MARK L. BAKKE'S
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REPLY #14 TO
"EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM"



Boldfaced statements are parts of the original essay (or a subsequent reply) to which the respondent has directed his comments.

Italicized/emphasized comments
prefaced by (R) are those of the respondent and are presented unedited.

My replies appear under the respondent's comments in blue text and are prefaced by my initials (MB).

(R) There are literally thousands of college students who have no hope of defending creation vs. evolution just simply because they don't have the knowledge to defend it.
(MB) Nor does anything adequate exist to defend such a thing. The best and brightest of the Institute for Creation Research have utterly failed to defend Creationism or refute evolution despite intensive attempts over three decades of trying. What is contained in the RealAudio sermons on your site that will succeed where the ICR has failed?


(R) The was designed to give college student a glimpse of hope on defending what they believe against there college professors.
(MB) May I assume that this is why your site is entitled "Here's Hope"?


(R) Two years ago I was reading my Bible in my Bio Class, when my Professor walked in and told me to stop reading it in his class because it was full of errors.
(MB) Why were you reading a Bible (or any book other than the class textbook) in class in the first place?


(R) I gave him that book and told him when he found one error to come back and tell me and I would glad to stop reading it. After 3 weeks with out my Bible my Professor walked in sat that the Bible on my desk and continued toward the front to the class. I said to him "I guess I'll keep reading my Bible, Yes" and for the first time he had to admit that error was not found.
(MB) Since there are literally hundreds of documented errors and contradictions in the Bible, it is highly doubtful that anybody who knows this couldn't show one after 3 weeks. What do you have to say about a few of the more well-known ones, such as:
  • The mutually-exclusive genealogies of Jesus in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke?
  • The different accounts in the Gospels about Jesus' final words on the cross?
  • The two different creation tales in Genesis which present different orders of events?
  • The problems with Matthew's account of events surrounding Jesus' birth?
  • The fact that flourishing Egyptian and Chinese civilizations survived through a Flood that, according to Genesis, destroyed all life on Earth?
  • The fact that there is no record of Hebrews ever having lived or been enslaved in Egypt?



(R) Toward the end of the semester I was assign the topic Creation vs. Evolution. How convient, the professor failed my paper because I used the word God one time. You see he knew what was in that paper was truth and the only means of justification and satisfaction he could get was by failing my paper to easy his conscience.
(MB) I can only take your word for this, but I would wager a large sum that there was more to your grade than the one simple thing you mentioned. After all, how else would one write such a paper without making reference to God? If you still have a copy of your paper, would you consent to my reading it so I could determine accurately just how much truth may or may not be in it?


(R) You know something I think your like that professor, as much as you want to believe that evolution occured I think you have doubts yourself, but you don't want admit there is a "God" because that would require maybe a change in your life.
(MB) I have absolutely no doubts in any way, shape, or form about the fact that evolution theory is correct. There are still some questions concerning some of the minor details and mechanics that are encompassed by the general theory, but there is no question about evolution itself. There is also no question that the theory of evolution says absolutely nothing about whether or not there is a "God". Where religious fundamentalists are in error is in their insistence that "God" and evolution cannot co-exist. Even the Pope agrees that there is no conflict between religion and evolution. What do you know about this that he does not?


(R) One last piece of information for you that you can research is in 1963 our country started a downfall in both teen pregnancy, violent crimes, and a huge drop in SAT scores. Find out what took place in 1963 to cause this.
(MB) Well, let's see... The most important event of 1963 in the United States was the assassination of JFK. This was also the year when Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered his famous "I Have a Dream" speech. There was also the infamous bombing of a black church in Birmingham, the assassination of Medgar Evers and the Supreme Court decision stating that all criminal defendants must have counsel and which also established the inadmissibility of illegally-acquired evidence in courts. Are you making reference to one of these events or to something of lesser importance?
    In any case, it appears that you are committing the logical fallacy of confusing correlation with causality. If two events happen in close proximity to each other, that does not show that one caused the other. A famous example of this is noting that a rise in public drunkenness in the 1800's happened at the same time as a rise in the number of Baptist preachers. Does this mean that Baptist preachers encourage drunkenness? Of course not. To avoid a similar mistake, you will need to show evidence of just how the event you are referencing actually and unmistakeably was responsible for causing the problems you listed.



(R) Ever since our nation has tried many many things to correct their mistake. They have started who knows how many programs to fix it, but the one that they seem to think that will fix this is more education. Educating someone has never stop a thief from stealing, why? Because it's easier to take than it is to earn.
(MB) How would one go about measuring the number of potential thieves who were deterred due to receiving proper education? All we can see are the ones who either never received the education or who ignored it. In either case, one can't blame the educational effort itself.


(R) Same thing applies to you. Have you ever actually done experiments on your own to disprove any part of creationism. Probably not, because it's easier for you to steal someone else's research which you don't know if it was faulty or not, because you are afraid of earning the knowledge that will disprove all the you believe.
(MB) I have investigated both sides of the issue quite thoroughly. This is how I have arrived at the conclusion that the theory of evolution is solid and that Creationism isn't worth the effort it takes to bring it up. For you to make any disparaging remarks about any faults in evolution theory, you will have to mention some specific things that you think are wrong about it and explain why they are wrong. If you then wish to claim that Creationism provides better answers, you will need to show how its explanations are superior. How will you succeed at this when so many before you have failed?



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