Sunday, October 14, 2012

In Defense of Creation, and My Right to Teach It: An Open Letter to Bill Nye, the Science Guy

Dear Mr. Nye:
You've never heard of me. You'll most likely never see this letter, and that's okay. I'm pretty insignificant-just a working stiff from the country, educated to the bare necessity of a Bachelors, and all-in-all, a very simple girl. I'm not an academic (although I work in that world), I'm not a scientist, and I'm not a teacher.
That being said, I have an issue with you:
Bill Nye: Don't Teach Your Kids Creation
You were the "cool" science teacher. Yes, you came to my attention far after I had graduated from high school (where I had my very own "cool" science teacher--thank you, Miss Beumer), but I always admired how you made science so fun. Science is about details--those details define us, and you made it so interesting! But when you came out with this video, you inadvertently cut me to the heart.
You see, I believe in Intelligent Design.
I know--this is the part where, on the off-chance that you're reading this letter, you scoff, stop reading, and dismiss me as a wacko. That's okay. But I heard you out--so please, hear me out. 
I'm not going to try to "convert" you to my belief system, or pretend to have enough scientific data under my belt for anything past an introductory explanation. I'm not even going to go into the academic specifics of why I believe what I do--I think that would be pointless. I would like, however, for you to hear, morally, WHY I believe in ID, and perhaps give you a glimpse as to why teaching my children about Creationism is anything but a "waste of time:"

I actually believe in teaching both evolution and creationism to my children as scientific theories. You understand the Scientific Process better than anyone, I'm sure. So, you know that (according to the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the National Academy of Science, and AAAS Evolution Resources) the definition of a theory is: "a well-substantiated explanation of some aspect of the natural world, based on a body of facts that have been repeatedly confirmed through observation and experiment."[1][2] Scientists create scientific theories from hypotheses that have been corroborated through the scientific method, then gather evidence to test their accuracy. As with all forms of scientific knowledge, scientific theories are inductive in nature and do not make apodictic propositions; instead, they aim for predictive and explanatory force."     

And yes, I pulled that off of Wikipedia. 
 Because neither evolution nor creationism can be viewed in process, neither of them should ever be taught as a fact, according to the definition above. Yes, there are mutations (almost always harmful, and thus, not an advocation of evolution as they do nothing to enhance their race), and there are natural adaptations to environment; this doesn't substantiate the major changes that cells would have had to go through over "billions" of years to morph from single-celled amoeba to full-fledged human being. We have nothing on this planet that can recreate "big bang" type of events; we have nothing on this planet that can recreate "ex nihilo" ("out of nothing") creationism.
We can't duplicate it-->IT'S NOT A FACT. 
I am comfortable with teaching my children that according to science, creationism and evolution are both unrepeatable theories. 
However...
I also believe that teaching children that they are nothing more than a chance encounter of atoms is detrimental to society in ways we cannot comprehend.
I believe in God. I don't believe in a "higher power" or some misshapen "pie-in-the-sky" deity that sits on His clouds and watches the tiny humans make a mess of their lives. I don't believe in a cosmic killjoy that allows us to exist for His masochistic enjoyment. 
I believe in a God Who loves, whether we acknowledge Him or not.
I believe this God loves so much, that He created a world for us to live in, and then He created us, in 7 literal days, just like His Word says. I believe He loved us, and He created us to love Him, so He could love us, in an awesome circle of worship.  
I know--you really do think I'm crazy at this point.
But where is the harm in teaching this to my child?
I will teach my child that they were Intelligently Designed by a God Who thinks they're special--Who hand-picked their "ingredients" and breathed life into them. I will teach my child that the Lord Himself planned for their very existence, that He loves them from conception to death. I will teach my child that He loves them, that He values them, and that even when Mom and Dad mess up, or when they mess up, that this God Who created them loves them beyond their mistakes.
Where is the harm in that?
Where is the delusion, in teaching my child that they are never unloved? That they were carefully designed? That they are part of a race that began in a garden where the first man and the first woman were sculpted by the very hand of a God that created them in His own image?
Where is the harm in telling my child that we have emotions and personalities that did not come from chance, but that came from our being a reflection of our Creator? 
Where is the harm in telling my child that "No, love, you are not a product of chance. You were planned-you have a destiny, and you are not the result of, nor are you subject to, random chaos.You are loved."
I do not believe you can teach a child those things, if you have taught them from infancy on, that they're nothing more than a chance collision of atoms.
When you teach a child that they are a product of chaos, you strip them of their value. You reduce them to scientific primordial ooze, and you allow them to live in an environment that is shaped by randomness. 
No wonder our society has gone crazy,
Progression:  You are random..you're the product of randomness...you cannot be expected to live within the borders of absolutes, because you are based in randomness...society becomes chaotic, which suits you just fine, because it feels like home, to your random atoms...Life has no value.
I believe that implementing the "theology" of evolution leads to complete nihilism. True nihilism does not end well for its believers. (We have a suicide epidemic in this country. Is it linked to pervasive evolutionism? I don't think anyone should rule that out as a contributing foundational factor). 
Mr. Nye, I'm sure you stopped reading a long time ago. And that's okay. You might write me off as just another uneducated, right-winged bumpkin that doesn't know an atom from an apple, and you might be right. But I'm also a mother-to-be of a little boy, who, I hope, grows up to love science. I hope that he learns to appreciate the incredible intricacies of creation. I hope he sits in biology class, like his mommy used to do, and learns all of his bones and his muscles...who ponders the delicacy of a leaf, and wonders how that's made...and who decides on his own terms that yes, only a God Who loves us would have cared enough to plan the world with such an eye for detail. 
I hope my son sees a sunset as more than a combination of gases...that he understands, more than anything, that he is loved by a God Who made him with great joy.
Maybe someday, you will understand that, too.

If you want more information on why I think that teaching my children both science and evolution is important, please take a look at Ben Stein's Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. 


Mr. Nye, you were very brave to be so outspoken.  I appreciate your candidness--you've just publicly said what our schools have been teaching for years. I love the fact that we live in a country that allows us to disagree. I still think you're a really great science teacher. But, if you don't mind, please allow me to parent my child in a way that I see fit, without telling me that it's a "Waste of Time." And, as a reminder from one of my favorite children's series, Mr. Nye: "God Made You Special, and He Loves You Very Much!" Thank you for your time.


Sincerely,

Cassidy S. Cooley
Creationist-At-Heart

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