There are many views on evolution. Most are well worth the total value of those trace bits of matter: water and other molecules, and minerals, that they add up to in their host organism, which is to say, not all that much.
This is not to disparage the idea of evolution. Quite the contrary, too much seems to be said about it. At some point we just have to grant that people who want to believe they hold a privileged place in the cosmos, despite its immensity, can just hold on to those cherished notions. We do not begrudge our kitty wanting to believe her favorite cloth mouse toy is real.
Then there are those of us who believe belonging as star stuff to an immense Mulitiverse IS special in, and of, itself. We see our connection to other primates. We see primate connections to other plants and animals. We see other organisms’ connections to sky, mountains, tides, and even planets. We see the grandeur that Darwin glimpsed and we have no qualms at all about being mere “animals.” We get it, and we don’t need magic underwear, fancy pope hat reverence, or devotion to spaghetti monsters to cherish our place in the cosmos.
There is too much strife around the issues of simple biology. We are the only animals that willingly participate in this conflict. Why do we do this? Perhaps, ironically, it is because some of us have “suddenly got religion.” The religion of grandeur that Darwin and so many scientists since have seen is worth getting. The religion of those who unraveled DNA to find it builds human beings out of four little keys, plus human instincts to mate and love, and the fervor of those who are passionate about learning in general is addictive. If scientists weren’t so geeky and methodical, we would surely all be zealots, giddy at every moonbeam, and passionate over every daisy.
Nature’s laws are so wondrous, intricate, and life affirming. They hold the answers to who we are, where we came from and to where we will go if we are not cautious.
There are still some people who want intelligent design taught in our class rooms. These same people do not seem to think it is important to change the course of cosmology back to tracing little pictures of rams, goats, and fish in the sky.
We need to have them think hard about why this should be. They then begin to know that being an animal on earth makes at least as much sense as being born under (an animal in the sky that requires a rather imaginative connect the dots bit of magic to even see), astrology puzzle.
In time the sumpreme view of evoltuion will be that it is how life makes life. We can wait, or we can preach the gospel. Personally, I think the good news, that we belong, is worth knowing if we are too value, protect, appreciate and thrive on this little blue rock of wonder. We too, belong, we are animals, Go US!
Related posts:
The Debate on Evolution the Theory of Evolution why Theory Matters Darwin and Society
Views on the Theories of Evolution
Darwin Evolution in Action Belonging to Nature who Owns Earth Resource Wars Debate on Evolution
Legacy of Evolution Legacy of Darwins Theory Darwin Changed History Social Effects of Evolution