Science and religion have seemingly always been at odds with each other. From the theories posed by Galileo to arguments regarding medical ethics today, science and religion have taken two opposing sides. The debate on whether or not creationism and intelligent design should be taught in schools is one such example. These theories with no basis in reality are being forced onto schools as a strategy of “teaching the controversy.” In this essay, it will be demonstrated that creationist thought runs not only counter to scientific theory, but also to the legal and educational standards of the public school system.

Many creationists and evolutionists alike argue for “teaching the...

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The problem with that is evolution is a scientific subject, with a lot of scientific evidence. Creationism is not science and has no actual scientific backing. It should be offered, as a theory, in some other class and then taught as such.

I wasn't talking about "creationism" at all. Perhaps you are confusing creationism with intelligent design?

I agree with your concept of education, but it doesn't negate the value, or validity, of evolution, and it doesn't justify ID. ID is untestable and unprovable. Evolution isn't a "religious" belief, either. It's simply an idea that we can reason occurred and still does, just like we can reasonably assume that if you throw a glass bottle at a wall it will shatter. Blind faith and common sense are two different things.

To alot of people it is the same very thing. Granted you are technically correct. Sorry about that.

Open mindedly considering the QUESTION of Intelligent Design is hardly blind faith. The school of thought that the "theory of evolution" cannot be challenged at all, cannot be questioned, cannot be disagreed with, and anyone who so questions is somehow not being scientific is just an example of the "closing of the American mind"..... No one has to JUSTIFY questioning theories, or questioning authority, or questioning the accepted opinions of one's peers. The notion that we are all related to apes is also unproven. Schools should not be teaching theory as FACT and they should be opening minds by asking the question, not dictating what is science and what is not. The word science means "to study" not "that which is dictated, and already proven". Just like it has not been proven there is no God, so it has not been proven that there is. It's a question...one people may never know the answer until it's too late to do anything about it....but it's a question they should consider with open minds. They should NOT be taught that ONLY evolution equates with science while all other studies do not, and questions cannot be asked.

I never said ID shouldn't be considered, just that it doesn't qualify as a science, only as a philosophy.

Questioning theories is no doubt helpful because it either reinforces or weakens the theories based on their validity, but for practical purposes we need to start from a basic understanding rooted in what is most likely to be true. Based on the mountains of evidence, evolution is likely to be true. It has been observed and is used in biology for practical uses. If we constantly challenged germ theory we'd only be caught arguing on arbitrary, irrelevant issues instead of seeking to apply what we know for the greater good through medicine. What needs to be done is an open-minded approach, yes, but there's a difference between that
and ignoring the big picture.

There is one thing too many are willing to ignore. Evolution is still just a theory. Back at the time of the Scopes trial, people who believe in evolution wanted their theory to be included along with creation. However, when they got what they wanted, they insisted that all other ideas contrary to evolution be excluded. Evolution still is only a theory with holes in it big enough to drive a Mack truck through. One example is the "missing link" supposing that men evolved from monkeys or that they shared a common ancestor. Maybe they never found the "missing link" because there never was one.

Or maybe they did...many, many times.
Prominent Hominid Fossils

And did you even read the essay? The defenition of a theory in scientific circles is FAR different from those in regular society. "Theory" in scientific terms is a conclusion made based on a great deal of factual evidence which we can reasonably infer is true.

But, evolution is a fact:

“Evolution is often considered as something unexpected. Wouldn’t it be more natural, some antievolutionists ask, if everything would always stay the same? Perhaps this was a valid question before we understood genetics, but it is no longer. In fact, the way organisms are structured, evolution is inevitable. Each organism, even the simplest bacterium, has a genome, consisting of thousands to many millions of base pairs. Observation has established that each base pair is subject to occasional mutation. Different populations have different mutations, and if they are isolated from each other, these populations inevitably become more different from each other from generation to generation. Even this simplest of all possible scenarios represents evolution. If one adds further biological processes, such as recombination and selection, the rate of evolution accelerates exponentially. Therefore, the mere fact of the existence of genetic programs makes the assumption of a stationary world impossible. Evolution is thus a plain fact, not a conjecture or assumption.

It is very questionable whether the term “evolutionary theory” should be used any longer. That evolution has occurred and takes place all the time is a fact so overwhelmingly established that is has become irrational to call it a theory. To be sure, there are particular evolutionary theories such as those of common descent, origin of life, gradualism, speciation, and natural selection, but scientific arguments about conflicting theories concerning these topics do not in any way affect the basic conclusion that evolution as such is a fact. It has taken place ever since the origin of life.”


“What Evolution Is”
Ernst Mayr

Evolution has nothing to do with intelligent design. Evolution begins on the premise of cells...ID with the supposition that a supreme deity exists and this supreme deity, who is not known nor seen but just believed in as in blind faith and the absence of reasoning, created it all.