Humans, Dogs and oxytocin (Introduction)

by dhw, Monday, September 28, 2015, 19:04 (3343 days ago) @ David Turell

DAVID: I'm not irrational about God. He might be able to do anything He wants. You are the doubting one, but then you are agnostic, and full of doubt.
dhw: The irrationality lies in your interpretation of your God's methods and intentions: the hypothesis that he can do anything he wants does not lend any credence to the theory that he specially designed the weaverbird's nest as part of his plan to produce humans. Ditto the billions of other innovations and organisms and lifestyles extinct and extant.-DAVID: I look at what has been produced as life progresses from bacteria onward and have offered a balance of nature to allow for a supply of energy to the survivors of red in tooth and claw. I look for the purpose behind what is seen. All you seem to see is a complex bush of life inventing whatever with no purpose.-On the contrary, I see purpose everywhere. It is twofold, and I have mentioned it many times: survival and improvement. Every form of life pursues these purposes in its own way; some succeed and some fail. I see that as a clear explanation of the variety of life and the sequences of extinctions and innovations that characterize the higgledy-piggledy history of evolution. To my admittedly subjective eye, it also explains why a particular wasp might decide to lay its eggs on a particular spider's back (substitute a million other natural wonders if you prefer them), rather than needing God's guidance because such a manoeuvre is necessary for a balance of nature to provide energy for humans.
 
DAVID: Remember, I've accepted evolution only if guided by God. This removes Darwin whose theory explains nothing.-“Evolution” means “the process by which living organisms have developed from earlier ancestral forms”. So convincing were the arguments Darwin assembled for this theory that in spite of vehement initial opposition, even many churches have come to accept it. Not bad for a theory that explains nothing! Whether and how the process is guided by God is a separate issue, and Darwin did not exclude God from his thinking. I know you would dearly love to remove Darwin and replace him with Wallace, but your frustration will not change the fact that you also believe in his theory, as defined above, so give the man his due.