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Goodbye Jesus

Evolution 101 Podcasts By Dr. Zachary Moore


Zach

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Guest Donjared

Hi Zach,

I look forward to listening to your programs. I am "practically not, buy still sort of a Christian" and was taught that any education in Darwinian evolution was a waste of time. Well I don't see how any education is waste of time (yes, that includes religious education as well). I find the evolution of man a fascinating subject. However I must say that accepting the idea that humanity is a cosmic accident is still a pretty hard pill to swallow. Not because of some arrogance on behalf of my species. But because by all accounts, the odds seem so extremely stacked against the possibility of our existence. It seems at least plausible that our existence was conceived and executed by grand design. Ofcourse there's a giant leap between believing in a Designer and believing in Jesus Christ as your personal Savior and Lord. One is certainly possible without the other. I guess I am at this point in my own personal evolution. Is there a God? I don't know, but it seems likely. Was Jesus Christ the incarnate God whose death was necessary for my salvation. I don't know, but it seems highly unlikely. Anyway good luck and I look forward to listening.

 

BTW Zach

What does your avatar symbolize?

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Welcome Donjared.

 

If you go to Doc Zach's blogsite, you can get the transcripts for the show too. A extremely useful resource.

 

How anything could have come from accident? Well, isn't it just as implausible that an infinite being beyond our comprehension could just exist without reason?

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Guest Donjared

Hi Han Solo (you lucked out getting that name :grin: Can I be Qui Gon Jin?)

 

Thank you for your welcome and the info provided. I have listened to 3 episodes of Evolution 101 since I last posted and found them to be perfect for me. I have a high school with "some" college education and a religious background. His Podcasts are informative without using vocabulary outside my level of education. His topics are interesting to the non-scientist because they are relevant to our own lives. Some scientists may find Zach's podcasts amateurish, but I think they are exactly what they are intended to be. Evolution 101 not an advanced course in Biology. I especially liked the explanation of Punctuated Equilibrium (is it proper to capitilize the title of a theory?) as this is really laughed at by Bible believing Christians. My pastor thinks that Puncuated Equilibrium sounds amazing like creation of a new species from nothing. He believes that this theory only exists because scientists have been unable to prove Darwinian evolution. The fossil evidence recording few if any gradual adaptations. All Biblical literalists would be enriched to hear an explanation of this theory by someone other than their pastors.

 

As for the question posed to me. Is belief in a cosomological accident any less plausible than a spontaneous generated God as the source of our existence? I should say the answer for me is yes it is. The reason is first and most obviously related to my upbringing. When one is taught to believe that nothing is random but all related to God's divine order, then it's hard to believe that most things just happen. Not divine, not malicious , just happen. The other reason is that God, if real, exists outside the natural order of things and therefore could preexist space and time. However a strictly naturalistic approach denies this as a possibility. I suppose a strict Darwinian has to find how a Big Bang and a natural progression from single celled life forms to Han Solo :grin: occurred without any help from a supernatural being. I'm not saying this didn't happen. I'm just saying it makes less sense to me than a God sourced approach does. I know that this idea of mine is considered childish and very convenient. I can picture Dawkins saying" Dear simple soul, how easy it is for you to explain everything with one word, God." But, at this point in my education, I really do believe it makes the most sense.

 

As for the rest of the things God supposedly does i.e. punish unbelievers, reward believers, political favoritism, help in the war against terror, pick my lotto numbers, ad nauseum. My experience leads me to believe it's all nonsense. Too many things have happened to me personally and to the world at large for me to believe that a God involves itself very often in our everyday lives. Who knows for sure. But I would say that the burden of proof lies with the Believer to show us a divine order at a social level. And no "His ways are higher than our ways" is not proof, just an admittance that you don't know, just like me.

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Guest Donjared

Just a quick addendum lest I be misunderstood.

Yes I believe that winning the so-called war on terrorism is important. If there is an all-benevolent deity in charge of world events, I expect it would want terrorism to not exist as well. However I see no proof of this deity's involvement in this fight. I see George Bush, Tony Blair and other like minded folks attacking the problem. One could say (as George almost certainly believes) that they are God's instrument on earth to do just this. However this is a dangerous path because Mohammed Atta was working for his God too. My point is that the burden of proof for these beliefs lie with the Believer. Since there is no impartial and empirical way to prove this fact, then I don't think anyone has the right to say that a God has involved itself in our affairs.

 

Sorry to be off-topic, I just didn't want people thinking that I don't support our fight against terrorism due to my example above.

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Guest Donjared

Ok Han Solo of the California System in a galaxy far, far away. (Just kidding, I live next door in Nevada)

 

I would like to respond to your questions. Where is a more appropriate forum? I am still learning my way around Ex-Christian.net. What a fabulously provocative name for a website. It just begs for trolls to show up and mess everything up. So where to Hans?

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For starters, click on the "View new Posts" on the top right, and you'll have all the topics that are "hot" at the moment.

 

If you click on the "discussions" on the near-top-left, you will see all the different sections that we have, and click on one of them to see all the discussions within them.

 

Good luck.

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  • 4 years later...

I'll listen to all of these thank you!

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  • 4 months later...

I'm getting these podcasts on my iPhone, but noted there are a grand total of 39 and they ceased in 2007. Is this the complete series, and if so, will there be any subsequent series?

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