I listened - it told me to build a 3,000 sq ft house...
Mother earth worship is a cornerstone of modern paganism.
Faith can coexist with evolution but there are some who have a problem with some believing that God created life.
If God did not create, does God exist? Did God evolve too? Did God (or gods) spring forth like black holes from the Big Bang, is God just another byproduct?
The answer does not need to be taught in public schools but there are some in the culture war who ridicule those who have a faith in a higher power.
You need to read what he actually said before launching into some indignant, anti-Catholic huff. The Pope said that if evolution exists it is a creation of God. Makes sense to me. He further said that if you contaminate and pollute your environment don’t expect God to clean up after you..... advice I received from my Mom and kindergarten teacher.
The Catholic Church has long accepted evolution. I didn’t even know there was a creationism/evolution debate until several years ago. (And, no, I don’t want to be involved in it.) :-)
As for the “Voice of the Earth”, well, I don’t know. Maybe he was just trying to be poetic...
The fact that God created creatures that can adapt and evolve in this world are not mutually exclusive.
This issue comes when you say you cannot have one without the other.
He has the same concept of genesis vs. evolution that John Paul II had. He doesn’t want to give people who understand science a reason to reject faith. Smart guy.
I wonder how he thinks God performed all those other miracles in the Bible. For example, is Jesus still yet to be raised from the dead after a long evolutionary process? How did God create life from death in that instance?
BWA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA-HA...
Just when I thought I'd heard it all.
Yes, but atheism cannot exist with either intelligent design or the Bible.
Augustine supposedly postulated that God put in place processes that led to the existence of all the animals, not the animals themselves. Not out of the bounds of Christian thinking, imo. That said, natural selection, Darwinism, as the driver of evolution itself is weakly supported. It’s just an assertion when you come to the big changes in creatures, not at all proven that dogs become horses, or rodents elephants, or however they claim it happens. The “missing links” are still missing and the structures in bodies seem too complex to be randomly generated, they require tens of inter-related structures to operate at all and all would have to develop at once to have a positive impact on survival. Scientists are missing too many pieces of the puzzle to worry much about it theologically, imo.
There is no way to reconcile the book of Genesis with evolution:
Bible: God is the creator of all things. (Genesis 1)
Evolution: Natural chance processes can account for the existence of all things.
Bible: World created as is in six literal days. (Genesis 1)
Evolution: World evolved over billions of years.
Bible: Creation is completed. (Genesis 2:3)
Evolution: Creative processes continuing.
Bible: Oceans before land. (Genesis 1:2)
Evolution: Land before oceans.
Bible: First life on land. (Genesis 1:11)
Evolution: Life began in the oceans.
Bible: First life was land plants. (Genesis 1:11)
Evolution: Marine organisms evolved first.
Bible: Earth before sun and stars. (Genesis 1:14-19)
Evolution: Sun and stars before earth.
Bible: Fruit trees before fish. (Genesis 1:11,20,21)
Evolution: Fish before fruit trees.
Bible: All stars made on fourth day. (Genesis 1:16)
Evolution: Stars evolved at various times.
Bible: Birds and fish created on the fifth day. (Genesis 1:20-21)
Evolution: Fish evolved hundreds of millions of years before birds.
Bible: Birds before insects. (Genesis 1:20-31, Leviticus 11)
Evolution: Insects before birds.
Bible: Whales before reptiles. (Genesis 1:20-31)
Evolution: Reptiles before whales.
Bible: Birds before reptiles. (Genesis 1:20-31)
Evolution: Reptiles before birds.
Bible: Light before the sun. (Genesis 1:3-9)
Evolution: Sun before any light.
Bible: Plants before the sun. (Genesis 1:11-19)
Evolution: Sun before any plants.
Bible: Abundance and variety of marine life all at once. (Genesis 1:20)
Evolution: Marine life gradually developed from a primitive organic soup.
Bible: Man’s body from the dust of the earth. (Genesis 2:7)
Evolution: Man and monkey have a common ancestor.
Bible: Man exercised dominion over all organisms. (Genesis 1:28)
Evolution: Many organisms extinct before man evolved.
Bible: Man originally a vegetarian. (Genesis 1:29)
Evolution: Man originally a meat-eater.
Bible: Fixed and distinct kinds of life (Genesis 1:11,12,21,24,25)
Evolution: All life is in a continual state of change.
Bible: Death caused by Eve and Adam eating the forbidden fruit. (Genesis 2:17)
Evolution: Death existed long before the evolution of man.
It seems as though the criticism stems from Benedict’s making a non-literal interpretation of the Bible. So what? I think that very few Christians (of any denomination) do. I suppose that he, as the leader of one of the world’s largest religions, will undergo more intense scrutiny concerning his creed than the average follower will, but for that reason, should he not adopt a more tenable stance than literal interpretation?
As for the “voice of the earth” comments, I imagine that he was talking figuratively (like saying, “the market decides”). Is anyone really suggesting that the is now a closet supporter of Gaia?
Really - what is the voice of the earth? No where in God’s Word does it say listen to any other voice but HIS - and His sheep do hear His voice. In fact, He warns against listening to another voice. “In the last days, even the most elect will be deceived. I’ll follow my Creator and His Word and never what man ‘thinks’.
"This obedience to the voice of the Earth is more important for our future happiness ... than the desires of the moment. Our Earth is talking to us and we must listen to it and decipher its message if we want to survive,” he said."
Excuse me Mr. Pope but I said before when you said the "Catholic chuch is the only true church", that you were nuts. Now you are saying this about the " Voice of the earth". ? Good grief!
All I can say is I am more blessed every day to be a Christian and not a Catholic, and this is just more proof of why. Just a suggestion, but maybe his people, the followers of his religion should pray for him to come to his senses.
Question Evolution will never explain: Which came first- the chicken or the egg?
He had me until there. I, too, think that evolution is very real and also consistent with a world created according to The Plan. But micro-evolution, in which existing creatures undergo Darwinian pressures and the fittest survive and pass on their genes and characteristics. How one justifies macro-evolution, wherein new body parts like wings or eyes spontaneously spring into existence - fully functional, with the appropriate neural wiring - I don't know and cannot accept.
But the Earth does not have a voice (it makes sounds, but without any conscious direction, so the sounds ain't a voice). What's he smoking?
As for Christians, they should take what the Bible states on the issue over what any human creature--even a bishop of Rome--has to say on it.
It's a big thing in Europe, and Mr. Ratzinger doesn't seem as inclined for world travel as his predecessor, so he could be more influenced by European views.