Received 6.21.2000

Just wanted to drop a line and say thanks for the website... the first I've seen dedicated to atheism that is intelligent and well-informed. No surprise, but it's nice to know there are "others like me" out there, especially after enduring 5 years working on a PhD in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology (and teaching it to undergrads) at the University of Tennessee. My response to those students who claimed they couldn't read or listen to lectures about evolution because it was "against their religion": Your religion prevents you from reading fiction? How'd you get through 12 years of English lit?

Sadly, for those people who are really hard-core against evolution (most quoted reason: "Because I didn't come from monkeys"), no amount of explanation along the lines of "evolution=change over time" will ease their suspicions and fears. Even professors who spend an entire lecture, explaining how they combine their belief in a God with the existence of evolution, don't seem to be able to make a dent in the wall. But we do try... check out our departmental efforts: http://fp.bio.utk.edu/darwin/

I'd love to hear about efforts (if any exist) to get the "In God We Trust" off of our money...

Thanks much

My Reply:

Thank you for your kind words. They mean a lot to me knowing that they come from someone who knows much more about the subject than myself.

If the phrase "a challenging job" were to appear in the dictionary, I think the definition could easily be "teaching evolution in Tennessee." I checked out your web site and your efforts are impressive, much more aggressive than I would have imagined before receiving your note.

I think the idea of evolution goes against our egocentric nature so it is not surprising people resist it. You mention in your letter that some students are afraid to even hear a lecture on the topic. I wonder if we didn't have telescopes or the ability to observe the Earth and Sun from space, if people would still be debating about whether the Earth revolves around the sun or not. Evolution is humbling and discomforting for many people, the same way heliocentrism must have been before it was widely accepted.

Richard Dawkins uses an example that I think most people can relate to. He notes that all breeds of dogs, from Chihuahua to Great Dane, have been bred within the last 1,000 years. They are a product of what I would call "unnatural selection" or selective breeding, but it still illustrates the power of selective, cumulative genetic change.

I would take his example further by asking people to imagine how much change would be possible in twice as much time. How about 10 times as long. 100 times as long. 1,000 times. 100,000 times. Or finally 3,000,000 times as long. That is how long it is estimated that life has been evolving on Earth (3,000,000,000 years).

As you note in your letter, these types of examples won't get you anywhere with people who disagree for ideological reasons like "I didn't come from a monkey" or "I was created by a god." Evolution is a distasteful idea for these people so they will be close-minded, if they even hear you at all. So the battle will go on and on. I would like to thank you for being on the front line.

As far as having "In God We Trust" removed from U.S. currency, there have been attempts, most notably by the founder of the American Atheists Society, Madalyn Murray O'Hair, the person responsible for removing prayer from public schools.  The court ruled that the phrase was ceremonial and not a government sponsorship of religion.  Here is a link to an article on the American Atheists web site to read more.  The article also discusses the phrase's origin on our currency.

http://www.atheists.org/flash.line/igwt1.htm