Common Ground
The intelligent design debate continues unabated; Judge Jones' decision in Dover ended up being little more than a humorous footnote.
(For "don't miss" humor, see "How many Darwinists does it take to screw in a light bulb?")
In my last blog, a solution to the conflict was promised. That solution is increased spiritual awareness.
Without knowledge of the spirit, one is bound to misunderstand the intelligence factor in intelligent design.
Men and women of all religions, as well as those who belong to no religion but hold spiritual beliefs, accept or celebrate the existence of the supernatural.
On the other hand, those whose faith lies in philosophical naturalism or materialism, those who oppose intelligent design, uniformly deny the existence of the supernatural.
The intelligent design conflict has been cleverly misrepresented as a battle against Christian fundamentalists, when, in fact, it is a battle against all who believe in the existence of the supernatural.
Materialists have successfully engaged in a "divide and conquer" strategy, obscuring the actual depth and breadth of the conflict. As long as they frame the conflict as defending truth against "know nothing" Christians, they escape notice from others who should be concerned.
The first step in resolving the conflict is bringing together people of all religions and spiritual pursuits for an ecumenical conference to discuss the clash of worldviews—the clash between those who acknowledge supernatural causes and those who claim there are only material causes.
Only when we uncover the fundamental assumptions informing the two opposed worldviews do we find a basis for a dialogue that will lead to tolerance of diversity.
In such an ecumenical gathering, common ground among those who accept the existence of the supernatural can be explored. Though views of the supernatural will vary, a common voice can be found, a voice with which to enter dialogue with those who reject, and even attack, the idea of the supernatural.
When persons of faith and spirituality share a common voice, the dialogue will become productive. As long as we mistake this conflict as only concerning Christian fundamentalism, we will miss the true significance of the clash of worldviews.
See Bill Dembski & Friends' Blog Uncommon Dissent.
posted by Author of "Under the Tree" Greg Stone | 10:59 AM
1 Comments:
All of your articles are deeply thought, and I enjoy reading them.
I don't know if I believe that there can ever be incontrovertible evidence of consciousness -- evidence is usually interpreted from a given point of view.
Post a Comment
Links to this post:
Create a Link
<< Home