June 26, 2006

How About Me?
Everett

Well, I've just returned from a week at Lorien. Seriously.

Okay. I guess I should offer some explanation. In the late 60's, the Word of God Community was formed. The Word of God is an ecumenical, charismatic community in Ann Arbor, Michigan. In other words, it is composed of Catholics, Protestants and Orthodox who practice the charismatic gifts of the Holy Spirit such as praying in tongues and prophesying. In the mid-80's, a number of families in this community decided it would be a good thing if there were a community vacation spot. They purchased a couple of acres of land on the South shore of Long Lake, about fifteen minutes Northwest of Alpena, Michigan. They built a number of cottages; established a beach; and put in several docks, a playground, a tennis court, and a basketball court. A number of the people (possibly most of them) involved in this venture had read LotR and decided it would be appropriate to name the camp Lorien. Having just had the most relaxing week I've had in quite a while, I'd say the name fits.

Opalys, have a great time in Montreal. I had the opportunity to spend a day there a couple of years back and got to see a good chunk of the old city. Absolutely gorgeous. I also got to see St. Joseph's Basillica. Very impressive, but I preferred the outside to the inside, which seemed a little too modern and industrial for my tastes.

Annatar, congratulations on your impending nuptials. I must admit to being somewhat surprised when you mentioned them, but only because I had assumed you were already married. Oh well. The less said along those lines the better, I suppose. At any rate, a hearty cogratulations. I have to ask, though, did your fiance know what she was getting into when she accepted the ring?

Jumping back into the evolution debate (quickly, I hope), Farlas, your Mustang analogy (or the space shuttle, a watch, tv, or whatever floats your boat) fails to hold water because the individual components of a Mustang have no natural affinity for one another. There is no reason for components of a car to assemble into a whol vehicle when brought into close proximity with one another. Individual atoms, on the other hand, will bond with one another naturally, and, given the appropriate conditions, incredibly complex molecules will form. These include complex hydrocarbons such as sugars, starches, and fats, amino acids, proteins, and even RNA and DNA. Now, we do not know the process by which life first arose (though we appear to be getting closer to understanding at least how it might have arisen), but either way, this poses no direct challenge to evolution rightly understood because evolution takes the existence of life for granted. Evolution is a theory of the development (phylogeny, if you want to use the fancy term) of life from its most primitive forms to its current state today, not of the rise of life from its component parts.

Also, if you want to learn more about radiometric dating, go here:

http://www.talkorigins.org/faqs/dating.html

I'll leave Noah's Ark alone because I'm rather ambivalent about it.