[QUOTE][B]Wow, Gene, you are LDS? All the LDS people I have ever known are very anti-evolution and anti-Big Bang.[/QUOTE]
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Conservative Protestants seem have a negative influence on other groups in the US. Catholics for example are supposed to not be against evolution but I have seen exceptions. The same is true for Latter-day Saints. Back in the 30s the First Presidency (the President of the Church we consider a Prophet, Seer, and Revelator, which, BTW, are three different titles) issued a statement that basically the Church deals with the more important spiritual aspects of Creation and that Saints should make up their own minds about evolution. We have no official stance but today there seems to be a lot of anti-evolution sentiment in the highest echelons of the organization and also amongst everyday members. There is some pro-evolution sentiment at BYU. It seems the YECism is waxing amongst the Mormon population and things will probably get worse, and I blame that mostly on outside influences and partly on the fact that we're just such a devout and conservative people that we are vulnerable to that sort of thing. An interesting snapshot of the issue amongst the Saints can be found here:
http://newsnet.byu.edu/story.cfm/5812
I personally keep a low profile, and it doesn't help that I live in the South. However the bishop of the ward closest to my university just happens to be a research entomologist so maybe I should risk picking his brain.
Also maybe I should mention that my Planetary Geology textbooks runs heavy on "naturalistic" models of the origin of the Solar System and it was written by BYU faculty (though I do not attend BYU, I attend a land grant college in the South).
[QUOTE][B]Are you religious at all?[/QUOTE]
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Yesterday I missed the weekly sacrament services and the monthly fast because of a bug that's going around; and that'll probably drag down the rest of my week. I try to never miss services, especially on Fast and Testimony day, the first Sunday of the month. I'm a recent convert and I've been judged temple-worthy but I haven't made it up there yet. If it further indicates my activity level, I'm seriously considering a mission. So yeah, I take my religion very seriously and I'm very fond of my church, despite the differences in opinion on evolution.
[This message has been edited by gene90, 09-02-2002]