Evolution and an Orthodox Patristic understanding of Genesis

Patristic theology, and traditional teachings of Orthodoxy from the Church fathers of apostolic times to the present. All forum Rules apply. No polemics. No heated discussions. No name-calling.


Post Reply

What do you believe vis a vis Creationism vs. Darwinism?

I believe in creationism like the Holy Fathers and Bible teach

20
83%

I believe in Darwin's Theory of Evolution and think the Church Fathers were wrong

2
8%

I am not sure yet, I need to read more Patristics and scientific theories

2
8%
 
Total votes: 24

User avatar
jckstraw72
Member
Posts: 159
Joined: Mon 21 August 2006 1:55 am
Jurisdiction: OCA
Location: South Canaan, PA
Contact:

Post by jckstraw72 »

In 1911, Paul Langevin made this concept more vivid and comprehensible by his now-iconic story / thought experiment of the twins, one of whom is an astronaut and the other a homebody. The astronaut brother undertakes a long space journey in a rocket moving at almost the speed of light, while the other remains on Earth. When the traveling brother finally returns to Earth, it is discovered that he is younger than his sibling, that is to say, if the brothers had been carrying the clocks mentioned above, the astronaut’s clock would be found to be lagging behind the clock which had stayed with the Earth-bound brother, meaning that less time had elapsed for the astronaut than for the other. Langevin explained the different aging rates as follows: “Only the traveller has undergone an acceleration that changed the direction of his velocity”.

from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twin_paradox

come on now that is ridiculous. twins are the same age, always. one twin just had a different experience that caused his body to change differently than the others.

Gravitational time dilation is manifested in accelerated frames of reference or, by virtue of the equivalence principle, in the gravitational field of massive objects. In more simple terms, clocks which are far from massive bodies (or at higher gravitational potentials) run faster, and clocks close to massive bodies (or at lower gravitational potentials) run slower.

from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gravitatio ... e_dilation

logical conclusion -- gravity is affecting how the clocks work in some way, its not actually changing how long it has been since God created.

Last edited by jckstraw72 on Mon 25 June 2007 12:42 am, edited 1 time in total.
User avatar
jckstraw72
Member
Posts: 159
Joined: Mon 21 August 2006 1:55 am
Jurisdiction: OCA
Location: South Canaan, PA
Contact:

Post by jckstraw72 »

the Julian calendar and Gregorian calendar are 13 days apart. did time pass differently for those adhering to the different calendars?! does ROCOR really live 2 wks in the GOA's past?! um no, they're measuring time slightly differently.

so come on, i just took that space trip, how old am i now?!

User avatar
stumbler
Member
Posts: 137
Joined: Sun 22 October 2006 3:50 am

Post by stumbler »

Again, you clearly misunderstand. The difference between Julian and Gregorian calendars is due to a correction made by the Pope because of leap years. It has nothing to do with the passage of time.

I could just as easily declare that today is the 8th of August, and if enough people followed, it would be so for all practical purposes.

It seems you are upset judging by the rate you are posting, but I humbly suggest that you try to understand physics a bit better because otherwise people will have a hard time taking your arguments very seriously.

User avatar
jckstraw72
Member
Posts: 159
Joined: Mon 21 August 2006 1:55 am
Jurisdiction: OCA
Location: South Canaan, PA
Contact:

Post by jckstraw72 »

It seems you are upset judging by the rate you are posting, but I humbly suggest that you try to understand physics a bit better because otherwise people will have a hard time taking your arguments very seriously.

im not upset. i was just surprised at how much baloney i came across in but a few minutes.

but im out for now, good night.

User avatar
stumbler
Member
Posts: 137
Joined: Sun 22 October 2006 3:50 am

Post by stumbler »

It saddens me that you feel that something you don't understand is "baloney" - and that you seem to want to make a similar ignorance somehow associated with Orthodoxy.

Pravoslavnik
Sr Member
Posts: 518
Joined: Wed 17 January 2007 9:34 pm
Jurisdiction: ROCOR- A

Jackstraw Discovers Relativity

Post by Pravoslavnik »

Dear Jackstraw,

Code: Select all

      I appreciate your efforts to grasp Einstien's theory of relativity.  At least you are trying.  The relativistic concept of time certainly seems counter-intuitive, doesn't it?  One reason for this is that our brains evolved to perceive the four dimensional space-time continuum that we experience here on earth.  I would remind you that there was a time in history when our ancestors thought it highly counter-intuitive and illogical to imagine that the planet earth could be a sphere that revolved around the sun.  As far as they could see, the earth appeared flat.  If it were round, wouldn't things on the other side of the planet simply "fall off" of the earth?

        A very interesting analysis of [i]Genesis [/i]has been published by the MIT physicist Gerald Schroeder, who also happens to be an Orthodox Jew, and a student of the Talmud.  He has explained how the traditional, mystical interpretation of the Hebrew text of [i]Genesis[/i] fits almost exactly with the findings of modern astrophysics, once the theory of relativity is used as a measure of cosmological time for the "six days" of creation.  What astounds me is that so few serious Christians--including my Orthodox colleagues-- have read or even heard about Schroeder's work.  Frankly, I think that the Evil One wants it to be a well kept secret, so that modern intellectuals will continue to believe that there is no scientifically viable, traditional Christian worldview...
User avatar
Cyprian
Sr Member
Posts: 684
Joined: Sat 12 November 2005 6:40 am
Faith: Orthodox Christianity
Jurisdiction: GOC
Location: near Seattle, WA
Contact:

Post by Cyprian »

Are you heretics going to answer a simple question or not? Perhaps my question was a little too complex for some here.

Let's start with the basics:

1) Did Adam have two parents, male and female? Yes or no.
2) Was Adam born an infant, in the sense that most people understand births to occur? Yes or no.

When I receive a simple answer to these questions then it will be possible to progress to more complex understandings.

Don't play games. Just answer the questions.

Cyprian

Post Reply