Re: Newspapers & **Dinosaurs** (posted for F. Neumann)

[N.MacLeod@xxxxxxxxx (N. MacLeod)]

From: florin@quartz.geology.utoronto.ca (F. Neumann)
Subject: Re: Newspapers & **Dinosaurs** (posted for P. Willis)
To: paleonet-owner@nhm.ac.uk
Date: Mon, 28 Aug 1995 13:22:17 -0400 (EDT)
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Status: O

> This and related posts show an amazing ignorance of the diversity of
> opinions about earth history among the various churches. It smacks of
> Christian = Creationist which is a disservice to most christians and an
> oxymoron for creationists. In fact, the Pope has come out in favour of the
> scientific interpretation of the origins of the universe and evolutionary
> theory.

For a Judeo-Christian perspective (somewhat more recent than Archbishop
Ussher's) on this subject, see:

    Ginzburg, D. (1984) The age of the earth from Judaic traditional
        literature. Earth Sciences History, 3(2): 169-173.

    Skehan, J. W., SJ (1983) Theological basis for a Judeo-Christian
        Position on Creationism. Journal of Geological Education, 31:
        307-314.

Both seem to suggest that creationism is definitely not within the mainstream
of Judeo-Christian theology.

And as to the notorious Archbishop, aren't we setting up a straw man? After
all, we don't hold physicists to Lord Kelvin's opinion that the Earth couldn't
be more than 20 My old, nor would we like to have Abraham Werner upheld as an
example of current geological thought, so why go on about a theological
opinion expressed two centuries ago?
--
  Florin Neumann
  florin@quartz.geology.utoronto.ca