i heard a man explain to me once...that anything in the bible that turns out to be untrue is not the word of god, it was man trying to twist god's words.
"things that are true - are the voice of god" he proclaimed, written by men guided by god.
he handed me a bible the next day at break, we worked on the trucks together some days and got into some interesting conversation...he was a born again who used to be a gangster. he had bookmarked some pages for me. i read them...thoroughly...
i respected his views and he likely thought i was christian as i never disagreed with him...but i labelled myself a certain way that compelled him to reach to me.
then one day in conversation he mocked evolution - said it was not real - and there was no way a lung could turn into a heart. i realized many things about this man when he said this. he likely had never been explained or truly learned what evolution was.
so that night, i went home and i dusted off my Darwin book i bought for a 400 lvl history class (history of science) - and i bookmarked and highlighted things for him. the next day at break i took him the book and handed it to him...i said it had many things he should read. he did not refuse it though he accepted the book with some hesitance. the next day he approached me and returned the book - he said he did not understand or know half the words in the book...but he still did not dismiss whatever i had to say - as if he waited for me to explain it...so i did. i quoted things from the text and then explained it to him. it was a short break so i had to be brief - but i targeted specifically the claims he made, and i think i explained evolution very well.
as i explained evolution - and gave real life examples we can see and know is real - he confessed i made him feel stupid. i said it was not my intention. he understood.
despite his lack of knowledge in evolution or education in general - i felt i understood many of the things he spoke of. i respected this man, because nothing on earth could shake his faith. he had lived in the darkest side of life and got out with multiple bullet wounds and a daily fear of them finishing the job...he needed his faith. nothing could take it from him. it drove him to be a better person. it made him reflect on his past ways.
the moral is: there is some truth and power in faith just as there is truth and power in science.
on July 25, 2011, 5:46 pm, in reply to "