Gods and Monsters

"True science will never contradict the Bible because God created both the universe and Scripture...If a scientific theory contradicts the Bible, then the theory is wrong and must be discarded."
ACE

I have a confession to make. I hope that you don't believe any less of me. I believe in evolution. And gravity. And the big bang. I know that it is heretical in this day and age but I am willing to stick my neck out and say it. The bad s word. You know the one. Science. I believe in it. Come burn me at the stake, I'm waiting.

An interesting article over at AlterNet showing the pitfalls of letting the faith folks back in charge of education. Here are some nuggets from the ACE (Accelerated Christian Education), A Beka and Bob Jones University curriculum being taught in some schools for you to consider. Public money purchased many of these textbooks through vouchers:

I love this one - still being taught today.

Are dinosaurs alive today? Scientists are becoming more convinced of their existence.

Have you heard of the `Loch Ness Monster' in Scotland? `Nessie,' for short has been recorded on sonar from a small submarine, described by eyewitnesses, and photographed by others. Nessie appears to be a plesiosaur.

Could a fish have developed into a dinosaur? As astonishing as it may seem, many evolutionists theorize that fish evolved into amphibians and amphibians into reptiles. This gradual change from fish to reptiles has no scientific basis. No transitional fossils have been or ever will be discovered because God created each type of fish, amphibian, and reptile as separate, unique animals. Any similarities that exist among them are due to the fact that one Master Craftsmen fashioned them all."

Extract from Biology 1099, Accelerated Christian Education Inc. (1995)

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More from ACE:

Some scientists speculate that Noah took small or baby dinosaurs on the Ark.... are dinosaurs still alive today? With some recent photographs and testimonies of those who claimed to have seen one, scientists are becoming more convinced of their existence...

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From Bob Jones and A Beka:

- Only ten percent of Africans can read or write, because Christian mission schools have been shut down by communists.


- "the [Ku Klux] Klan in some areas of the country tried to be a means of reform, fighting the decline in morality and using the symbol of the cross... In some communities it achieved a certain respectability as it worked with politicians."  


- "God used the 'Trail of Tears' to bring many Indians to Christ."


- It "cannot be shown scientifically that that man-made pollutants will one day drastically reduce the depth of the atmosphere's ozone layer."


- "God has provided certain 'checks and balances' in creation to prevent many of the global upsets that have been predicted by environmentalists."


- the Great Depression was exaggerated by propagandists, including John Steinbeck, to advance a socialist agenda.


- "Unions have always been plagued by socialists and anarchists who use laborers to destroy the free-enterprise system that hardworking Americans have created."


- Bill Clinton's 1992 presidential win was due to an imaginary economic crisis created by the media.


- "The greatest struggle of all time, the Battle of Armageddon, will occur in the Middle East when Christ returns to set up his kingdom on earth."
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Top five lies taught by ACE.