Tuesday, 10 February 2009

Sydney Atheists respond to opinion piece in SMH "Questions Darwinism cannot answer"

Sydney Atheists president, Anthony Englund, has written a letter to the editor of the Sydney Morning Herald in response to the piece "Questions Darwinism cannot answer", SMH Opinion section February 9, 2009.
You can read the piece here, http://www.smh.com.au/news/opinion/questions-darwinism-cannot-answer/200... I should note it's by the Professor of Theology at Charles Sturt University, Tom Frame. How does one get a professorship in imaginary friends anyway?
Our response letter was as follows.
Subject: Response to opinion piece "Questions Darwinism cannot answer", SMH Opinion section 9 Feb 2009

On behalf of Sydney Atheists, please publish this in your letters section.

Questions Darwinism cannot answer
Tom Frame is correct to write that evolution doesn't explain everything. But Darwin's theory explains a great deal and gives us a very powerful picture of how the natural world, including us, came to be. It is a mistake to conclude, simply because there are things we don’t yet know, that those "gaps" must be filled in by a supernatural creator. It is also wrong to assume that you need to believe in "spirits" in order to be "spiritual". We are entirely natural creatures. As part of this, we are also conscious beings. We live, love, laugh, hope, are poetic and, at our best, can be both reasonable and compassionate. An understanding of science can help us to find our way. And an understanding of each other can do the rest. Despite what Tom writes, one form of knowledge does not come at the expense of the other and nothing beyond the two is needed to live enlightened, full and meaningful lives.
Anthony Englund
President
Sydney Atheists Inc.
www.sydneyatheists.org

Sydney Atheists is a non-profit organisation

 Originally posted by Nathan Dunn

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