prophecyexclaimed wrote:
Religion: A set of beliefs, values, and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader.
Set of beliefs: Evolution
Practices: Science Courses
Based on teachings of Darwin!
A Religion.
(dictionary.com, meaning number 3.)
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a note worth mention:
"Science Courses"??No scientist holds man-made documents as the holy, inerrant, inspired word of god. Those who believe in religion feel that their sacred book, is inspired by a god, and not man, and that it is likewise, without flaw. Thus, you do not fix, what is not broken.
The Bible, they say, has "no error or contradiction, and the heavens, and earth, and all in it, were created in seven days by God, and there is no room for new data."
That is a main distinction between science and spirituality.
One of the finest qualities of science, is that it begins with "I do not know", and always open to change when new information emerges(even at the expense of compromising old beliefs). Religion has a tendency to stagnate the minds of its believers, when new information becomes available. Usually with enmity against knowledge.
Meanwhile...Where do you get the information that Darwin was / is a spiritual leader? Buddha, Jesus, Gandhi would qualify as spiritual leaders. People are even debating on whether or not Darwin believed in God.
He was a scientist.
I do not let scientists decide my spiritual views.
Nor do I let spiritual men, guide my scientific beliefs.
I went to dictionary.com
and searched for evolution... there is nothing in the dictionary that would deem evolution as a "religion". That wasn't an oversight of the publisher. That was intentional. What "god" do evolutionists all have in common, what is its name? When was the last time, tithes were gathered for the god of evolution, or the believers gathered to sacrifice animals or their firstborn babies to Baal or Merodach, or Jehovah? What is the name of this god, evolutionists supposedly cling to, that unites them in their "flock" or "fold". Where are the preachers, the shepherds, who guide evolutionists in their "spiritual journey" of genetic modification and other scientific research?
Now, I looked up christianity, and it is defined as a religion.
EVOLUTION:
A gradual process in which something changes into a different and usually more complex or better form. See Synonyms at development.
The process of developing. Gradual development. Biology.
Change in the genetic composition of a population during successive generations, as a result of natural selection acting on the genetic variation among individuals, and resulting in the development of new species. The historical development of a related group of organisms; phylogeny. A movement that is part of a set of ordered movements.
Mathematics. The extraction of a root of a quantity.
RELIGION WAS NOT FOUND IN THE ENTIRE DEFINITION FOR "EVOLUTION"
SORRY. BUT THAT IS BECAUSE IT'S
NOT A RELIGION.
CHRISTIANITY:
The Christian religion, founded on the life and teachings of Jesus.
Christians as a group; Christendom. The state or fact of being a Christian. pl. Christianities A particular form or sect of the Christian religion: the Christianities of antiquity.
RELIGION:
Belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe.
A personal or institutionalized system grounded in such belief and worship.
The life or condition of a person in a religious order.
A set of beliefs, values, and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader.
DARWIN WAS NOT A SPIRITUAL LEADER. HE RESEARCHED AND WROTE ABOUT SCIENCE, NOT SPIRITUALITY. Darwin was interested in scientific discovery, not spiritual issues.
I hope this helps clarify, beyond doubt, evolution is not a religious system of beliefs.
[This message has been edited by Sharon357, 08-20-2003]
[This message has been edited by Sharon357, 08-20-2003]