Evolution and my Conversion




This excessively long post is actually an e-mail that went out to a group of earnest ladies wading through Nancy Pearcey's book: Total Truth.  It was in response to the origins debate within and outside of faith circles.

I am posting it because it came up recently with a new friend at my church.  She is highly educated.  She works at a prestigious hospital in Ottawa and knows more about physics than I ever will.  She's struggling with aligning the Biblical narrative (Ahh.... narrative or historical? Therein lies the rub) and her understanding of the age and origin of the cosmos.  So here is my unedited list of resources for anyone also struggling with this weighty and implication-heavy topic:

Written:
On Aug 10, 2017, at 9:54 PM, 

As per tonight’s book club ramble mostly by me: Here are some links that have helped me grapple with creation. I really REALLY struggled with the Biblical account and it has been a slow process for me, like 39 years long...  These resources helped (and continue to help) me navigate my doubts. 

The No Intelligence Allowed Documentary by Ben Stein was probably the biggest catalyst for me to rethink my presuppositions on my worldview of the origins of life. The biggest stimulus being women at my church praying and gently prodding me over evolution.  It’s free on Youtube.  I think the most insurmountable hurdle for most science-focussed/science-educated people, is that I really did assume "neutrality of data”, as per Sir F. Bacon.  I assumed and attached 'fact’ to all I had learned in university.  It is very much along the lines of our book, Total Truth.  I had never found cause to question my assumptions about the science I had swallowed as unadulterated fact, and on the flip side, I had never had the wisdom to "doubt my doubts" about creation.  It totally changed my opinion on academic freedom and research autonomy. Very good. Very funny. I love Ben Stein. 

In the Beginning - this was a brick of text book that was gifted to me by a lady at our church who painstakingly dealt with my list of questions on carbon dating…  why can’t we assume consistent degradation of radioactive elements into their daughter products?? WHY???  Well, She knew why.  I will confess, I did not read this book all the way through.  It’s huge and very complex, but I did pick and choose topics that bothered me.  I can loan it out.

In Six Days: this is complication of authors some philosophically focussed, but many of them physicists who use scientific language and the jargon secularist are used to, to discuss 6 day creation.  This was a pivotal book because it was able to address questions about carbon dating, etc.


Creation Magazine:  This is a quarterly publication.  Not free.

Institute for Creation Research: This is free monthly.  It can be a bit bombastic, but I have liked having it as a counter to the onslaught of stuff I get in the media.
Other media

Tea time with Annie Kate through her homeschool recommendations, pointed me to some lectures on fractals which were super cool and validating for a creationist worldview.


Is Genesis History? A movie on the biological evidence for creation.  It's just OK, in my opinion. I found the science a big foggy, partially because I am not familiar with some of the recent creationist theories for the global flood and for the fossil record, so some of the geological info went right over my head. It is however, very engaging and it is a pleasant watch and I like the premise.

 God also put several people I really esteemed in my life who were creationists, including a head programmer at Sienna and a physics-PhD-turned-homeschooling-dad. And mostly Mrs. Judy C. A tireless and patient retired chemist who spoke gently to me about carbon dating several years ago now. 

 An aside, and to defend my 'absolute mania' for this next generation to take the university science departments by storm, is that we NEED Christian scientists. We NEED Christian Astro-Physicists and particularly we need Christians in the Philosophy of Science realm so we can have authoritative voices in the wilderness. We need sturdy places in which to ask our questions.  We need Biblically-sound places to air our doubts within academia.  I also found that the church needs to purpose to be a humble, gentle place to land, when earnest, truth seekers fall off the evolution train.  It is paramount to helping other sisters navigate their origins worldview.  So... like.... don’t rub it in after we realize we were indoctrinated idiots all the years, OK?  Take it easy!

I feel like such poser in these theological forums.  Much of the details of what I believe are still being forged, but I take comfort in both extremes: the thief on the cross, who in that horrid/perfect moment was converted and would go to Christ that day and then on the other end to Solomon, who grappled with God's perfect wisdom (and stumbled…) all of his long life.  

Feel free to e-mail me for clarification on any/all of the links/info.


Blessings,

Kath