**Rowland Croucher**
2008-06-23 22:32:48 UTC
(A reflection offered to an Australian Baptist church).
It=92s been lovely weather here lately, hasn=92t it? Not only during the=
=20
day but also at night. The night sky has been fantastic this week =96 I=20
often go for a short walk in the evening and the Milky Way this week has=20
looked fantastic stretched across the sky. I sometimes use my=20
bird-watching binoculars to get a closer look at the gas cloud up in the=20
handle of The Pot and I love the fuzzy star cluster Omega Centauri near=20
the Southern Cross that looks like a new furry tennis ball and has 5=20
million suns . . . it makes me think of Psalm 8: =93When I consider the=20
heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you=20
have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him?
Four hundred years ago this year, a brilliant mathematician, scientist=20
and God-fearing man, Galileo, heard that someone has made a telescope so=20
he decided to make one for himself and observe the night sky. He soon=20
discovered that there were four moons orbiting Jupiter and from his=20
observations he worked out that the earth must be orbiting round the sun.
These days everyone would agree that Galileo got it right =96 including=20
all of us here today. Back then though, Galileo had a problem in=20
getting people to agree with him: the reason was that most influential=20
people in the church of his day disagreed with him =96 they had no doubt=20
that the Bible clearly stated that the sun revolved around the earth.
One Catholic priest claimed that Galileo=92s conclusions were not only=20
heretical but atheistic. Other attacks included a claim that =93his=20
pretended discovery vitiates the whole Christian plan of salvation=94 and=
=20
that =93it casts suspicion on the doctrine of the incarnation.=94 While=20
much of the criticism came from the Catholic Church, it was not limited=20
to that. John Calvin and Martin Luther also objected.
Galileo was subsequently tried before the Roman inquisition in 1633, and=20
ultimately forced to =93abjure, curse and detest=94 his own work. He=20
remained under house arrest for the remainder of his life, and his=20
publications were banned. Only in 1992 -- 359 years after the trial --=20
was an apology issued by Pope John Paul II: =93Galileo sensed in his=20
scientific research the presence of the Creator who, stirring in the=20
depths of his spirit, stimulated him, anticipating and assisting his=20
intuitions.=94
Is there a lesson to be learnt here? Surely this is a classic case of=20
Christians back then treating the Bible as though its purpose was to=20
teach science.
Allow me to be a little bit controversial. I=92ve got a sneaking=20
suspicion that something similar is happening in our world today. I=20
can=92t imagine any of us saying to someone else =93Well, I=92m sorry, bu=
t=20
you=92re wrong. The Bible clearly states that the sun revolves around th=
e=20
earth. I mean, if you don=92t believe that, let=92s be logical, let=92s =
throw=20
out the rest of the Bible. You either believe the Bible is inspired or=20
you don=92t.=94 I=92ve never actually heard THAT conversation, but this =
one=20
is a bit more familiar, I think you=92ll agree: =93Well, I=92m sorry, b=
ut=20
you=92re wrong. The Bible clearly states that the God created the world=20
in seven days. I mean, if you don=92t believe that, let=92s be logical,=20
let=92s throw out the rest of the Bible. You either believe the Bible is=20
inspired or you don=92t.=94
You may or may not be aware that some of the world=92s most respected=20
believers in evolution are also passionate followers of Christ. Dr.=20
Francis Collins is one.
Francis Collins is an internationally respected authority in the area of=20
DNA research. In his book =93The Language of God=94 he mentions the long=
=20
process whereby he ceased to be an atheist and became a Christian. He=20
mentions the end of that time in the following words:
=93I had to make a choice. A full year had passed since I decided to=20
believe in some sort of God, and now I was being called to account. On=20
a beautiful fall day, as I was hiking in the Cascade Mountains during my=20
first trip west of the Mississippi, the majesty and beauty of God=92s=20
creation overwhelmed my resistance. As I rounded a corner and saw a=20
beautiful and unexpected frozen waterfall, hundreds of feet high, I knew=20
the search was over. The next morning, I knelt in the dewy grass as the=20
sun rose and surrendered to Jesus Christ.=94
Today Francis Collins continues to be a passionate Bible-believing=20
witness for the Lord amongst the world=92s leading scientists =96 and he=20
continues to believe more than ever that God has used evolution in the=20
creation of the world.
I don=92t know whether he=92s right about evolution, but then again, I=92=
m a=20
language teacher and he=92s a world renowned molecular biologist, so if=20
I=92m not to be arrogant like the church authorities in Galileo=92s day,=20
I=92ve got to admit he=92s got more chance of being right than I have,=20
because that=92s his field of expertise.
But let=92s be clear, guys, about where I=92m coming from here, I=92m not=
=20
trying to convince anyone here to believe in evolution. Frankly, I=20
think the whole young earth/old earth debate is not what God wants us to=20
spend our time arguing about. And God certainly doesn=92t want any perso=
n=20
searching for spiritual truth distracted and turned off the Bible and=20
Jesus Christ by my insistence that they must share my belief in some=20
aspect of science.
What I feel quite sure about is that Paul was right when he reminds us=20
how to approach the Bible in II Timothy 3: 16: =93All Scripture is=20
God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and=20
training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly=20
equipped for every good work.=94
As Christians today let us all be passionate about our faith, but let us=20
also reflect on the words of Proverbs 19:2: =93It is not good to have zea=
l=20
without knowledge.=94
Ross Mildenhall
--=20
Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher
http://jmm.aaa.net.au/ (20,000 articles 4000 humor)
Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/
Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/
Funny Jokes and Pics - http://funnyjokesnpics.blogspot.com/
It=92s been lovely weather here lately, hasn=92t it? Not only during the=
=20
day but also at night. The night sky has been fantastic this week =96 I=20
often go for a short walk in the evening and the Milky Way this week has=20
looked fantastic stretched across the sky. I sometimes use my=20
bird-watching binoculars to get a closer look at the gas cloud up in the=20
handle of The Pot and I love the fuzzy star cluster Omega Centauri near=20
the Southern Cross that looks like a new furry tennis ball and has 5=20
million suns . . . it makes me think of Psalm 8: =93When I consider the=20
heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you=20
have set in place, what is man that you are mindful of him?
Four hundred years ago this year, a brilliant mathematician, scientist=20
and God-fearing man, Galileo, heard that someone has made a telescope so=20
he decided to make one for himself and observe the night sky. He soon=20
discovered that there were four moons orbiting Jupiter and from his=20
observations he worked out that the earth must be orbiting round the sun.
These days everyone would agree that Galileo got it right =96 including=20
all of us here today. Back then though, Galileo had a problem in=20
getting people to agree with him: the reason was that most influential=20
people in the church of his day disagreed with him =96 they had no doubt=20
that the Bible clearly stated that the sun revolved around the earth.
One Catholic priest claimed that Galileo=92s conclusions were not only=20
heretical but atheistic. Other attacks included a claim that =93his=20
pretended discovery vitiates the whole Christian plan of salvation=94 and=
=20
that =93it casts suspicion on the doctrine of the incarnation.=94 While=20
much of the criticism came from the Catholic Church, it was not limited=20
to that. John Calvin and Martin Luther also objected.
Galileo was subsequently tried before the Roman inquisition in 1633, and=20
ultimately forced to =93abjure, curse and detest=94 his own work. He=20
remained under house arrest for the remainder of his life, and his=20
publications were banned. Only in 1992 -- 359 years after the trial --=20
was an apology issued by Pope John Paul II: =93Galileo sensed in his=20
scientific research the presence of the Creator who, stirring in the=20
depths of his spirit, stimulated him, anticipating and assisting his=20
intuitions.=94
Is there a lesson to be learnt here? Surely this is a classic case of=20
Christians back then treating the Bible as though its purpose was to=20
teach science.
Allow me to be a little bit controversial. I=92ve got a sneaking=20
suspicion that something similar is happening in our world today. I=20
can=92t imagine any of us saying to someone else =93Well, I=92m sorry, bu=
t=20
you=92re wrong. The Bible clearly states that the sun revolves around th=
e=20
earth. I mean, if you don=92t believe that, let=92s be logical, let=92s =
throw=20
out the rest of the Bible. You either believe the Bible is inspired or=20
you don=92t.=94 I=92ve never actually heard THAT conversation, but this =
one=20
is a bit more familiar, I think you=92ll agree: =93Well, I=92m sorry, b=
ut=20
you=92re wrong. The Bible clearly states that the God created the world=20
in seven days. I mean, if you don=92t believe that, let=92s be logical,=20
let=92s throw out the rest of the Bible. You either believe the Bible is=20
inspired or you don=92t.=94
You may or may not be aware that some of the world=92s most respected=20
believers in evolution are also passionate followers of Christ. Dr.=20
Francis Collins is one.
Francis Collins is an internationally respected authority in the area of=20
DNA research. In his book =93The Language of God=94 he mentions the long=
=20
process whereby he ceased to be an atheist and became a Christian. He=20
mentions the end of that time in the following words:
=93I had to make a choice. A full year had passed since I decided to=20
believe in some sort of God, and now I was being called to account. On=20
a beautiful fall day, as I was hiking in the Cascade Mountains during my=20
first trip west of the Mississippi, the majesty and beauty of God=92s=20
creation overwhelmed my resistance. As I rounded a corner and saw a=20
beautiful and unexpected frozen waterfall, hundreds of feet high, I knew=20
the search was over. The next morning, I knelt in the dewy grass as the=20
sun rose and surrendered to Jesus Christ.=94
Today Francis Collins continues to be a passionate Bible-believing=20
witness for the Lord amongst the world=92s leading scientists =96 and he=20
continues to believe more than ever that God has used evolution in the=20
creation of the world.
I don=92t know whether he=92s right about evolution, but then again, I=92=
m a=20
language teacher and he=92s a world renowned molecular biologist, so if=20
I=92m not to be arrogant like the church authorities in Galileo=92s day,=20
I=92ve got to admit he=92s got more chance of being right than I have,=20
because that=92s his field of expertise.
But let=92s be clear, guys, about where I=92m coming from here, I=92m not=
=20
trying to convince anyone here to believe in evolution. Frankly, I=20
think the whole young earth/old earth debate is not what God wants us to=20
spend our time arguing about. And God certainly doesn=92t want any perso=
n=20
searching for spiritual truth distracted and turned off the Bible and=20
Jesus Christ by my insistence that they must share my belief in some=20
aspect of science.
What I feel quite sure about is that Paul was right when he reminds us=20
how to approach the Bible in II Timothy 3: 16: =93All Scripture is=20
God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and=20
training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly=20
equipped for every good work.=94
As Christians today let us all be passionate about our faith, but let us=20
also reflect on the words of Proverbs 19:2: =93It is not good to have zea=
l=20
without knowledge.=94
Ross Mildenhall
--=20
Shalom/Salaam/Pax! Rowland Croucher
http://jmm.aaa.net.au/ (20,000 articles 4000 humor)
Blogs - http://rowlandsblogs.blogspot.com/
Justice for Dawn Rowan - http://dawnrowansaga.blogspot.com/
Funny Jokes and Pics - http://funnyjokesnpics.blogspot.com/