Next year will mark 200 years since the birth of Charles Darwin and 150 years since the publication of On the Origins of Species. Biologists have since discovered DNA and mapped the human genome, yet Darwin’s theory of evolution is still under attack. Creationism, or Intelligent Design if you wish to delude yourself, argues that life is too complex to have developed through natural processes, leaving God as the obvious designer.
By studiously analyzing the Old Testament, some religious scholars have deduced that the earth is approximately 6,000 years old, contradicting the widely accepted age of 4.5 billion years. It’s just a small difference of opinion, really. To help spread this gospel, creation museums have opened across North America, claiming to back up their theories with cold, hard science.
As ridiculous as this position is, it’s also easily understood. If you believe the Bible is literally the word of God, it’s a no-brainer that the Earth is 6,000 years old. You have your faith to prove it; what more is there to say?
But I want to consider a more interesting group: those who don’t take their religious texts literally, opting instead to carefully select which pieces they wish to take on faith. While this position is extremely convenient and non-controversial, it’s entirely a cop-out. First, a disclaimer: There are many reasons to believe in God. For some it brings meaning and purpose to life; for others it’s a result of deeply spiritual experiences. Whatever your reason, I’m not here to tell you that you’re wrong. I’m only interested in the various interpretations of sacred texts.
If my neighbour sold his daughter into slavery, as permitted in Exodus 21:7, can I condemn such an extreme action or must I obey the teachings of my sacred text? The answer, of course, is that through critical examination, I conclude that a literal translation of the Old (or New) Testament is meaningless. Most people would agree there isn’t enough evidence to believe God would such a decision.
But this application of reason only gets us into more trouble. If there isn’t enough evidence to believe slavery’s acceptable, what evidence is there for the existence of Adam and Eve or even that Jesus was the son of God?
Whether or not you choose to believe these things has no effect on anyone other than yourself, but you still can’t rationalize it.
Somehow, millions of religious people have found a way to pick and choose which parts of their religious texts to believe. Evolution works alongside Christianity, I’m often told, because God created evolution and that whole universe-in-seven-days thing’s a bit far-fetched. Then they turn around and insist that Jesus worked 47 distinct miracles; after all, it’s right there in the Bible.
Sorry, but you can’t have it both ways. Dismissing one piece of text based on critical analysis and accepting another on faith is hypocritical. At least the fundamentalists are committed.
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