Via John Pieret's excellent blog Thoughts in a Haystack, here is an article from The Texas Observer that gives us a rare glimpse into the black-and-white world of Texas State Board of Education Chairman Don McLeroy.
His mind works in an orderly, black-and-white fashion, moving from point A to B to C. He has little respect for scientists like Ken Miller, an orthodox Catholic and popular writer on evolutionary biology who argues that there's no controversy between evolution and religion. They, McLeroy believes, are inconsistent, and he values consistency above all else."I would never say that Miller's not a real Christian," he says. "I don't think you have to be one to be the other. But I don't think he's very consistent.
"That's why I like Dawkins so much. He at least takes evolution to where it has to lead - atheism."
McLeroy clearly believes that teaching evolution leads to atheism, and that belief explains his motivation for criticizing evolution. There is something to be said for McLeroy's straight-forward confession of his religious motives. Unfortunately, he is unable to see that, by allowing his personal beliefs to trump the established findings of the scientific community, he is intruding on the religious freedom afforded to Texas students by the U.S. Constitution.
Throughout the interview, McLeroy exudes an air of supreme confidence. Given that he has no formal training in the fields of science or education, the interviewer went ahead asked him the obvious question:
How can he be so confident, given his lack of training in science, theology, or education?
For the first time in our interview, McLeroy sounds taken aback.
"That's a good question," he says.
He's quiet for a long time.
"Because the truth is on our side," he finally says. "We may not be trained, but I have faith that we're right."
For the first time in our interview, McLeroy sounds taken aback.
"That's a good question," he says.
He's quiet for a long time.
"Because the truth is on our side," he finally says. "We may not be trained, but I have faith that we're right."
Apparently, one man's faith in his convictions is enough to the justify sacrificing the quality of science education for a generation of Texas schoolchildren.
Michael Zimmermann, the founder of The Clergy Letter Project, countered McLeroy's claim that evolution necessarily leads to atheism. Although Zimmermann himself is an atheist, he recognizes that this struggle is really a sectarian conflict, centered around how different religious groups interpret Scripture.
"It's not about science and religion," Zimmermann says. "That's a popular misconception. Instead, it's about one strand of Christianity versus another. It's the liberal wing, who believes there's nothing wrong with theistic evolution, versus the fundamentalists, who can't accept it.
"This is a case of one fringe group of Christians trying to paint themselves as the voice of all Christians," he says of creationists. "And in that, they've been enormously successful."
"This is a case of one fringe group of Christians trying to paint themselves as the voice of all Christians," he says of creationists. "And in that, they've been enormously successful."
Here is my straight-forward confession:
McLeroy and his fellow anti-evolution activists in Texas do not speak for Christians like Cheryl and me. And, frankly, we find many of their tactics to be contrary to the principles of our Christian faith.
For instance, if McLeroy truly believes that the truth is on his side, then why did he need to resort to quote-mining and plagiarism in order to ensure that his nonsensical amendment passed?
That's not very consistent.
posted by Jeremy Mohn
