"creation science" outside of America?

[Praxiteles]

Originally posted by Pete Harcoff
Oh, I knew what I meant (looked it up beforehand), just couldn't figure the reference. I knew it had to be some kind of in-joke

Well, it was.  Sort of. 

Prax's Jokes: When only the mediocre will do!

 

[Didaskomenos]

I don't want you Aussies to think that YEC's are a serious threat to anything here in the U.S. Usually it's just in certain spots of the U.S. that a constituency of people lobby their local government for the ability to teach YEC in school. The government does not look kindly on it for funding purposes within the public schools, and since Christian activists don't have much credibility, their impassioned pleas for teaching YEC fall on deaf ears.

The biggest problem is in the churches and Christian schools, where by all means they have the right to teach YEC if they wish. But I believe an increasing number of their kids grow up and, like me, question many aspects of Biblical literalism/inerrantism. If they go to a public university, they will only be presented with the facts. The otherwise conservative Christian university where I received my BA had many faculty members (in both the theology AND science departments) that were not YEC; in fact, I only remember one professor who professed a belief that sounded sorta YEC, and he didn't use his platform to indoctrinate.

 

[lithium.]

Originally posted by Didaskomenos
I don't want you Aussies to think that YEC's are a serious threat to anything here in the U.S. Usually it's just in certain spots of the U.S. that a constituency of people lobby their local government for the ability to teach YEC in school. The government does not look kindly on it for funding purposes within the public schools, and since Christian activists don't have much credibility, their impassioned pleas for teaching YEC fall on deaf ears.

The biggest problem is in the churches and Christian schools, where by all means they have the right to teach YEC if they wish. But I believe an increasing number of their kids grow up and, like me, question many aspects of Biblical literalism/inerrantism. If they go to a public university, they will only be presented with the facts. The otherwise conservative Christian university where I received my BA had many faculty members (in both the theology AND science departments) that were not YEC; in fact, I only remember one professor who professed a belief that sounded sorta YEC, and he didn't use his platform to indoctrinate.

I agree with you that churches and Christian schools. I think every kid should know everything that is going on to day which mean what people believe and study. But as kids get older and smarter they come to the conclusion that the evidence of evolution, and the evidence that the world old is more reliable.

But I do think that kids should learn both sides and decide for themself.

 

[MSBS]

Originally posted by DocBrown
 

Perhaps your correct. It may have been prior to 69 when I heard this. I remember it so well as I wanted us to be able to land on the moon so badly, I didn't want any problems with dust. However at the time they were very concerned about it and even questioned the attempted landing, which disappointed me greatly.

So I do admit it may have been before the probes landed. I was following this closely as I could and never could understand why we didn't continue on at the pace we were going. I feel if we had we might well be traveling outside of our solar system by now. Anyone know why we slowed down?

I guess I'm really one for hijacking a thread. Mostly though I just love to ramble. Again I say I'm sorry. 

 

Considering how badly the press does with science reporting these days, I wouldn't doubt that reporters could have still be bringing it up through Apollo 11-- your memory is probably fine, it was probably just being talked about as filler and the science editor (probably a journalism major that had taken freshman physics or something) didn't know or care that in scientific circles this hadn't been thought about since the fifties.

 

[bonobo]

Here in Germany there are practically no creationists. The dominant churches (catholic and protestant), whose influence on the state and the educational system is still immense, have agreed that evolution is god's method of work. The few fundie groups and individuals that insist on creationism are normally only regarded as nuts.

All private schools, also christian ones, must be acknowledged by the state and must abide to the curriculum provided by the state - they can only add topics of their own, but are not allowed to leave things out.

Anyone wanting to teach creationism in schools would not be taken seriously in Germany.

Before I found sites like Christian Forums on the internet, I practically knew creationists only from stories about the USA, and those stories were never positive, but always used creationism to show how uneducated many Americans are, often in connection with the high rate of illiteracy and the alleged fact that lots of Americans couldn't even find their own continent, let alone their country, on a world map.

Note: This is just a description of the majority's view in Germany, it does not represent my own opinion nor is it meant to bash Christianity or any such thing.

 

[lithium.]

Hey bonobo welcome to the forum. I don't know for sure but alot of people that believe in creation is the uneducated people. People that have not learned much about evolution or even heard of it. But I might be wrong. Its just (MO).

 

[RoachTron]

I'm a Christian, a weird one my church family would say. Going back to Adam with a NAVEL. It's weird how Adam was created as a man and then Eve was created as a grown woman. No wonder there kids went all crazy, they were never kids themselves and didn't know how to raise their own. Unlike us Americans that know how to raise our children (cough-cough-sarcasm-cough). Isn't it stange how time changes but the situation stays the same like the discussion we're having now, has probably happened on this forum a hundred times already, yet it's happening again. K, I'm off on a tangent, I will stop talking now. Bye, Jesus Bless

 

[MSBS]

Originally posted by seesaw
Hey bonobo welcome to the forum. I don't know for sure but alot of people that believe in creation is the uneducated people. People that have not learned much about evolution or even heard of it. But I might be wrong. Its just (MO).

 

Seesaw, that is not always true.  I know quite a few educated people that are creationists, just very few that are YECs.  Belief in YEC can't make it through a good science education, so the chrisitians that I know that are scientists are either OECs or theistic evolutionists.  The only YEC that I know that has gone to college is an engineer, and has never taken and advanced biology class.

 

[Cantuar]

I think creationism isn't a big deal in Britain, but the Prime Minister is very keen to introduce more faith-based schools (and not just CofE schools, which are often like regular schools, but schools where particular faiths are taught) and faith-based social services (just like in the USA). There was a fair bit of publicity when a school that gets public funding was found to be teaching creationism in science classes back in the spring, and the Prime Minister declined to condemn the practice when asked about it in Parliament.

The trouble is that creationism has a very low profile and most people are unaware of its existence, never mind the attempts by creationists to get it into the schools. I'm afraid people will probably wake up to it when it's already got quite a hold at the grass-roots level. Then again, maybe people are more sensible and it'll never happen.

 

[BioPooka]

Here in Oz most state schools have barely any religous teaching anymore.

RE at our school was cut due to lack of interest. People either skipped classes, or simply didn't bother listenting. Eventually got changed to a once a week bible study thing at lunch for anyone interested.

 

Anyway, that means creationism never came up, except maybe in history or sociology type classes, where it was taught as a belief system of some.

Only time I distinctly remember the creation/evolution debate coming up was when we did the Evo unit in Biology and teacher said at the beggining that not everyone believes it, but as its going to be assessed and you chose to do biology you at least have to learn it sufficiently to pass the semester. She also said we can ahve a debate after the unit finished if there was time, but we never got around to it. Not that we had any creationists.