Evolution, Education, Religion, And The Battle For America

Since the beginning of the human race there has been a lingering question as to the origins of man and how all living things acquired their characteristics. The two main theories that arose over time were Creationism and Evolution, both of which provided very distinct answers to this question. Creationism based its answer on the idea of a supernatural power or being that created the entire universe, man and the numerous other organisms that live within it. While, Evolution theorizes that all living things have the potential to change and grow over time into something new and different. So in other words, one theory suggests that humans and all the organisms on Earth are the result of divine design, while the other indicates that they

The Scopes Trial Project... Evolution vs. Creationism John Scopes: He was a teacher in Tennessee who went on trial for teaching evolution in his classroom. This is a big deal because at this time the were many religious people. He saw this case as a chance to stand up for academic freedom. After days on the trial, the jury only took a few minutes to decide that Scopes was guilty. Later on, he conviction was overturned.

The two-hour special documentary, Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on Trial, features the Kitzmiller v. Dover School District case in 2004. It captures the turmoil that tore apart the community of Dover, Pennsylvania in one of the latest battles over teaching evolution in public schools. Some members of the community believed that not only Darwinism, but also a so called theory, Intelligent Design, should be taught in their public high school. It was a battle between the two theories. It forced neighbor against neighbor and friend against friend. The community itself was broken half and half on the controversial issue.

In 1925, biology teacher John Scopes was arrested for breaking the Butler Law that prohibits the teachings of evolution due to its contradiction of the teachings of the Bible. William Jennings Bryan, a well-known advocate was invited to prosecute in the famous “Scopes Monkey Trial”. In the trial, William Jennings Bryan, and a Chicago attorney named Clarence Darrow, argued whether Scopes defied the law and taught a doctrine that went against the beliefs of Bryan and many citizens during this time.

The Scopes Trial, a Dayton, Tennessee legal case involving the teaching of evolution within the public school system, induced a pivotal point in American history. This world-famous trial represents the ongoing conflict between science and theology, faith and reason, individual freedom of speech, and overruling opinion of the majority. The preeminent purpose of the case was to decide not only the fate of an evolution theory teacher by the name of John Scopes, but also to decide if fundamentalists or modernists would rule American culture and education. An object of profound publicity, the trial was identified as a battle between urban modernism and rural fundamentalism.

If they wish to learn about evolution, teachers should give them that right. While examining Brady, Drummond asks many logistical questions and Brady accuses him of destroying beliefs. Drummond counters by saying it is not true and that he is “trying to stop you bigots and ignorant people from controlling the education of the United States!” (Lawrence and Lee, 98). Science and religion can coexist, but they stay in separate classrooms.

During a time when evolution in the classroom was a disgrace, John Scopes illegally taught evolution to a class. The “Butler Act” stopped people from teaching their beliefs about evolution. John Scopes went to trial and lost, but his motive spoke louder than his actions. Now, people are able to express their beliefs.The twenties were surely an exciting time for America. Big business grew, people didn’t have to work as hard, and people of different colors and religions gained freedom. Sadly, with every person that embraces change, there is always one who fears change.On March 13, 1925, Tennessee legislature enacted the Butler Act. The Butler Act prevented any school that received government funding from teaching evolution. As many

The theory of creationism versus the theory of evolution is a controversial topic worldwide. The topic delves further into whether creationism should or should not be taught in public schools. While evolution is a theory that says modern plants and animals evolved by a natural process over time, creationism is the belief that the universe and living organisms originated from specific acts of divine creation. Because evolution and creationism are both theories, creationism should be taught with as much validity as the teaching of evolution in public school. Since the early 1990’s creationism has become more and more a plausible theory. The historical events of creationism dates back all the way to the creation of mankind and the universe. Various evidence, such as the universe, point towards an intelligent designer and should therefore be taught in public schools.

The subject of origins, or how we got here, is one of the most fundamental questions that can be asked. The important question of why we are here can’t be answered by science alone. How we answer these questions provides the basis for how we think about things, it defines our world-view. The Evolution vs. Creation debate is often referred to as the Great Debate. 20th century science has made the compelling discovery that, at some point, the universe began. Both sides of the debate Evolutionists and Creationists agree on one thing only, that the universe has not always existed. This is where their agreement ends. The why and how the universe began is where the division and dispute begins.

As discussed in lecture, in the face of challenge, people defended their own worldviews with aggression, which is very evident during the fight to teach evolution in classrooms in the Scopes Trial and the fight to include Intelligent design in the classrooms in the Dover Trial (Ogilvie,

The purpose of this paper is to describe Creationism and Natural Selection by the means of Darwin and Paley's views. Both scientists use Inference to the Best Explanation (IBE) to support their claims. Paley presents the information of Creationism and how the intelligent designer model works (watch model). Darwin presents the argument that Natural Selection has occurred, even though some evidence is missing. I will be arguing that Natural Selection is more plausible than Creationism because there has to have been changes and processes to get where modern society is today.

If the question was posed as to what is the debate between creationism vs. evolution consist of, the thought that it is ‘“God did it” vs. “Natural processes did it,”’ (Scott, 2004) may arise. Science cannot absolutely prove or disprove Creation or Evolution. Yet scientist and the remainder of society use creationism and evolution to prove our existence. Creationist believe in the Christian account of the origin as recorded in Genesis. Creationism is the belief that statements such as “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (NIV) found in Genesis 1:1 and also “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (NIV) found in John 1:1. Evolution is the belief that everything just changed over

In the history of science vs. religion there have been no issues more intensely debated than evolution vs. creationism. The issue is passionately debated since the majority of evidence is in favor of evolution, but the creation point of view can never be proved wrong because of religious belief. Human creation breaks down into three simple beliefs; creation theory, naturalistic evolution theory, and theistic evolution theory. The complexities of all three sides create a dilemma for what theory to support among all people, religious and non-religious.

The debate between creation and evolution has been around for a long time. For much of it, it has presented a choice between the two. Some claim that you either believe in God or evolution, not both. Others, that you have to choose young earth creationism simply because theistic evolution is not a viable option. Still more present young earth creationism as a naive understanding of both the Bible and science. However, since each position has evidence in support of it and against it, it is in no way true that any of them present us with an undeniable position of definite accuracy. Furthermore, the idea that there is only a choice between creation and evolution is false. Indeed, there are more positions than even creationism and theistic

The subject on what goes into public school textbooks have always been an intense debate. Recently Bill Nye the Science Guy and Ken Ham held a debate on this topic on February 4, 2014 which gain over two million views. Which raised the question is creationism a viable model of origin in today’s modern scientific era (Ken Ham)? In order for one to answer this question accurately first one would need to know why this question is significant. Then they would have to examine the past debate 1925 Monkey Scopes Trial and how it compares and contrast to the present debate Bill Nye and Ken Ham to get a better understanding of the argument. After the following research one can conclude that