Robert Sylwester I’m a lifelong member of the LCMS. All of my formal education through my undergraduate degree was in LCMS schools. I spent 16 years as a teacher in LCMS elementary schools and at a synodical college. Since 1968, I’ve been on the faculty of the University of Oregon, where my focus was on…
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Robert Sylwester Emeritus Professor of Education University of Oregon Evangelicals responded very negatively to Charles Darwin’s theories of evolution. Retrospectively, they might have said in effect, ‘Well that’s interesting. Gather credible data, and when your actual discoveries pose significant theological implications, we’ll take another look.’ The scientific community did seek credible data, and when DNA was added…
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By Carl Krekeler In 1989 I received a letter from Ronald L. Numbers, Professor of the History of Science and Medicine at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In it he indicated that he had been working on a history of 20th-century creationism and that in the process he had come across documents that identified me “as…
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By Matthew Becker[1] One of the more controversial matters among some Christians today is the relation of Christian faith in the triune God to scientific knowledge of the natural world. Disagreements about this relationship have led to conflicts within many church bodies, including the Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS). While educated Christians cannot avoid the knowledge that arises from…
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By Matthew Becker Prefatory comment: In my introductory course on Christian theology, students engage Christian understandings of God, creation, anthropology, evil, sin, and so on. During class discussions participants analyze such issues as God’s relation to creation, the relation of ancient religions to each other, the nature of human beings, the problems of evil and…
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