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The real question is whether man is more than a mere arrangement of atoms. If he is, then it would seem to matter little how those atoms came to be arranged as they are, whether by natural processes of evolution or reproduction, or by supernatural intervention. Pope John Paul II and Pope Pius XII have indicated the essential point: As long as we maintain the scriptural and philosophical truth that man has a spiritual nature, there can be nothing to fear in merely biological facts.

It is otherwise for the atheist. It is his faith that is at stake in this controversy, not ours. His faith requires that chance and natural law must be adequate to explain the facts of evolution. If they do not appear to be adequate, he must nevertheless insist that they are. It is for him, then, to dogmatize about strictly scientific matters, not for us. We can be content, and should be content, to be guided only by the evidence.

I hope we all remember this. It is the atheists who are on the defensive. Those of us who are theistic have nothing to concern ourselves with, other than destroying materialism, which is of course, all but done at this point.

The real question is whether man is more than a mere arrangement of atoms. If he is, then it would seem to matter little how those atoms came to be arranged as they are, whether by natural processes of evolution or reproduction, or by supernatural intervention. Pope John Paul II and Pope Pius XII have indicated the essential point: As long as we maintain the scriptural and philosophical truth that man has a spiritual nature, there can be nothing to fear in merely biological facts.

This is a remarkable concession! Oh, but if only he had stopped at this paragraph. If you take it seriously, then you should be the one on the defensive. Why spend your time trying to fight the consensus view of modern biological science? Why fear that accepting the truth of evolution will throw society into a nihilistic abyss, as, say, Phillip Johnson does?

Once you accept this paragraph's argument (as I, an Objectivist, have argued here for some time now), then the real debate is: Can what you call "spirituality" be created by a natural process, or is some kind of "supernatural" designer required? I think there's no reason to believe a supernatural person is required, and apparently you do. But we both agree that humans have a "spiritual" capacity! (I'd say humans have rational minds with the ability for abstract thought. Same thing, IMO.)

Vast areas of practical agreement flow from our shared starting point: The necessity for a morality based on individualism instead of collectivism, the necessity for the non-initiation of force or fraud, yet the acceptibility (or even necessity) for retaliatory force & fraud against violators. So again: Why fear evolution?

I highly recommend a book I'm reading right now and wish I had read earlier. A Case for Faith by Lee Strobel is s-o-o-o excellent. In it Strobel interviews great scholars and cites numerous others on each subject covered in the book. His chapter on evolution is fascinating.

Evolution is biting the dust. More and more scientists and scholars are opting for intelligent design.

I am very impressed with this book. It is being used by the Lord to bring thousands of teenagers to Christ. My son-in-law, who is a sleuth in his own right, is finishing up his doctoral work in criminology. He is reading it and agrees it is fantastic. He is not yet a Christian.

Strobel has also written another great book entitled The Case for Christ. This book covers the historical evidence for the existence of Christ and His ministry. Also a winner.

Today:

I hope we all remember this. It is the atheists who are on the defensive. Those of us who are theistic have nothing to concern ourselves with, other than destroying materialism, which is of course, all but done at this point.

To jlogajan:

First, I am not a Creationist. I am however, quite intrigued by your desire to cast me as one. What are you hoping to accomplish by this repetative behavior?

So, really, what's your story?