Another turn in the trial of the century
By BRUCE BRADSHAW
Pastor, Zion Mennonite Church, Elbing
In December 2005, U.S. District Judge John E. Jones, of Harrisburg, Pa., ruled against a mandate concerning Intelligent Design. The mandate would have required science teachers to read statements suggesting the gaps in the prevailing theories of evolution indicate the presence of an intelligent designer (ID). Judge Jones cited the notion of ID as "a religious view, a mere relabeling of creationism, and not a scientific theory."
The religious community interpreted the decision as a defeat in another chapter in the trial of the century, which was the Scopes Trial, Dayton, Tenn., 1925. John T. Scopes was a young science teacher who was found guilty of teaching theories of evolution in public schools. His lawyer, Clarence Darrow, sought a guilty verdict because he wanted the case to continue, regardless of the decision. Scopes paid a fine of $100 for a guilty verdict, but Darrow's appeal has lasted 80 years.
The issue for people of faith is whether decisions against teaching ID, in any form, actually benefit us? Let me suggest that they do. Scientists should not render decisions on religious beliefs. If theories of evolution have gaps, then scientists should work toward closing the gaps, revising the theories, and discarding them. The gaps in the theories could very well suggest the intervention of an intelligent designer, but science is not capable of verifying that intervention, whether it is through an ID, God, or any other source of change that cannot be verified.
If the religious community lets scientists acknowledge the possible validity of the first creation story in Genesis — the belief that God is Creator, will we look to the scientific community to acknowledge the validity of the other three biblical creation stories? I don't think scientists are capable of handling that much responsibility — and I do not want them to have so much power.
While scientists might scorn religious people who believe the earth was created in six days, some of them seem to believe the sun orbits the earth, an idea that religious folks abandoned 700 years ago. Just last night, the meteorologists on the weather channel said the sun rose and the sun set. Evidently, they had never heard of Copernicus who pioneered the belief the sun does not move through the solar systems.
Let's invite scientists to study Copernicus before they participate in decisions on the beliefs, traditions, and values that we received through divine revelation.
