Letters for March 9, 2006

The Feb. 16 issue of the Herald carried an article by Marylee Sturgis of Charlottesville. Several points were made which I as a Baptist find unsubstanuated.

Sturgis says that she cannot support the teaching of “intelligent design.” She says that it is a waste of time and money teaching it in biology classes.

I would like at this point to introduce Amy. Now Amy is a one cell being called an amoeba. And I must admit that I am partial to Amy for she has much to teach us.

First, Amy has no legs but she travels from here to there without difficulty. And Amy has no mouth but she find no problems in eating to sustain herself. Nor does Amy have any arms in which she might reach out to hold things. And most importantly, Amy has no stomach in which to digest the food she devours. But she maintains her health.

But here is the wonder of it all. Amy has been around for millions of years, unchanged by intelligent or any other design. Amy is what God made her to be and that hasn’t changed.

Now comes a part of Ms. Sturgis’ letter which I find totally unexceptional. According to her, a scientific theory is a fact. Now why do scientists call those things theories? A theory is just that, it is not a fact.

A scientific fact must be able to be reproduced by other scientists according to certain formula. I will challenge anyone to demonstrate by scientific methods the fact that they were born. I have found nowhere anyone who has been born through the womb more than once. So this leads me to the conviction that there are instances and things which man cannot explain within himself. He must rely upon a higher law. That law he calls God. That’s when scientists label something as a theory.

Finally, Sturgis is mixing apples and oranges. Miracles occur after intelligent design has taken place. I don’t know how lawyers and intelligent design got mixed but they are two different subjects. Both the Bible and modern-day life illustrates miracles happening in many places and at different times. Look around yourself. Miracles don’t have to be huge. Most are just small happenings but have huge results.

Finally, yes, feed the hungry, clothe the poor and treat the sick. In all preach the gospel of Christ. When you go out in public and do the above, you are teaching religion and intelligent design. We do have to rely upon school teachers for this.

My final thought. Were the remaining 57.5 percent of those 1996 biologists in the survey atheists?

Leadership and intelligent design

On page 5 of your Feb. 16 issue, it reads, “Many African-American congregations that are Southern Baptist operate with the leadership of the Holy Spirit.” Maybe I’m missing something, but I thought that all congregations were supposed to operate under the leadership of the Holy Spirit. Earlier it mentions “Baptists with charismatic leanings.” Maybe I’m missing something, but I thought everybody was supposed to use whatever gifts they have (Charismata? I don’t know much Greek).

Now on Ms. Sturgis’ request to not teach intelligent design. I hope she means that it should not be taught in a science class. However the religion/philosophy of Darwinian chance should not be taught in a science class either. If I understand Dennett and other writers correctly, they believe that random chance produced mutations rapidly enough to explain all the diversity of species. If I understand intelligent design correctly, its proponents believe that too many mutations took place too rapidly for the process to be totally random.

This seems probable to me, but I don’t know enough biology or statistics to know for sure; my degrees are in physics. I do know enough organic chemistry to see that DNA is an extremely complex molecule. When I was on the faculty of UCC, Dr. Biology Kenyon (whose husband was Dr. Greek Kenyon) stated: “We teach evolution but we don’t leave God out.” A few years later at a secular college, an irreligious member of the biology faculty made a statement which I expurgate: “There’s got to be something going on out there besides evolution. You breed a fruit fly for a jillion generations, and what do you get? Another fruit fly!”

On Sturgis’ remarks on the sun and the planets not revolving around the earth–this is merely a matter of convenience and mathematical simplicity. If the sun is selected as the origin of a coordinate system, then the orbits of all the planets are extremely close to closed curves, ellipses with the sun at one focus of each ellipse. Furthermore Kepler’s Laws of planetary motion are an extremely accurate description of observed motions.

On her statement that a scientific theory is a fact–this is not quite correct, at least in physics. A theory consists of a set of ideas which make predictions about the universe; these predictions are consistent with what is observed to actually happen. Newton’s Laws of Motion and Theory of Gravitation were thought to be the absolute truth for maybe 200 years because their predictions turned out to be so close to reality when the experiments were performed. Biology is much more complicated than physics. Can biologists modify their theories if required?

Divorce and the ministry

In a recent issue of the Herald, a former pastor, whose name was withheld, wrote expressing his disappointment that he was apparently not receiving consideration for church positions due to his having been divorced. On one hand, I was truly sorry to learn of that former pastor’s circumstances. I would like to encourage the former pastor by saying that God still loves him, just as God loves us all, no matter what, beyond anything that we could imagine.

On the other hand, it has long been apparent to me that God’s behavioral commands are not negotiable. When we “miss the mark” we will be disciplined. That can be painful yet God means it for our good. To the pastor, I can only suggest that he may be under God’s discipline and that, if so, it may a long time before he is able to reenter the ministry if he ever can return to it.

On the bright side, at least, unlike Jonah, he is not in the belly of a big fish although that might not be a great consolation right now. Yet, even now, God may be preparing him for some other form of service as well as making provision for the his healing and guidance.

I have an uncle who is a minister in another denomination, and he, too, went through a divorce. Sadly, he ended up being discharged from his church. However, he got a job teaching children of migrant workers, got a Masters degree in education while working and later rose to an administrative position in the school system where he was employed.

He married for the second time and has remained married for many years now. When he retired, he and his second wife moved to her hometown where they anticipated a quiet retirement. As it happened, a local church needed an interim minister and called upon my uncle. The “interim ministry” became permanent and my uncle spent around 15 years as the senior minister (what we could call pastor) of that church.

He finally retired again, teaches a Sunday school class and preaches when the new senior minister has to be out of town or on vacation or is ill. So my uncle’s experience, and others I could share, indicates to me that God is “a God of second chances.” We might spend some time “in the spiritual desert” or “sidelined,” but God may well give us another chance, at some point if we stop following our own desires and do what God expects of us. I pray that someday the former pastor will get another chance and that God will, even now, start preparing him for it.

Wolfgang and Willie

I celebrated Mozart’s 250th birthday last month by going to see the legendary Taters at the world-famous Ashland Coffee and Tea (known not only for its java but even more so for its secure niché along the coast-to-coast concert trail heavily traveled by blues, country, jazz, rockabilly, folk and other sometimes difficult-to-define artists of the “Americana” genre). Wolfgang would have been proud!

His native Salzburg’s celebration, described by AP reporter George John, as “hot rock and cool jazz mixed with the [Mozartian] classics,” was indeed a passionate stew of musical diversity that would have pleased the equally passionate “W.A.”

Similarly, the “center of the universe” (aka Ashland) was the unpretentious and laid-back (isn’t that always refreshing?) locale for AC & T’s hosting of the Taters and their diverse but nonetheless connected menu of Bob Dylan, Graham Nash, Roy Orbison, Elvis, Willie Nelson, et al. Distinct…different…unique…and yet, intertwined. The miracle of music! Ol’ Wolf would’ve been pleased!

What’s the point? Well, neither Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart nor the Taters are necessarily the issue. Rather, I’d like to celebrate with you the reality that our God cannot be “boxed in” any more than international birthday celebrations and observances can be narrowly framed, defined or confined. Just as the Scripture declares “there is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus” (Gal. 3:28), so too must his kingdom here (as it does beyond) reflect the diversity of life (including music).

As Salzburg danced to both Mozartian and not-so-Mozartian music in celebration of its revered son, so too must the Church of Jesus Christ observe, welcome and utilize that which echoes musically today in the souls of those who are without Christ. As the apostle Paul said, “I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. … I do all this for the sake of the Gospel (I Cor. 9:22-23).

If we follow this biblical strategy, then our Lord, more than anyone else, will be so very proud and pleased with us.