The Fight

Warning: this post has to do with politics, a subject which I readily admit I am far from informed upon, so I'm in way over my head. I welcome random thoughts and diverse opinions, but be forewarned that spiteful and slanderous comments don't get you very far up on my cool-people list (not that my list matters in the grand scheme of things).

Currently, I am enrolled in an online American Government course for college credit. Thus far, I have thoroughly enjoyed myself as I see both historical and practical significance in the subject material. Granted, I have been pleasantly surprised by the fairly unbiased opinion offered by the book; indeed, when I do sense partiality, the authors seem to take a more conservative stance than I anticipated. Nonetheless, portions of the text trouble me, especially when means and ends don't line up.

In a chapter discussing civil liberties ("freedoms protected by constitutional provisions, laws, and practices from certain types of government interference"), the authors narrowed their discussion on religious freedom to religion within public schools. As an example of a commonly debated area, the authors shared that many "committed believers" have made attempts to either "exclude Darwinian evolutionary biology from the school curriculum or to balance it with alternative interpretations such as 'creationism' . . . or 'intelligent design'".

Before I continue, I ask you, gentle reader, to answer this question: what is the point of science? Why do people devote their lives to this discipline? Why is science a strict component of both fundamental and further educations? As I understand it, science has been studied throughout the centuries in an effort to explain the world we live in, to further humans' understanding of themselves and their habitat, to answer the ever-looming questions: where did this come from, how does it work, and why does it exist?

Now that we have that point settled, I'll continue.

After listing various experiments with the proposals of Christian circles, the authors shared the Supreme Court's conclusion that including intelligent design as an alternative to Darwinian evolution was found too religious: "'. . . we conclude that the religious nature of ID [intelligent design] would be readily apparent to an objective observer, adult, or child. . . . The overwhelming evidence at trial established that ID is a religious view, a mere relabeling of creationism, and not a scientific theory.'"

My point of dissension lies in the underlying assumption of the Supreme Court. Obviously, they are concerned with the law of the land and not directly with education. Nonetheless, I sense a shortsightedness in their statement: because intelligent design could be perceived as a religious theory, it is for the birds. Whether you, reader, are a believer or not, this does not make logical sense. If, as I said before, science's purpose is to find the truth about our world, then we cannot discount hypotheses and theories merely on the grounds that they include God. Many issues result from this thinking, issues that I could expound upon, but one specifically burdens my heart.

In the past, I have often wondered why people are so offended by God being included in the science classroom, but now I think I understand. If we concede that God created the earth, then humans have purpose and responsibility. It means that we cannot rightly do whatever we wish -- One exists who will require an account of every minute used or not, a fact that makes even the most righteous man shudder. Teachers and students alike take offense at this, so they shut up and shut out any person or assembly that suggest its possibility -- no -- its probability.

This is the true debate. It sinks far deeper than religious freedoms or impartial curriculum. No, the debate is but a minute piece of an immense puzzle, a mere battle in a monumental war.

It is the fight for a literate, intelligent generation.

It is the fight for Christianity.

There may be more rants regarding my textbook in the future. I don't really care whether anyone reads this or not. I needed a place to vent, and this seemed a perfect outlet. Thanks for being my sounding board. ~JE