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Originally Posted by OBCT
1. I don't necessarily agree. In my mind, it is an argument for the "fall of man". Not only did Adam's original sin corrupt humanity's experience of life on Earth forever, I believe it also affected many other parts of the universe, possibly including the physical laws that govern it as well. I believe it most certainly affected animals in their relationship with humans and each other.
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Here's the thing - it seems to me the concept of "fall of man" causing mass extinction is incompatible with the concept of evolution. For instance, trilobites have been extinct for roughly 250 million years, much before any human was around to possibly be blamed for everything. Also, the so-called
"Champagne Supernova" is from a galaxy roughly 4 billion light years away, meaning that the star exploded roughly 4 billion years before any man was around to fall. To say that extinctions and supernovae were caused by 2 people eating the wrong piece of fruit seems absurd.
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3. This is not something I will outright argue against. It is an area I find intriguing and perplexing at the same time. I have no problem with the notion that the true power of God's design is in the concept of evolution itself (or adaptation, or natural selection), at least as a theory. [That process, along with every other universal law which governs our existence, is an intense reality that should not be taken for granted. Nor should it's requisite genesis.]
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It is possible that evolution is a demonstration of a designer, but that contradicts the idea of a "fall of man". Theists argue that either God created 2 people (who displeased him), or he set up in motion the rules that eventually ended up with people. And who determines who the first humans were? Were they australopithecines, or neanderthals, or cro-magnon? How did they displease God? Or, did God let evolution create animal and plant diversity, and then created 2 separate beings?
The creation story of the book of Genesis is either literally true, an allegory, or complete fiction. If its literal truth, then God really did not plan things well. He figured out that the animals need to have sex to procreate, but he initially created only one male human. Before creating a woman, God paraded all the animals in front of him looking for a compatible "help meet" (Gen. 2:19-21). Only after Adam rejected all the animals did God think to make a woman for him. The problem with using the bible as an allegorical tool is interpreting what is literal truth, and what is allegory. If we accept that the earth wasn't created in 6 literal days 6000-odd years ago, do we also reject as allegory the story of Jonah and the whale? Noah's ark? The virgin birth? The resurrection? The talking snake? Original sin? Parting of the Red Sea? The 10 Commandments? The burning bush? Lot's wife turning into a pillar of salt? The feeding of the 5000? Jesus' miracles? Heaven? Hell? Satan? Angels? Demons?
The fact is, the God as described in the old testament is a
jealous,
capricious genocidal maniac who
supports slavery.