This comment is by wellokaythen on the post “Creationism Still Allowed in Louisiana Classrooms“
What conservative Christians need to keep in mind is that when you leave the door open to creationism, then a LOT of things can walk through that door. This is one of many things that’s so absurd to me about this. The supporters of this seem to assume that Genesis, more specifically one interpretation of one version of what many people call Genesis, is the only intelligent design option out there.
Okay, if I get to teach creationism, then I’m going to go multicultural. I’m going to throw in a little world history, a little anthropology, and a little comparative religion. I’ll teach the ancient Mayan story about how the gods, after numerous failed experiments, created people out of corn. I’ll teach the Egyptian creation story about how the stars are really the ejaculation of a god. They can learn about infinity when I tell them that the universe is turtles all the way down. When we get to meteorology I’ll teach them that rain only happens when the gods get enough human blood to drink. Maybe I’ll have your child conduct some experiments to test that.
I mean, we have to be open to multiple theories to explain creation, right?
Do creationists think that the only people in the world teaching creationism are American evangelical Protestants? I wonder how many Louisiana creationists want their children taught Hindu creation stories about the origin of the universe.
—
photo: ellenm1 / flickr
Laughing so hard!
It’s not just religion that walks through the door when it’s left open. Creationism doesn’t even require any religion at all. If I were a teacher and I got to teach creationism, I would tell my students that I created the universe. I’ll have a book printed that says I did, if that’s all that’s required to persuade people. It’s impossible to prove that I didn’t. I have a faulty memory — I don’t know what I was thinking when I designed the platypus, but I’m sure it seemed like a good idea at the time. I wish I could… Read more »
“I mean, we have to be open to multiple theories to explain creation, right? Do creationists think that the only people in the world teaching creationism are American evangelical Protestants?” As one who was raised by and among such people, let me assure you, their answer is “yes” to the second question, and “no” to the first. Some in the creationist movement live in a sheltered, self-affirming “bible bubble” and honestly believe that everyone thinks or believes as they do. That anyone would dare challenge that belief by daring to suggesting that God *didn’t* make the earth out of nothing… Read more »
Well that’s funny! One small and very expensive art college (Chester College of New England), flat-out refused to allow its students to hear about creationism as a possibility. The students had signed-up in droves to hear one guest speaker on the topic. Having expected only one or two students to sign-up, the president of the now-closed college flipped-his s$%t and made an eleventh-hour cancellation without explanation.
Such courage the God haters have. “Courage!” [Dan Rather]
I happen to think that was reprehensible behavior on the President’s part, if what you say is true. As far as I’m concerned, guest speakers should be able to say whatever they want, short of the usual “fire in a crowded theatre” kind of thing
Come to think of it, an art school is the perfect place for a presentation on creationism. Creationism is a product of human imagination, just like art. Just like other forms of art, creationism requires incredible leaps of human creativity, so it ought to be good practice for artists. It would be especially appropriate for modern or postmodern art styles, since they are not so focused on having art represent objective reality. It would be really great fodder for postmodern artists, because postmodernism loves things that are parodies of themselves, and there are forms of creationism that are so absurd… Read more »