she who keeps this diary


09 November 2005 - 2:55 PM

Whole Cloth

I do not, like the Fundamentalists, believe that creation stopped six thousand years ago after a week of hard work. Creation is going on all the time.

George Bernard Shaw, in a speech given April 11, 1933, at the Metropolitan Opera House, New York

Three cheers for the Dover, Pennsylvania electorate, for giving their school board the old heave ho in yesterday's voting. I don't care what the 'Intelligent Design' proponents say, teaching anything in the schools which requires belief in a god or gods for it to work is teaching religion, and it doesn't belong in public schools. Don't like that? Then choose a private religious school, or home school. In this country, there is a little thing called the Constitution which establishes little things like the separation of church and state.

Now, if only someone would remind the people in Kansas of that.

One wonders about the smallness of the lives and faith of the proponents of 'Creationism' or 'Intelligent Design.' Is their god so delicate and fragile that he will wilt at the least sign of curiosity? Do they truly believe that he gave them intellect and reason with the intent that they should not use them? Didn't Jesus himself tell a story about what happened to a servant who buried his master's money in the ground rather than make use of it?

Actually, I am in favour of teaching creation in schools -- as part of a class on comparative religion or mythology. So, sure, teach the creation story in Genesis, but teach the creation stories of Native American and African peoples, while you're at it, and Ymir from the Norse myths and Shiva churning the sea of milk.

But Shiva and Ymir and Genesis are not science. Leave them out of biology classes.

verso - recto

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