Here we are in 2007 and we’re all slipping backwards in time. We’re going back to the hypothesis of Lamark scientifically, and to the paganism that existed before Christianity—calling it “progress” or “advancement.” The fact of the matter is, evolution and G-d can and do co-exist.
“Science without religion is lame, religion without science is blind.” --Albert Einstein, "Science, Philosophy and Religion: a Symposium", 1941. The fact of the matter is, the more Einstein studied the universe, the more he peered into the deepest corners of physics, the more he was convinced there was a G-d.
By denying G-d, you are only denying your own existence. If one’s intelligence is correspondent with one’s intellectual acumens (insight) and education then such a statement is a function of ordinary thinking, isn’t it? =P
Misinterpretation
The nexus of science and theology is actually biblical and can be found in the actual words of the original Hebrew in the bible. The very first word of the Bible, “בְּרֵאשִׁית” was mistranslated into English as "In the beginning" is a testament to one's position of G-d having created other existence prior to the existence related in Genesis. G-d said "בְּרֵאשִׁית" or "In a beginning" which is an indefinite article (construct form grammatically) and not the definite article "In the beginning."
The most correct way to translate the beginning of Genesis 1:1 would be, “In a beginning of G-d creating Heaven and Earth”. Note: The word ‘created’ has an appropriate exegesus (biblical interpretation) of the language. The first elements of creation is “In a beginning” or ‘time’. G-d first creates time. Then G-d “create ex nigilos” (Latin) or “creates something out of nothing.”
Evolution
G-d created humankind with evolution, the ability to adapt to circumstances and situations and to live with a sense of dynamics. G-d ordained us, mandated us to subdue the universe. That is a declaration of learning science, or becoming knowledgeable. G-d then creates transcendental space (Heaven), and physical space (Earth) connected through a time-space continuum.
Perhaps I will be able to explain a time-space continuum best using science fiction. If we were able to create a satellite that could travel faster than the speed of light, the camera or telescope of the satellite would see Earth’s history, or light reflected off the earth perhaps even millions of years ago, still traveling somewhere in space.
Denying evolution because of one’s religious beliefs threatens the intellectual ability to interpret and understand that there’s a certain level of culpability humankind has for its own actions. There is a definite sense among evolution deniers of a pre-determined, pre-disposed life circumstance under which we relieve ourselves of liability and culpability of our own actions. In other words, the very same retrograde tendencies (against free will) that we saw during the Middle Ages is now occurring in circles among evolution deniers.
The Transcendent Bible / Torah
In the original Hebrew Bible, the five books of Moses, is a volume that transcends time, transcends space, transcends culture. It is a book that establishes the moral and ethical imperatives that guide our lives so that we can live sound, decent, ethical, correct lives. That is what the Bible is, and it can be taken at many different levels: literally, figuratively, as a historical document, as a legal document, as a moral limit in which we strive to ascertain, ect.
I believe sincerely that every word of the Bible / Torah is the word of G-d. Now, what those words mean (exegesus; the interpretations, understanding) is up for interpretation. The understanding of the concepts, for example, “An eye for an eye” was actually mistranslated from “An eye instead of an eye,” meaning that revenge does not mean compensation. [1]
According to the Bible, if someone knocks out your tooth, are you required to knock their tooth out? Of course not! In other words, the written law is supplemented by the oral tradition, or 63 tractates of the Talmud. That oral tradition defines the language and the sensibilities of the written Bible. In other words, it interprets it for the average reader. It is an interpretive volume that teaches us not to take revenge instead of compensation.
There are understandings of equity and jurisprudence and there are provisions for compensation. There are issues that are extraordinarily important to realize. There are a number of punishments that are meted out for murder, for example, at various levels. The only question is how do you define which punishment is correct for each circumstance.
G-d’s Ability to Adapt
If you still believe evolution is false, I would direct you to understand several phenomenons. The creationism of the biblical account is absolutely in its entirety correct. The fact of the matter is that the principle of adaptation is interpreted differently.
The Bible indicates that G-d is proactive and responsive. I’m going to identify a narrative that takes place in the time of Moses. The children of Israel are with Moses in the desert and G-d has given them the laws of inheritance. The laws of inheritance are directed towards the sons of the fathers. One of the families has only daughters. The daughters come to Moses, and complain that they have been excluded by virtue of their gender.
Moses said, and I’m paraphrasing, ‘That’s a really great point. Let me check it out.’ He contacts G-d, and he tells G-d of the problem. G-d says that they have a valid position and gives them the right to inherit within certain parameters. This is a G-d that is proactive, a G-d that is involved, concerned, and a G-d that adjusts.
It is our belief paradigm that G-d is omnipotent (all powerful), omniscient (knows everything), and that G-d is perfect. Now, if G-d is perfect, how can G-d make a mistake? The answer is that G-d does not make mistakes. The mistake is in our misunderstanding and misinterpretation of that which G-d does.
A cumulative knowledge of the ancients, of the language, of the culture, the philosophy, the theosophy, and the theology, far be it from any of us to assume that we have even the slightest inkling of what it is that G-d is doing.
Carbon Dating
Carbon dating is carbon dating. The essence of examining the physical attributes of organic compound is not against G-d. Every organic compound by definition has carbon. If it has carbon, it is an organic compound. We can with a reasonable degree of accuracy determine the dating and origin by virtue of the analysis of degrading carbon atoms in comparison to non-degrading carbon atoms.
The fact of the matter is that G-d speaks in language that can be understood by humankind. When G-d says “evening” or “morning” or “# day” of, he is speaking in cardinal numbers, indicating order. The unit of time, or a “day” could be a billion years. They are not fixed days, but rather fixed epochs of history.
Man’s Inhumanity to Man
The core principle of Judeo-Christian teachings is the sacredness of human life. He who saves a single life, it is as though he has saved the entire world. This teaching is unfortunately being lost by all the hate being slung as rhetoric coming out against Christians and Jews today. These beautiful transcendental humanistic teachings are essential to our survival of human beings.
This current theme of man’s inhumanity to man is what’s playing out on television, on the internet, in the games, and in the movies day and night. This social barbarism is descending mankind into madness allover again. What we thought we left behind in the last millennium is coming back to haunt us, perhaps even worse than the last century.
In the last century, over 100,000,000 people were slaughtered by atheists, pagans, and Marxists such as Hitler (Pagan), Stalin (Marxist, Atheist), Pol Pot (Marxist, Atheist), and Mao Zedong (Marxist, Atheist). Over 100 million killed because of the false prophets of communism and paganism, and I am afraid that we are going backwards towards these teachings.
One has to be optimistic to survive-- optimism tempered with the realism of our very uncivilized civilization. We have lost our sense of stability, but we have not yet fallen into the abyss of which I spoke. However, we are losing ground very quickly.
It is a ‘shout-out,’ to use the vernacular of the day, and as course and abrupt reminder that we have got to reassess and revaluate our moral compass and get back online here. We’ve got to learn that our future as a human race, our future as a civilization is very much a function of our ability to reintegrate a sense of decency, kindness and culture that is rooted in understanding the divinity that is manifested in every human being.
Q: If you believe in G-d, who created him. Who created G-ds creator?
A: That answer is simple. G-d has always existed as energy, and as energy was able to take form, G-d took form. Scientifically, energy cannot be created or destroyed. If energy cannot be created, then how did life become the way it is? There is only one answer, G-d.
Q: (relating to G-d’s adaptation) It is our belief paradigm that G-d is omnipotent (all powerful), omniscient (knows everything), and that G-d is perfect. Now, if G-d is perfect, how can G-d make a mistake?
A: The answer is that G-d does not make mistakes. The mistake is in our misunderstanding and misinterpretation of that which G-d does.
Q: If G-d is omnipotent, why didn’t G-d simply push a button and create everything in it’s final state all at once? Why is there an absolute order to the creation process?
A: Because G-d wanted to teach us, and make sure we understood that the creation of one single human being took an enormity of preparation. Everything that exists in this world is a function of the divine preparation. Nothing happens in an instant. In other words, this laborious process of creating life is to teach us the divinity of every human life, the sacred nature of every human life.
Q: What does G-d want of us?
A: G-d wants us to care about eachother.
[1] http://www.jewishworldreview.com/cols/goldberg
P.S: I don’t expect many people to care or understand what this topic is about. I made this post after seeing the posts arguing whether G-d and Science both exist, and instead of debate, they simply want to regurgitate half-truths to express their own feelings and religious or non-religious beliefs.
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