The Movie - “Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed”
Toni and I finally went to Ben Stein’s movie after talking about it for two weeks. The highlight came when Richard Dawkins, the author of “The God Delusion”, renounced the existence of God while referring to anyone who accepts intelligent design as an idiot but in his next breath said that one of the most probable explanations for the existence of life on our planet was that it originated when life was planted here by aliens. What? Isn’t that in itself a form of intelligent design, although, not an intelligent idea! It is clear some scientists are no longer practicing science but are instead promoting ideologies and defending their own world views. The good news is truth is eternal but a lie can not endure. This explains the why atheists and evolutionist are scrambling.
See the website here: http://www.expelledthemovie.com/enterflash.php
See the movie trailer here http://www.expelledthemovie.com/playground.php
Increasing in Him,
Galyn Wiemers
Topics: General |
May 5th, 2008 at 8:07 am
Excellent movie! I’m glad that I went. Good blog!! Everyone should challenge the local high school science teachers to show the film when it come out on DVD.
May 5th, 2008 at 3:24 pm
Sorry, have to disagree, though I do agree that Dawkins is a bit of jerk. But talk about the emperor having no clothes, the only substantive part of ID is as a negative argument that diametrically opposed to evolution, otherwise it has nothing of substance to offer science.
Imagine teaching ecology in school without a fundamental understanding of Darwinism and evolution. What would ID tell these students, other than the showing and teaching these alleged students the incredible complexity of nature? What’s the explanation for these systems and their numerous interactions? God did it of course. Cool huh? Sorry, that’s not science and I challenge any ID proponent to demonstrate a single predictive model that ID can make regarding living organisms and their present day ecosystems. There are no models, the ID proponents got nothing but faith. I have my faith too but the difference is I don’t subject you to it.
Science is not faith but a way of reasoning and we need all the good scientists we can get with the way we are tanking the environment. More at http://www.millenniumwriting.com and the novel I wrote about about this struggle call Flores Girl the Children God Forgot.
Erik John Bertel
May 5th, 2008 at 11:14 pm
My belief in an intelligent designer has not caused me to stop seeking information nor has it caused me to cease the application of information in any profession I have had. A doctor who believes in an intelligent designer will still prescribe treatment, medication and surgery. A business owner who believes in God will still advertise, provide his best product and excel in customer service. Why would a scientist who believes there is intelligent design stop using information gained through the scientific processes? Common sense would say they would not. Why assume a scientist who accepts intelligent design would not use scientific information any more than a coach would reject basic defensive principles or an auto mechanic would stop using oil? No matter what belief system a musician ascribes to they still have to work with major and minor chords, rhythm, and the established system of music notation. A history teacher can not change the date of the civil war any more than a scientist can change the laws of physics.
What would we lose with intelligent design? Any scientific advancement or discovery made by an evolutionist is still science. Just like any money won at a casino is still money. If you fear losing the theory of evolution then maybe you to realize it is not science but a philosophy. The way a person sees the world is not science but a perception.
A biblical principle is “Faith without works is dead.” When applied to a scientist who has faith in an intelligent designer this scientist is required by this principle to do more than believe. This scientist would need to be actively studying, researching and doing what scientist do. I would hope this is also what a scientist who believes in evolution does.
May 6th, 2008 at 6:56 am
Simple question: sum up for me how ID describes the functionality and modeling of an ecosystem? Remember, you can’t use competition and evolution to describe the changing ecosystem or fluctuating species populations. I bet ya you can’t. Yet using the horrible Darwinist and evolutionist’s theories we can model the environment and I ask you to reference the classic Wilson & Bossert’s Island Biogeography and its modeling of species equilibrium.
What would ID have to say? Wow, this is so complex, forget about understanding this, this had to be an intelligent designer at work. And that’s fine but it’s not science and you can’t do anything with it. Reconciling your faith should never be an easy exercise and we don’t need to give people another excuse not to think. We have American Idol for that!
Erik John Bertel
May 6th, 2008 at 10:59 am
In my previous comment I tried to say that scientific principles are true, useful and necessary no matter who discovers them. I continue to agree that we need to embrace scientific advancement. I have taught Christians for years that there is no conflict between science and God. The creator and the creation will always agree. Any conflict comes between those who study science and those who study God, scientists and theologians. History has proved both to be wrong on a variety of issues. None-the-less, nature and God have always been true.
I also agree with Erik John Bertel (the author who is always looking for a way to promote his book, “Flores Girl the Children God Forgot” read more at http://thefloresgirlblog.wordpress.com/ ) that “we don’t need to give people another excuse not to think.” We are losing our economy, industry and education in exchange for entertainment and food just like the Roman’s gave up their freedom for the coliseum games and the bread provided by the emperors.
I want people like me to be allowed to think and debate with the atheists and evolutionist on critical issues. The concern I have is that my world view or my philosophy is considered to be inferior and worthless. I disagree with the theory of evolution but I do not disagree with the discoveries they have brought to light. Truth will work and truth will endure. We want truth. I do not fear the pursuit of truth, thus I do not fear different viewpoints. It is interesting that in a cult the leaders forbid their followers from engaging in conversation with outsiders. This is especially true when it comes to informative conversations concerning religion. Are the advocates of evolution fearful of the outsiders? Does this come from the fear of the truth? The great freedom of Christianity is you can pursue truth without fear of forfeiting your allegiance to Jesus Christ. (Now, of course, not all “christians” understand this, which brings us back to the “we don’t need to give people another excuse not to think” issue.)
http://www.generationword.com
May 10th, 2008 at 8:52 am
By the way I don’t want to give everybody the impression from Galyn’s post that this rebuttal is just a shameless plug for my novel podcast Flores Girl: The Children God Forgot, it is of course but the central theme of the novel is the personal struggle of two scientists with spiritual and materialistic challenges from within and from without. I never began actively posting regarding this ID/creationist issue until I was actually challenged by fundamentalists who took exception to the content and title of my novel. And no, I am not making any money at these endeavors because the podcast is available free at Podiobooks and that’s the end of my commercial and explanation.
As to Galyn’s comments they are both prescient, nuanced and frankly outside the norm of the Christian fundamentalists teachings. I am continuing these conversations with him at my millenniumwritingblog.com but I see a real schism in the religious arguments regarding ID and have to ask the basic question why is ID primarily a Christian Fundamentalist movement? What is it about Christian fundamentalists that feel they have to make their religious beliefs a political movement when other conservative religions, outside radical Islamists, are not engaged in such overt manipulations of the political system? Yes, I know you think the agnostics and atheist rule the world but why doesn’t anybody else in the world feel that way? Why are you more oppressed in the land of the free than anywhere else in the world? And please don’t mention Ben Stein, because he is in essence the exception that proves the rule. As for my two cents, the ID movement smells more of man’s struggles than it does of spirituality or god.
Erik John Bertel,
Author of Flores Girl: The Children God Forgot and the MillenniumWriting.com Blog