Evolution Creationism And Other Modern Myths

Using the tension between evolutionists and creationists in Kansas in the late 1990s as a focal point, Deloria takes Western science and religion to task, providing a critical assessment of the flaws and anomalies in each side's arguments.

Polls show that 45% of the American public believes that humans were created about 10,000 years ago and that evolution is non existent. Another 25% believes that changes in the natural world are directed by a supernatural being with a particular goal in mind. This thinking clashes frontally with scientific findings obtained in the past 150 years. A large portion of the general public espouses the views of creationists and their descendants, and ignores or is unaware of scientific advances. Critical thinking about the natural world within a scientific framework is lacking in the USA and many parts of the world. This manuscript provides a multidisciplinary explanation and defense for the science of evolution (not just Darwinism) as it is being challenged by arguments for "intelligent design" and other creation myths. It draws in the life, physical, and social sciences, and recent studies of human evolution that rely much on the idea of change over time, which is evolution writ large. It puts the evolution/ID issue into international perspective by including opinions held in world religions other than Christianity. It is clearly written and also can easily be used as a guide for those with some science background. The authors make a convincing case that other books do not achieve this as much as they do in this work. The book is written for a whole spectrum of educated people including teachers and teachers in training who are interested in the broad issues of the origins of the universe, life, and humans, and who may not quite grasp the potential magnitude of the negative influence on all of science education of people embracing creationist and ID thinking. This includes high school teachers and people on boards of education and in municipal governments--anyone involved in education. It could be used also in college courses such as "contemporary social issues" and "Science and Society" -- sometimes team taught by sociologists and scientists. The authors show that when they are teleological, dogmatic, or politically inspired, religious and creation myths threaten scientific efforts. The book does not require any extensive knowledge of science. The principle of change over time pervades all of science, from cosmology, to the search for the origin for life, to human physical and cultural evolution. The book educates readers on scientific matters that overwhelmingly support the idea of evolution, not only in the living world, but also in physical and social science. It explains too how evolution -- physical and biological -- is a random, unguided process whose roots can be already found in quantum physics.

The seminal work on Native religious views, asking questions about our species and our ultimate fate.

Indigenous ways of understanding and interacting with the natural world are characterized as Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK), which derives from emphasizing relationships and connections among species. This book examines TEK and its strengths in relation to Western ecological knowledge and evolutionary philosophy. Pierotti takes a look at the scientific basis of this approach, focusing on different concepts of communities and connections among living entities, the importance of understanding the meaning of relatedness in both spiritual and biological creation, and a careful comparison with evolutionary ecology. The text examines the themes and principles informing this knowledge, and offers a look at the complexities of conducting research from an indigenous perspective.

Paying tribute to the late Native American scholar Vine Deloria Jr., "Destroying Dogma" follows the ripples of thought set in motion by Deloria's visionary words. This collection of essays by prominent writers and intellectuals demonstrates the breadth and influence of Deloria's life work. While covering a diverse array of topics, such as religious freedom, evolution, and the direction of leadership in Native communities, the essays all share Deloria's enduring notion that dogma is the enemy of critical thinking. Steve Pavlik teaches science at Tucson Preparatory School and is an adjunt faculty member in geopgraphy for Pima Community College. He has published extensively in the field of American Indian studies and is the editor of "A Good Cherokee," "A Good Anthropologist: Papers in Honor of Robert K. Thomas."

"Having studied the tail end of the Bible for decades, Strickler now probes the front end to unearth a fresh contribution to a theology of God's covenantal relationship to all creation. Recognizing that the younger Yahwist tradition reflects nationalistic interests, the book revolves around the paradigmatic influence of the elder Elohim tradition, which aligns better with the New Testament fulfillment of God's creative-redemptive purposes first mapped out in the early Genesis narratives." --Ted Lewis, executive director, The International Jacques Ellul Society "The aspiration to read the Bible beyond the confines of Christendom's categories has been shared by many, rarely practiced consistently, and often resulted in grievous disappointment. . . . Readers will be encouraged by Strickler's persistent effort to follow the story of Elohim from the first things of the Torah onward, reminding us that the elusive figure who covenanted with Noah is also the one who covenanted anew with the followers of Jesus and promises to send renewing waters flowing--at the end--through the new Jerusalem." --Michael Cartwright, University of Indianapolis "In looking at what might be the bookends of the Christian Scriptures, Strickler follows an Anabaptist ethos of trying to wrest the Scriptures from the holds of Christendom, with its priorities on power and self-protection. By contrast, Elohim is a God who creates, recreates, cocreates, and partners. . . . How the opening chapter of a story is understood determines how the rest of the story is read, and for those who claim the name 'Christian,' how the story of the Bible is understood determines how life is lived." --Tato Sumantri, digital content administration, Wipf and Stock Publishers

Gives a description of evolutionary theory and analyzes the arguments of the creationists.