wrong about that too. I read the article below and a few others and it opened my eyes:

http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/Evolution%20Hoax/evolution_is_stupid.htm

The most relevant paragraph is the third one from the top. The notion of "theistic evolution" is just as stupid as evolution I learned. I didn't know about the "gap theory" that addresses the time period between Genesis 1:1 and GEnesis 1:2 but now I understand it perfectly and I'm happy I discovered that article that enlightened me. 🙂

There was a pre-Adamic period. That's when dinosaurs walked the earth. The pre-Adam period is what the world was like in GEnesis 1:1 when it said the "earth was without form and void. And darkness was upon the face of the deep."

There is literally nothing in the Bible that says or implies that evolution ever played a part in the universe developing. I realize that now.

Originally posted by Star428
It's only dumb if you don't believe the Bible is the Word of God. Up until a few days ago I believed the same thing u did concerning creationism/evolution. Then I read the article below and it opened my eyes:

http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/Evolution%20Hoax/evolution_is_stupid.htm

The most relevant paragraph is the third one from the top. The notion of "theistic evolution" is just as stupid as evolution. I didn't know about the gap theory that addresses what happens between Genesis 1:1 and GEnesis 1:2 but now I understand it perfectly and I'm happy I discovered that article that enlightened me. 🙂