Dwayne McDowell
Member
Darwin gave us the first detailed explanation for how living things change. Though he knew nothing about genetics he was able to breed pigeons for specific traits and extrapolate those changes into the origin of entirely new species. The question is, is that extrapolation warranted based on what we know now?
The concept is based on the idea that random changes will occasionally be beneficial and can become permanent to the species, and eventually enough advantageous changes will accumulate so that an entirely new species will develop. So, what do we actually know to be true?
1. Even evolutionists admit that this process, if it actually works, is too slow for any human observer to see. Doesn't that, by definition, make it an unscientific concept? Science is the objective, systematic analysis of observable, repeatable processes. This was John Whitcombs' definition, only that I have added the word "objective", for surely objectivity is necessary to avoid error and chaos.
2. Random changes to human DNA have led us to the place where we now have upwards of 4000 diseases that can be inherited, and some say the number is double that.
3. There is a concept called "Error Catastrophe", at which point a species' DNA becomes so corrupted by mutations that extinction is unavoidable. Some scientists believe that for humans that state would be reached in no more than 100,000 years.
4. Even evolutionists admit that only one of about 20,000 mutations is beneficial to the creature in question. Is it rational to insist that life progresses with one step forward and 19,999 going sideways or backward. Surely many of those non-beneficial changes will prove to be fatal to the organism. Two of the examples that evolutionists offer as proof that some mutations are actually beneficial are sickle cell anemia, and the four-winged fruit fly. Sickle disease kills 25% of those who inherit it, and the rest struggle with the effects of the disease their whole lives. And the four-winged fruit fly can't fly. Is this the best they can find? Apparently.
5. Finally, there are genetic time-clocks. Researchers measured the amount of genetic changes that occurred in human families, spanning four generations. These studies, conducted by both Creationist scientists and secular scientists, determined that those families studied had accumulated about 6,000 years worth of mutations. Researchers then used the same methodology on 100,000 different animal species and found that 90% of those revealed a 6,000 year history.
So, is it reasonable to conclude that the only explanations for the great variety of life-forms that we find all around us must include evolution? If the scientific evidence has religious implications why shouldn't we accept that? Atheistic evolutionism has religious implications too. So, what do you think?
The concept is based on the idea that random changes will occasionally be beneficial and can become permanent to the species, and eventually enough advantageous changes will accumulate so that an entirely new species will develop. So, what do we actually know to be true?
1. Even evolutionists admit that this process, if it actually works, is too slow for any human observer to see. Doesn't that, by definition, make it an unscientific concept? Science is the objective, systematic analysis of observable, repeatable processes. This was John Whitcombs' definition, only that I have added the word "objective", for surely objectivity is necessary to avoid error and chaos.
2. Random changes to human DNA have led us to the place where we now have upwards of 4000 diseases that can be inherited, and some say the number is double that.
3. There is a concept called "Error Catastrophe", at which point a species' DNA becomes so corrupted by mutations that extinction is unavoidable. Some scientists believe that for humans that state would be reached in no more than 100,000 years.
4. Even evolutionists admit that only one of about 20,000 mutations is beneficial to the creature in question. Is it rational to insist that life progresses with one step forward and 19,999 going sideways or backward. Surely many of those non-beneficial changes will prove to be fatal to the organism. Two of the examples that evolutionists offer as proof that some mutations are actually beneficial are sickle cell anemia, and the four-winged fruit fly. Sickle disease kills 25% of those who inherit it, and the rest struggle with the effects of the disease their whole lives. And the four-winged fruit fly can't fly. Is this the best they can find? Apparently.
5. Finally, there are genetic time-clocks. Researchers measured the amount of genetic changes that occurred in human families, spanning four generations. These studies, conducted by both Creationist scientists and secular scientists, determined that those families studied had accumulated about 6,000 years worth of mutations. Researchers then used the same methodology on 100,000 different animal species and found that 90% of those revealed a 6,000 year history.
So, is it reasonable to conclude that the only explanations for the great variety of life-forms that we find all around us must include evolution? If the scientific evidence has religious implications why shouldn't we accept that? Atheistic evolutionism has religious implications too. So, what do you think?