EVOLUTION Fact or Fiction Part 2 Presented By

“EVOLUTION: Fact or Fiction? ” Part 2 Presented By: Randy Ruggles

“Evolution is unproved and unprovable. We believe it only because the alternative is special creation, and that is unthinkable. ” - Sir Arthur Keith, evolutionary anthropologist and anatomist

“Scientists who go about teaching that evolution is a fact of life are great con men, and the story they are telling may be the greatest hoax ever. In explaining evolution we do not have one iota of fact. . . ” - Theodore N. Tahmisian, nuclear physicist, Atomic Energy Commission

“Evolution is promoted by its practitioners as more than mere science. Evolution is promulgated as an ideology, a secular religion - a full-fledged alternative to Christianity, with meaning and morality. I am an ardent evolutionist and an ex-Christian, but I must admit in this one complaint. . . the literalists [i. e. creationists] are absolutely right. Evolution is a religion. This was true of evolution in the beginning, and it is true of evolution still today. ” - Michael Ruse, National Post, May 13, 2000, B 3.

“ 10 Arguments Against EVOLUTION Christians Should NOT Use”

Argument #1: “GOD put dinosaur fossils in the ground to TEST our faith. ” (or “SATAN put dinosaur fossils in the ground to DESTROY our faith. ”)

Argument #1 (cont. ): 1. God is not a deceiver 2. Fossils are real and can be easily explained by a global flood “First of all, you must understand that in the last days scoffers will come, scoffing and following their own evil desires. . . they deliberately forget that long ago by God's word the heavens existed and the earth was formed out of water and by water. By these waters also the world of that time was deluged and destroyed. ” 2 Peter 3: 3, 5 -6

Argument #2: “Evolution is just a THEORY!”

“In scientific terminology, a theory is a hypothesis that has been supported by so many cases that few scientists seriously doubt its validity. . . Thus, a scientific theory is similar to what we would call a “law” or a “fact” in common English usage. . . People who refer to evolution as “just a theory” profoundly misunderstand what scientists mean by that term. ” - “Life on Earth” by Gerald and Teresa Audesirk

Instead try: “Evolution is not a proven fact, so it should not be promoted dogmatically. ”

Argument #3: “If man EVOLVED from apes, why are there still APES? ”

Evolutionists claim that humans and modern apes are descended from a common ancestor whose population split to become two (and more) different lineages. The question is a bit like asking, “If Canadians and Americans are descended from Europeans, why are there still Europeans? ” Or if you and your cousin are descended from your Grandmother, why is your Grandmother still around?

Argument #4: “The world is TOO COMPLEX to have arisen by CHANCE. ”

What do people most often get wrong when they try to understand evolution? Richard Dawkins: “It's the idea that it is a theory of random chance. That single misunderstanding alone accounts for just about everything you will read on so-called arguments against evolution, things like, ‘I can't believe that something as complicated as an eye could come about by chance. ’ “Well of course it couldn't come about by chance! How could it be possible to be so stupid as to think that anybody could ever suggest that it comes about by chance? Natural selection is the very opposite of chance – that's the whole point!”

Intelligent Design: The theory of intelligent design holds that certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process such as natural selection.

Did Mount Rushmore come about by natural, undirected forces such as million of years of wind and rain erosion?

Designed Not Designed

Argument #5: “There are no TRANSITIONAL FORMS in the fossil record. ”

Since there are candidates, (even though they are highly dubious at best), it’s better to avoid possible comebacks by instead saying: “While Darwin predicted that the fossil record would show numerous transitional fossils, even 150 years later, all we have are a handful of disputable examples. ” Transitional forms should be the RULE - not the EXCEPTION!

Argument #6: “There are no BENEFICIAL MUTATIONS. ”

This is not true, since some mutations do confer an advantage in some situations. Instead, we should say: “We have yet to find a mutation that INCREASES GENETIC INFORMATION, even in those rare instances where the mutation confers an advantage. ” Eg. antibiotic resistance to drugs

Argument #7: “Darwin RECANTED on his deathbed. ”

Lady Hope story – likely not true Francis Darwin (son) – “He could not have become openly and enthusiastically Christian without the knowledge of his family, and no such change occurred. ” “Lady Hope’s account of my father’s views on religion is quite untrue. I have publicly accused her of falsehood, but I have not seen any reply. ” Henrietta Darwin (daughter) - “I was present at his deathbed. Lady Hope was not present during his last illness, or any illness. He never recanted any of his scientific views, either then or earlier. ” Ultimately. . . SO WHAT? !!

Argument #8: “Darwin’s quote about the absurdity of EYE EVOLUTION proves even he knew evolution was impossible. ”

“To suppose that the eye. . . could have been formed by NATURAL SELECTION, seems, I freely confess, ABSURD in the highest possible degree. ” - Charles Darwin, Origin of Species, 1 st Ed. , p. 186.

Citing his statement at face value is subtly out of context. Darwin was talking about its seeming absurdity but then went on to explain how it was quite easy to imagine that the eye could be built step-by-step.

Argument #9: “Women have ONE MORE RIB than men. ”

Argument #9 (contin. ): 1. NOT true (all humans have 12 pairs of ribs) 2. Would NOT affect future offspring 3. Rib can REGENERATE if the surrounding membrane is left intact

Argument #10: “Even EINSTEIN believed in GOD. ”

Argument #10 (contin. ): “I do not believe in a PERSONAL GOD and I have never denied this but have expressed it clearly. My position concerning God is that of an AGNOSTIC. ” - Albert Einstein

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. ” - Genesis 1: 1 (K. J. V. )

“In the beginning (TIME) God created the heaven (SPACE) and the earth (MATTER). ” - Genesis 1: 1 (K. J. V. )

TIME SPACE = Past Present Future = Length Width Height MATTER = Solid Liquid Gas

Biblical Names and Their Meanings Adam – Man Seth – Appointed Enos – Mortal Cainan – Sorrow Mahalaleel – The Blessed God Jared – Shall Come Down Enoch – Teaching Methuselah – His Death Shall Bring Lamech – The Despairing Noah – Rest, Comfort

“Man (is) Appointed Mortal Sorrow (but) The Blessed God Shall Come Down Teaching (and) His Death Shall Bring The Despairing Rest. ”