1. The title for this topic is WAY too generic (though I expect it didn't actually start at the point we are now, it kind of was predictable it would come this way
).
2. This thread has been almost from the start about Creationism vs Evolutionism.
3. The Christian criticism against Evolutionism is not even pan-Christians, i.e. not all Christians oppose Evolutionism. Actually, not all Christian branches (being the three main ones: Orthodox, Catholic and Protestant) oppose Evolutionism. Currently, for the Catholic Church:
Today[update], the Church's unofficial position is a fairly non-specific example of theistic evolution[citation needed], stating that faith and scientific findings regarding human evolution are not in conflict, though humans are regarded as a special creation, and that the existence of God is required to explain both monogenism and the spiritual component of human origins. No infallible declarations by the Pope or an Ecumenical Council have been made[citation needed].
(source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholic_Church_and_evolution4. To the best of my (admitedly reduced knowledge on this), Judaism does not oppose Evolutionism any more it does not support
literal interpretation of the Genesis. Hence, this is no issue for the Judaic religion.
5. I am completely unaware of the Islamic view on Creationism and Evolutionism. I am also completelly unaware of the importance of the book of Genesis, as well as similarity to that of the Judaic and Christian if they have it at all. But certainly, if we are talking "religion", I think only natural to have the input of someone of such faith on this to make it a
real "religion" debate. Islam does consider itself as the natual successor of Christianity much like Christianity considers itself the natural successor of Judaism.
6. The three great Monotheist religions "dealt with", you still have the other two of the main five religions in the World: Hinduism and Budhism.
For the Hindus,
everything is God.
For the Budhists (a religions stemming itself from Hinduism), God is
nothing.
The very interesting thing about these concepts is how they relate to Creationism/Evolutionism, or rather with
the infinite. I'll get back to this two points bellow.
7. We are finite beings.
The BigBang being the origin of our Universe does not at all explains what there was
before it - actually, the currently (I think) most commonly accepted view on this is that the Universe is expanding since the BigBang and will keep doing so up to a point where it can extend no longer (extend to(wards) where BTW?!) and will then implode back to that single particle there was before the BigBang. And then it will explode again, the cycle being repeated infinitelly.
Ok, where does that particle come from?! What was there
before the particle?! Was it always there?
Exact same question for God: where did He came from?! Was He created by someone else?
And the really good question: why is He a "He" and not a "She"?!
We are finite beings who do not experience infinity. At least not in a
commensurable way, for sure. Hence we cannot actually experience "inifitelly before" nor "infinitelly after" and thus no clue on "the very first begining" or the "very last end" outside of a finite time
continuum. Hence Evolutionism does not invalid a Creator who had created evolution. On the other hand, the Creator might have evolved from something other.
8. The Hindu aproach on God "it is everything" is also an aproach on the infinite, something that none of the monotheist religions have, to the best of my knowledge, actually even atempted. Now God being everything solves all conflicts about origins and destinations. Wherever you come from or go to, God is there.
The Budhist aproach deals with a different kind of conflict that comes from the above. "If everything is God, am I everything?!" Budhism keeps most of Hinduist reasonings but solves this with a leap of this kind: Everything is God but for you, the particular piece of God who are reading this to be everything, you need to stop being yourself, a part of God; for you to be Everuthing, Everything would loose
something (you) which is a logical dilemna. Simple sollution: forget about God! You are spiritual and that is all you need to know.
9. In case you haven't figured it out yet: I myself am agnosthic. I.e. I do not believe we can know whether or not God exists, definitely you cannot prove either way. Furthermore, to the number of different religions (I only mentioned five, there are hundreds more, some would say "about 6 billions of them"), to claim that one holds more truth in it than another does not only sound like arhogance to me, it actually sounds pretty silly.
Specially if you do take the trouble to look at a couple different ones with a learning desire.
I could talk a lot more about Science and abour Religion (sociological motivations, origins, reasonings,
modus operandi and impacts) but I really have NO TIME!
