Giant's Causeway III - A New Hope

This is the third e-mail I've sent to the National Trust and the Caleban on the subject of Young Earth Creationism at the Giant's Causeway. Read part 1 and part 2 first if you like. Mervyn and Wallace are chair and vice chair of the Creationist Caleb Foundation, David works for the National Trust.

Dear David, Mervyn and Wallace,

Can it be true? Should we kill the fatted calf? I see that the National Trust has "decided to review the interpretive materials in this section [Giant's Causeway]." I cannot express the joy these words inspired in me - my Fian will be so happy to see that you're taking our constructive criticism seriously and considering adding our views with equal prominence to our fellow giant believers in the Caleb Foundation.

We've already discussed with you the examples of extreme strength displayed in the Old Testament, and in an earlier e-mail we went over some of the many mentions of giants in the text Mervyn and Wallace consider inerrant, so I think there's definite room for collaboration.

Giant's Causeway II - The Druids Strike Back

The National Trust took the time to send a standard form letter in response to Rígfénnid Geoff's inquiry. (Best to read this first for background.) WhyEvolutionIsTrue received the same, and their thoughts on the matter are worth reading. Below is  Rígfénnid Geoff's response.

Dear David,

Many thanks for taking the time to e-mail me. I suspect you've been rather inundated with mail and may not have had the chance to read mine fully. Your response suggests I am opposed to the National Trust including material favoured by Young Earth Creationists. Far from it! My fian and I were overjoyed to see such an open-minded approach taken, and we celebrated late into the night, knowing that this bold move on your part could be used by us as well as the Caleb Foundation as a foot in the door for our beliefs.

As I mentioned in my earlier e-mail I represent the Dublin branch of Na Fianna, an organisation devoted to maintaining the traditional ways of the poets, warriors, Druids and kings of old Ireland. We recognise and respect the valuable contributions made to society by those who take a purely scientific worldview, and fully agree that their understanding of the Giant's Causeway's formation should be given prominence at your site, even though we do not consider it the only valid view.

One Giant's Leap for Creationists

I read with some disappointment that the Caleb foundation have persuaded the UK National Trust to include a Young Earth Creationist interpretation of the formation of the Giant's Causeway in Antrim. I decided to ask for equal time for a Druidic interpretation. I'll let you know if either group get back to me. (Side note - people tend to not reply to my e-mails.)

Dear friends at the National Trust and Caleb Foundation,

I write to congratulate you on your recent collaboration to ensure a Young Earth Creationist viewpoint is given prominence at the Giant's Causeway interpretive centre in Antrim. I'm sure you share my view that science has brought us many wonderful benefits and would not seek to stand against it. I feel you likely share my view that science is a useful tool, but that too often the blinkers of the majority opinion mean we see only one possible interpretation of the evidence.

I, too, represent a group that seeks to understand scientific discoveries with proper respect and in the context of my beliefs. Although not a Young Earth Creationist, or indeed a Christian, I have been impressed with the Caleb Foundation's ability to make a case against overwhelming scientific consensus, and the National Trust's willingness to be open to other viewpoints.

My group has experienced much the same discrimination and, dare I say it, mockery as the Caleb Foundation. I represent the Dublin branch of Na Fianna, an organisation devoted to maintaining the traditional ways of the poets, warriors, Druids and kings of old Ireland.

Lennox, Scherer, and the giant floating forest hypothesis

While first reading "God's Undertaker" I noticed a reference to "Evolution - ein kritisches Lehrbuch" by Professor Siegfried Scherer. I'll admit I didn't pay it much heed at the time - the review was already unwieldy in length, my German was rusty, and tracing down every last error would have been something of a time sink.

But a couple of months later I amused myself with a dictionary and skimmed a few pages of the book Lennox had used to justify the following quote:

"Siegfried Scherer of the Technical University in Munich suggests that living things can be classified in certain basic types – a classification slightly broader than that of species. A ‘basic type’ is defined to be a collection of living things connected either directly or indirectly through hybridization, without regard for whether the hybrids are sterile or not. This definition incorporates both genetic and morphological concepts of species, and, according to Scherer, research so far indicates that ‘in the whole experimentally accessible domain of microevolution (including research in artificial breeding and in species formation), all variations have certainly remained within the confines of basic types’." -God's Undertaker, Page 109

I'd thought that the 'basic type' sounded suspiciously like the Biblical 'kind', used by Creationists to mean something between species and clade, meandering between both possible definitions depending which chapter of Genesis was at stake.

Gunning for God (John Lennox) - Chapter 2 Part B. Pilate, Prophecies and Lost in Translation

 
Chapter 2: Is Religion Poisonous? - Part B Pilate, Prophecies and Lost in Translation

<-- Previous Chapter

I ended my last blog post halfway through chapter 2. I did this partially because there is much to discuss, but also because I was rather happy with the closing line and did not wish to see it wasted on a midway point.

In the previous section Lennox went to great lengths to refute himself and then failed to seriously engage with what we Irish euphemistically call "the troubles". There followed a clean division whereafter he returned to Biblical interpretation. Lennox plays a game of association, often enlisting atheists to his cause to confirm the existence of a historical Jesus who was crucified in first century Judea, then making reasonable arguments for an empty tomb. But then he'll glide on to a discussion that presumes the accuracy of all New Testament texts, often with his own interpolations or additions, as seen by his modification of the Ten Commandments and unsubstantiated discussion of Peter's swordfighting ability discussed in previous posts.

The Unusual Suspects - a guide to street preachers in Dublin

The fine folks at Atheist Ireland were kind enough to mention me in their latest newsletter. This had the advantage of sending some more readers to my blog and in the absence of an 'About' page I decided to recap my intent.


I talk to street preachers.


I'm glad I had this opportunity to recap. The remainder of this post will trace an imaginary walking tour of Dublin and detail some of the highlights. Is there a street preacher I've missed? Do let me know in the comments section.

Hare Krishnas
Our tour starts on Grafton Street where, if you're lucky, we'll spot one or more Hare Krishnas. Normally dressed in distinctive orange or white flowing robes with incomplete headshaves, they can be hard to spot when they work the streets. Their activities are of dubious legality. Look for casual dress, wolly hats, hoodies, or other devices to cover their heads, and an armful of books.


When to find them: Rush hours, days vary. They're sometimes active on Henry Street and O'Connell Street.
Awkward questions to ask:

• Which is closer, the sun or the moon? (The answer will surprise you.)
• I see you're asking for cash donations. As per section 94 of the Charities Act 2009, may I see your written permit and sealed collection box?
• Do you agree with your founder that women's brains are half the size of men's?

Podcast Interview with a Young Earth Creationist

In an earlier post I mentioned I'd offered my services to a young earth Creationist who bemoaned the absence of debate. We met for coffee a fortnight ago and recorded a short interview. Although not swayed in my belief that the earth is older than 10,000 years I quite enjoyed the experience - Anthony's a likeable chap who let me do most of the talking, paid for the tea and biscuits, let me duck a question on the rotation of galaxies and put the whole interview up unedited. We talked for an hour overall, but kept the recorded section to under 15 minutes to maintain interest.

You may like to visit his blog. Alternatively, you might see him on Temple Bar. He attends on some Saturdays and holds a Jesus sign for identification. Do tell him I said hi.

The podcast is available here. The title is "Does science disprove faith?" (Not my choice of title) and includes a longish intro before the interview. If you don't find it, it may have been moved to his archive.

Yes, that is what I sound like. Some feedback would be great - it's easy to write blog posts with reference materials to hand, but somewhat harder to do these things on the spot.

Age of the earth - seeing the wood for the trees

Last Saturday I had a chat with Anthony from http://alienonamission.blogspot.com. He's a young earth creationist, putting a maximum age of the earth at about 10,000 years but believing the real figure to be closer to 7,000. He's a pleasant, polite and interesting chap and while we disagree profoundly on the fundamental nature of the planet we both inhabit I found I quite enjoyed the chat. He'll be making a podcast available at some point in the future (to be announced), but in the meantime I'll be running a series of articles on the age of the earth and how we know it. I'm going for shorter articles, hopefully one a day.

I'd like to thank Anthony for the opportunity. I'd also like to thank his friend Jim for buying the tea and biscuits.

Anyway, on to the article:

Debating creationists in Dublin

Anthony Brazabon, Dublin street preacher, blogger and podcast host is disappointed at the lack of debate on young earth creationism.
So I've volunteered my services.
I'll let you know if he gets back to me.