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I should add that if a physics student asked me for a letter of recommendation, and it was known to me that the student believed the universe to be 6000 years old, I could not in good conscience give that student a good recommendation...unless, of course, the student could convince me of that also. (But in that case, I would urge the student to publish and collect his Nobel Prize.)

For a student to believe that the universe is 6000 years is not simply a matter of personal belief; it requires that he close his mind to extremely well-established facts. This mind-closing is incompatible with a career in science, and I would be compelled to say so.

I'm certain that the professor saw things the same way with respect to evolution.

Physicist, well said. You beat me to it.

One of the techniques that I have seen conservative commentators use against liberals is to "put the shoe on the other foot".

Okay, should a Professor at a Baptist Theological Seminary be required to give a letter of recommendation to a Wiccan?

Should a physician at a Catholic teaching hospital be required to recommend an abortionist?

Life is not fair. It has never been fair, and it isn't up to the government to make it fair.

the student could convince me of that also. (But in that case, I would urge the student to publish and collect his Nobel Prize.)

That is a fairly good example of a closed mind, but you are a scientist.

In your post #6, you said:

I should add that if a physics student asked me for a letter of recommendation, and it was known to me that the student believed the universe to be 6000 years old, I could not in good conscience give that student a good recommendation...unless, of course, the student could convince me of that also.

What would you do with me? I believe the universe is 15.875 billion years old (approx) from our space/time coordinates and at the same time that it is 7 days old from God's inception space/time coordinates plus 5763 years from our space/time coordinates (the Adamic age, based on the Jewish calendar.) My conclusions are based on the inflationary model, relativity and the Word of God.

But if professor’s wish to force students to think only "inside the box" in science or medicine we have bigger problems in our education facilities than you may believe. A student that has a different interpretation of the facts and wishes to persue that line of investigation, should be welcomed in our individualistic society. Communism failed.

If a student can memorize and regurgitate the materials presented by the professor with a high enough degree of accuracy, the student should receive a recommendation on their merits.

But if professors begin to believe they have a right to dictate how the student subsequently uses that knowledge in their practice, or their potential new employer round files the students resume because it lacks a Letter of Recommendation from the professor of the students major, we would be giving our conservative job futures into the hands of a bunch of liberals.

Intelligent design by a Creator is not completely without merit. Evolution is a best guess theory that cannot explain many facts that are observable. i.e. A spider has oil glands in its legs that allow it to walk on the sticky substance coating its web. Either its web couldn't catch a thing (lacking sticky substance) while the spider evoluted oil glands on its legs or the spider got trapped by its web but was infected by the evoluted oil gland virus, spontaneously enabling it to escape.

If professors force students to ignore these problems in order to receive letters of recommendation God help this world. Mastering a professor’s material should be the only criteria for recommending the student.

... and it was known to me that the student believed the universe to be 6000 years old ...

That, as you should know, is known as a "straw man fallacy."

I should add that if a physics student asked me for a letter of recommendation, and it was known to me that the student believed the universe to be 6000 years old, I could not in good conscience give that student a good recommendation...

Sounds like you and Dini are two of a kind - ideologues willing to abuse their power to do Satan's work of making people renounce their religious beliefs.

For a student to believe that the universe is 6000 years is not simply a matter of personal belief; it requires that he close his mind to extremely well-established facts. This mind-closing is incompatible with a career in science, and I would be compelled to say so.

Its too bad that Albert Einstein, who believed in a creator, would not have met the professor's standards. As limitating as you may think it is to believe in a creator, it is even more limitating to believe in every current scientific theory without question. A different point of view is always neccessary for advancement even if you fail to understand why.