Science versus Texas: FIGHT!

[theweaselking]

Bill Nye gave a presentation:

The Emmy-winning scientist angered a few audience members when he criticized literal interpretation of the biblical verse Genesis 1:16, which reads: “God made two great lights - the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars.”

He pointed out that the sun, the “greater light,” is but one of countless stars and that the “lesser light” is the moon, which really is not a light at all, rather a reflector of light.

A number of audience members left the room at that point, visibly angered by what some perceived as irreverence.

“We believe in a God!” exclaimed one woman as she left the room with three young children.

Wow.

Story from 2006, BTW. But new to me!

Comments

[rimrunner.livejournal.com]

Oh, darn. I was going to point that one out to you at the time and totally forgot.

Thing is...the thing that really gets me...is this: if one DOES believe in god (a god, multiple gods, whatever), how exactly does that preclude knowing that the moon is not a light, or made of green cheese, or whatever?

...aside from the suspension of rational thought that frequently accompanies same, I mean.

(I've also believed for a long time that a god that can't withstand a little irreverence isn't worth much, but that's a tangential topic.)

[theweaselking.livejournal.com]

if one DOES believe in god (a god, multiple gods, whatever), how exactly does that preclude knowing that the moon is not a light, or made of green cheese, or whatever?
Ahem.

"God made two great lights - the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars."

Therefore, if the sun is a star and the moon isn't a light at all - in fact, it's one of the darkest objects in the solar system and the only reason it's so bright is that it's close enough to the sun that, well, it gets as much light *as we do under a noonday sun*, that would mean you've disproved God.

Since God is real, that means you're a foolish liar who KNOWS he's lying but is still lying because you hate God.

Rational thought and religion are not only incompatible, but they are opposites, and annihilate each other on contact.

[rimrunner.livejournal.com]

Therefore, if the sun is a star and the moon isn't a light at all - in fact, it's one of the darkest objects in the solar system and the only reason it's so bright is that it's close enough to the sun that, well, it gets as much light *as we do under a noonday sun*, that would mean you've disproved God.

That only applies if one believes that the Bible is literally true.

[theweaselking.livejournal.com]

You're trying to apply rational thought to religion.

[rimrunner.livejournal.com]

Hey, some people watch football.

[nihil-duce.livejournal.com]

Yes, but you can eventually convince a Saints fan that their team blows. Religious folk tend to dig their heels in by default when their faith is questioned.

[doug-palmer.livejournal.com]

Oh, you mean Collingwood

[itlandm.livejournal.com]

Not even then. The Bible does not specify lunar autoluminiscence.

[theweaselking.livejournal.com]

To this person, it apparently does.

The epidemic inability of people who believe the Bible to read for comprehension, context, or subtlety is something you should be well aware of.

[rimrunner.livejournal.com]

Religion professors at $MY_UNIVERSITY routinely refuse to tell their students what religion they are (or whether they have one; it's not a job requirement) because then students who don't like having their beliefs challenged by academic study of religion don't have the excuse of "Well, you WOULD say that, you're Catholic/Jewish/Muslim/atheist/$INSERT_SECT_HERE."

[hakerh.livejournal.com]

That's a smart practice.

/Side note about religion profs: I took a class on apocalyptic Judaeo-Christian texts back in undergrad, and the professor always brought his "In Case of Rapture, You Can Have This Mug" coffee cup to class. When asked, he did point out that one of his grad students had given it to him as an ironic joke, and he was in fact Jewish.

[cleodhna.livejournal.com]

Or content. Or reading at all, because, well, if they read the Bible much... well. Leviticus, anybody?

[opaqueplanet.livejournal.com]

Bill Nye the Science Guy.
Bill! Bill! Bill! Bill! Bill! Bill! Bill...

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

She believes in god?

Then credit your god with more respect than you're giving him! If you believe in god, you believe in god that gave you a brain, in a god that gave you reason. In a god that gave people minds to think, tongues to speak and opinions to express. If you believe in god then you believe in a being that is so much more than words on a dusty page.

If you believe in deity then give respect and homage to the deity and the world you believe he has created (surely the most direct source to deity there can be!) - not in an ancient book that has been badly transcribed and grossly manipulated by agenda driven people over the centuries. If you believein deity you will deal in the world you believe HE created, not ignore it while clinging desperately to dead, musty words on a page.

[theweaselking.livejournal.com]

No, no, you misunderstand.

This world is SATAN'S, given over to The Enemy.

Things you perceive here cannot be trusted. Especially not when they contradict THE WORD OF GAWD, as expressed through His prophet KING JAMES.

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

Is this where we say "praise the lord, Halleluja?"

And I've always wondered, why KJV? Of all the versions why is THAT the word of GAWD?

[theweaselking.livejournal.com]

Because it's in the original, plain language of Jesus Christ: English, with a diction that sounds like a Mighty Thor comic book.

It's the same reason The Book Of Mormon is so popular.

[sparkindarkness.livejournal.com]

I reckon it goes back to an urge to have it all in latin. If you can understand it, it's not religion Gawddamnit!

[gothpanda.livejournal.com]

I love Bill Nye, glad to see he's still around and working.