In The Beginning...

Interesting article from BBC about the Archbishop of Cantebury speaking about teaching Creationism in schools.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/education/4828238.stm

From the article:

Dr Williams [Archbishop] said: "I think creationism is, in a sense, a kind of category mistake, as if the Bible were a theory like other theories.

"Whatever the biblical account of creation is, it's not a theory alongside theories. It's not as if the writer of Genesis or whatever sat down and said: 'Well, how am I going to explain all this... I know: in the beginning God created the heavens and the earth'.

"So if creationism is presented as a stark alternative theory alongside other theories I think there's just been a jarring of categories. It's not what it's about."

Asked if it should be taught, he said: "I don't think it should, actually. No, no. And that's different from saying - different from discussing, teaching what creation means.

"For that matter, it's not even the same as saying that Darwinism is - is the only thing that ought to be taught. My worry is creationism can end up reducing the doctrine of creation rather than enhancing it."

Interesting thought. I happen to agree with him that Creationism, or Intelligent Design, shouldn't be taught in schools and I think his reasoning is spot on here. Would it reduce the doctrine of creation? I think it might. Because as the Archbishop carefully notes, it is "different from discussing, teaching what creation means." Its not just that it happened in a specific way, but that it happened as the very specific will of a very specific person. Not to discount the way it happened, which may be important, but I also tend to agree that this would be a category mistake. The writer of Genesis is making a different point here.

My favorite books on Genesis:

In The Beginning: The Opening Chapters of Genesis - Henri Blocher

The Five Books of Moses - Robert Alter

Genesis: Interpretation - Walter Brueggemann