Creationists are the New Heretics

Jerry Bergman

(Investigator 183, 2018 November)



The reason Creationists are the New Heretics is they openly reject the purely materialistic cosmology which is the basis for many modern ideologies and schools of thought. Because Western elites understand that a lot is at stake, they fight tooth and nail to protect their stranglehold on education. And as the heirs of the Enlightenment have taken over education from primary school to Ph.D. programs and even post-graduate research, these people now define what is “acceptable” or "thinkable" in academia. And clearly, to be a creationist is to be viewed as a traitor to Enlightenment or Postmodern orthodoxy, and thus those in power view them as heretics.

Intelligent Design supporters or Evangelicals must confront the origins debate. Many have, as their primary motivation ahead of developing a coherent Christian worldview, making a comfortable place in this world and winning the approval of those on high. Such Evangelicals who want to "fit in" quickly sense that creationists do NOT "fit in" and that there will be a high price to pay to fraternize with heretics. Thus, such Evangelicals will, at best, shun creationists, and will avoid like the plague giving credit to research by creationists or reference creation contributions to the origins debate.


Leading Scientists Now Support Censorship
    
Many people realize that the Darwinists worldview is deficient. As a result of the efforts of creationists to defend their position, an article titled "Revamped 'Anti-Science' Education Bills in U.S. Find Success Legislation urges educators to 'teach the controversy' and allows citizens to challenge curricula" was printed in a May 12, 2017 issue of Scientific American. The article attempted to argue against bills designed to protect the academic freedom of teachers.
    
The article reviewed the various State and local legislatures attempts to deal with the censorship problems in the public schools. They noted that, so far, two states have approved legislation this year alone allowing "teachers to embrace 'academic freedom' and present the full spectrum of views on evolution and climate change." Called academic freedom bills, so far three have become law in the past: in Mississippi in 2006, Louisiana in 2008 and Tennessee in 2012. At least eleven similar bills have been proposed this year in the United States.
    
One, the Florida legislation, is much broader. It enables resident to file complaints about the curriculum against the schools in their district. The complaint could lead to a public hearing to determine if the material at issue is "accurate, balanced, non-inflammatory, current … and suited to students' needs." Obviously, these categories are all somewhat vague, but at least will trigger some discussion and needed parental involvement in the government schools.
    
Not surprising, the Anti-Creation Scientific American article was very critical of all such bills. The writer relied on Glenn Branch of the National Center for Science Education whose main goal is to insure only the Darwinian side is presented in government schools and information against this worldview is censored.

State Representative Byron Donalds, a Republican from Florida District 80, who sponsored the bill, said it was developed to support parents who are very concerned about what their children are learning in public schools. He believes one reason why it passed "is that we didn't target any one subject matter." Mr. Branch opposed the bill because, he claims "The people pushing the bill have been complaining about evolution and climate change," for some time, thus he thinks the bill could end up allowing critical evaluation of Darwinism in the schools, something he is dead set against.

The NCSE, Florida teachers' organizations and some local school boards, have requested Governor Rick Scott veto the bill.  Given Scott’s beliefs, the bill's opponents admit that a veto doesn't seem likely. Branch calls this bill, which is designed to end the censorship of evidence against Darwinism, the "back-door approach to altering science education by means of broader academic censorship." How a bill designed to stop censorship will cause censorship, he does not say. Branch opines that these bills now seem more likely to pass this year "due to renewed anti-evolution and anti-climate change sentiment; confidence that a country led by U.S. President Donald Trump …. is more hospitable to such views."
    
Branch concluded their side has not lost because although the bills cause "The opponents of science education may feel newly invigorated — but so do its defenders." Note that Branch calls academic-freedom bills designed to protect the freedom of teachers who have to deal with navigating the evolution controversy "opponents of science" when it is teachers who endeavor to cover these controversial topics objectively who are often suppressed, censored or fired.  

1 Erin Ross. May 15, 2017. Revamped 'Anti-Science' Education Bills in U.S. Find Success.
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/revamped-anti-science-education-bills-in-u-s-find-success/

2 See Jerry Bergman Slaughter of the Dissidents: The Shocking Truth About Killing the Careers of Darwin Doubters. Revised version 2012. Southworth, WA: Leafcutter Press; Silencing the Darwin Skeptics. Southworth, WA: Leafcutter Press. 2016 and Censoring the Darwin Skeptics. 2017. Southworth, WA: Leafcutter Press.


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