(Stephen Jay) Gould argues that if we were to go back to the Cambrian era and start over a second time, the emergence of intelligent life exactly 530 million years later would not be certain. I think he is right, but I also think this is less important than he believes. Is there some reason to expect that the God we know from Western theology had to preordain a timetable for our appearance? After 4.5 billion years, can we be sure He wouldn't have been happy to wait a few million longer? And to ask the big question, do we have to assume that from the beginning He planned intelligence and consciousness to develop in a bunch of nearly hairless, bipedal, African primates? If another group of animals had evolved to self-awareness, if another creature had shown itself worthy of a soul, can we really say for certain that God would have been less than pleased with His new Eve and Adam? I don't think so.
--Kenneth Miller, Finding Darwin's God
Wow! That is a big question.
Did God create humanity? Or are we the product of evolution's random mutations and natural selection? Did God intentionally form us with two legs, two arms, a brain that can split atoms, and a heart that can open to the sacred? Or could those nearly hairless, bipedal, African primates from which we evolved just as easily have failed to survive, or appear at all, if conditions along the evolutionary trajectory were different? Are we the crowning glory of God's blueprint for creation? Or are we, as Gould puts it, a "tiny twig on an improbable branch of a contingent limb on a fortunate tree?"
Specifically created and put here by God, or the chance outcome of evolution?
Big question.
The theory of evolution posits that genetic variation and natural selection account for the wide array of living organisms on earth. Mutation, gene rearrangement, and the exchange of genetic information between organisms create variation within a species. Only those who survive in their environment pass on their genes to the next generation. Through time, the natural selection of favorable traits brings about new and distinct forms of life. There is no plan or pre-determined outcome to this process. It is unpredictable and open-ended.
Some people claim evolution decisively proves that God does not exist. The fossil record clearly shows that life evolved, and science has demonstrated that nature is sufficient unto itself to produce the variety of life forms we see around us. Clearly, no deity created the earth as a finished product. No deity created homo sapiens as fully formed creatures. No deity is in control of the open-ended evolutionary process. No deity exists.
Others claim the creation stories in Genesis decisively prove that the theory of evolution is flat out wrong. Clearly, the Bible is the Word of God. God is the Lord of all creation. God created man and woman in God's image to worship God and do God's will. The notion that our ancient ancestors slithered out of the muck, that we evolved from monkeys, and that we may never have appeared at all contradicts what God tells us in the Bible.
I happen to find the theory of evolution pretty darn convincing. I also read the Bible and have faith in God. For me, the evidence that evolution is open-ended and human beings appeared by chance does not diminish my love for God. If anything, it increases the value I place on human life and my desire to freely respond to God's love.
To think that events in natural history could have turned out differently--that vertebrates, mammals, and primates may not have evolved the way they did, and that we may not be here to debate our origins--fills me with absolute awe and thanksgiving that we actually are here. To be a winner in evolution's one in a zillion chance to evolve and exist--how priceless is that? How magnificent! Human life is truly invaluable.
In my view, God created the world to evolve in an open-ended manner so God could truly love the world. A creation God controlled and programmed in advance isn't a creation God could truly love. A love relationship requires an other who is truly free, and seeks the beloved's freedom if the beloved isn't free. To control the other, to anticipate the other's every move, or to preordain the outcome of the relationship--that's not love. Nor is it power. It's insecurity and weakness. True power allows the other to be truly other. True love seeks a loving response from one who is free to reciprocate or spurn that love.
Kenneth Miller puts it this way: "The special nature of the particular history that led to us can make us understand how truly remarkable we are, how rare is the gift of consciousness, how precious is the chance to understand, and for the believer, how great are the gifts and expectations of God's love."
Finding Darwin's God was Dennis Murphy's recommendation for the March Men's Book Club. It's just one example of the many fine books our church's Men's and Women's Book Clubs read and discuss over the course of the year. If you're interested in either the Men's or Women's Book Club, call David Ross or Cathy Hubbs for a schedule and a list of upcoming books.
Back Bay Mission Trip Yard Sale Fundraiser
Please mark Saturday May 21 on your calendar - this is the date for a yard sale fundraiser in support of our church members attending the Back Bay Mission work camp at the end of June. The yard sale will be held at Tom & Robin's house from 8AM to noon. We will be seeking donations of saleable items (we have now decided to accept clothing as well) during the week or two prior to the yard sale. We will request that donations be taken, if at all possible, directly to Tom & Robin's house. However, if that is not feasible, donations can be brought to the church.
Front Porch Lunch Continues
Our monthly free lunch for Lifeworks Clients continues to be a good success. We regularly receive ~15-20 guests, and all of them are very grateful for the meal. The lunches are relaxed and friendly - it is an invaluable opportunity to interact with those we serve. Although we have a solid cadre of dedicated volunteers, we would be happy to add more to the list. Please contact John Goff if you are interested. Also, we are changing procedures for soliciting food donations: via email rather than a sign-up sheet during fellowship hour. Please also contact John if you are not on the list of those contacted for donations but would like to be.
Fair Trade Items
So far we have raised $359 for our emerging border ministries fund through the sale of fair trade items (coffee, chocolate) to members. That's 359 items sold! Coming soon: fair trade tea.
APRIL BIRTHDAYS
2 Ellen Luna
3 Mary Tomasek
4 Ricky Masters
5 Sarah Oakes
Katherine Anderson Ashton
10 Lynne R. Lemley
14 Susan Ashton
16 Eleanor Towery
22 Suzanne L. Bradford
24 George Lemley
28 Sarah Bentley
FROM CHRISTIAN ED
The Board of Christian Education hosted a family fun night on March 9 to make Easter Baskets for pediatric patients at Shoal Creek Hospital. By the end of the evening, we had made 18 colorful baskets to be delivered Easter morning. Many thanks to all who participated, and to all those who sent Easter goodies to include in the baskets!
Thanks also to all who donated eggs and other goodies for the annual Easter Egg hunt, and to Ellie Nash and the church youth for organizing a terrific Easter Egg hunt for the kids!
CCA's Spring Retreat at Slumber Falls Camp, April 15-17: The Narrow Ridge. The date is fast approaching! Whit Bodman and Cecile Adam will lead you along "the narrow ridge" of choice, courage and anxiety in a move toward wholeness. Jennifer Howicz will lead the children's activities, with the help of the middle/high school youth. Please join us for a weekend that promises personal and spiritual growth, fellowship, and fun. If you plan to attend and have not yet RSVP'ed, please contact Jennifer Howicz (246-3753; jhowicz@austin.rr.com). We look forward to seeing you there!
PARKING
Since there are only 4 spaces in our "parking lot" here at the church, parking is and will continue to be a problem.
The designated spots for "Pastor" and "Administrative Associate" make it possible for Tom and me to be here and do our jobs. That said, we don't want to be selfish about those spots when we are not actually using them.
Tom takes Monday's off, so his spot is available then. My hours are from 9 until 1 Mondays thru Fridays, so after 1 p.m. have at it! I try to ride the bus as much as possible during the week, but I always drive in (and need my parking spot) on Tuesdays.
If you are coming to the church and will need a parking space please call ahead and see if Tom's or my spot will be available (on a first come first served basis). DO NOT park first and then check if you can park, even if it is in the middle of the work day, we might be out on an errand and we might be right behind you!
Thanks, Trish
PERSONALS
by Pat Oakes
The Academy Awards had serious competition on the night of Feb. 27. It was the church talent show assembled by wheeler-dealer producer Nodie Murphy--and it was wonderful!! There had been 63 folks in church on Sunday morning--and there were 63 folks in attendance that evening for a delicious soup supper and a stellar evening of star-studded entertainment including 32 acts with sparkling intros by emcee John Burlinson. There was even an offering taken to help the Micah 6 program. Since the only requirement was that each performance be under three minutes, there was a wide variety of presentations. The men's chorus from the choir opened the evening, Ben White read a poem, Pat and Mel Oakes and Tommie Pinkard performed in the Cirque du Seniors, Comfort Tysen dressed in costume and sang a song from her homeland, the Congo. Pianist Ava Deisler accompanied her sister Olivia who sang a lovely song. Lois Drachenberg did one of her expressive readings, and Florence Castle and Aaron Carter-Cohn played a lively piano duet. Becky Nash and Alex VandeStadt sang and danced to a song from the movie "Napoleon Dynamite." In a funny coincidence, both Jennifer and Emily Howicz and Lynne, Katy, and Jeffrey Lemley made everyone laugh with 2 renditions of the classic "Who's on First" skit. Becca Zwerlling sang a birthday song in Swedish, and Reuel Nash's talent was talking with John Burlinson about how he put together his delicious gumbo which was on the supper menu. Beth Placek did a spirited interpretive dance, Dave Ross read poems written by his father, and Carol Burlinson brought down the house with her rendition of "Prinderella and the Cince." Chester Rosson sang wonderfully, and Matt Blackstock read from funny medical notes. The dynamic duo of Nodie Murphy and Sally Tomasek performed a terrific tap dance, followed by Ava Deisler on the flute, playing the piece that earned her all ones at a band competition the day before. Rich Thompson played the piano and sang some satirical tunes, and Cecile Adam read several moving poems that she has written. Ellen Deisler brought 5 of her beautiful paintings for us all to see and admire, and Paul followed Ellen with readings from stories he has written about his childhood. Annie and Ellie Nash sang a song, and then Tommie Pinkard did an astonishing demonstration of physical fitness based on the work with her personal trainer over the past 3 years. Tom VandeStadt wowed the crowd with a dazzling drum performance on a North African drum. He was followed by Dennis Murphy who read some poetry he has written. John Drachenberg regaled the crowd with a funny story, and Aaron Carter-Cohn played the piano brilliantly. The grand finale was a choreographed song performed by Nodie Murphy, Pat King, and Rebecca Ellis, reprised from the Round Rock Community Choir's show "Swanee." Who knew that there was so much amazing talent in this church! Fans are suggesting that perhaps this would be a good thing to do on Academy Awards Sunday every year.
Clark Hubbs had surgery at Seton Hospital on March 9th for his colon cancer and came home on the 16th . Cathy reported that he was already playing computer games that afternoon. Son John and his wife Doris, who is a physician, made sure that the senior Hubbses were set with everything that they might need before they left to go back home. Just to be sure, Clark will be having one more round of chemotherapy, and the doctors and the Hubbs family are quite optimistic. Clark celebrated his 84th birthday on the 15th while still in the hospital. Everyone reported that his vital signs were good.
Nancy Brown is recuperating from surgery again--although this time it was to remove scar tissue which had developed from her mastectomy of 5 months ago. She went in for a regular checkup and the doctor felt something, so it was a relief to find out that it was just scar tissue! She reported that she was doing fine, and that there is no recurrence of the cancer. She was hoping to be in church on Easter Sunday.
Paul and Ellen Deisler were pleased to see an article by John Schwartz in the New York Times of March 8, 2005, issue entitled "May Cause Laughter." It's a good (and funny) review of the Austin Lounge Lizards' new song, "The Drugs I Need" touting and spoofing a mythical drug, Progenitorivox. The song was commissioned by the Consumers Union as part of their campaign for better disclosure of side effects. The song has been picked up by the political comedy site JibJab.com (editor's note--it is worth checking on--it really is funny!) (http://cu.convio.net/site/PageServer?pagename=Rx_song_download) and was on the Today Show on March 11, 2005. Paul and Ellen's son, Conrad, is a co-founder of the twenty-five-year-old band. Fame at last! It looks as if the Lizards are doing well while doing good.
In more Deisler family news, fourth grader Eric Deisler broke his right wrist during P.E. class while doing a gymnastics feat. As Eric told his grandfather, "I decided to break my wrist instead of my head." As he fell, Eric realized that he had to brace himself or he was going to be in big trouble. He will be sporting a cast for 6 weeks or so. He was wearing the cast for the spring break trip to the coast that he took with his mom Julia and sisters Ava and Olivia.
On February 28, Rizer Everett flew to Tampa Bay, FL, and spent an enjoyable week visiting friends and family in Dunedin, Tarpon Springs, and Sarasota. His daughter-in-law, Connie won most of the many games of cribbage that they played in Dunedin. His granddaughter, Lael, her husband Allen and their two sons, Shane and Tristan, live in Tarpon Springs where they had good visits and meals at the Olde Red Schoolhouse restaurant. The days were sunshiny, and the trips along the causeways to Sarasota were enjoyable. While in Florida he read the excellent book, "Lords of the Rim" by Sterling Seagrave. His departure from Tampa on March 1 at 7 am for the return trip to Austin went well until his car, parked in the Airport Fast Park could not be started with jumper cables and had to be towed to the Toyota agency. However, the car was easily equipped with a new battery, and he was able to spend the night in his own bed at the cottage at Englewood. Since his return to Austin he has enjoyed visits with three of his companions, including the luncheon at the Hills Country Club for the members of the ExxonMobil Retiree Club of Austin.
Marilyn Gaddis and George Carruthers report there is nothing new from San Marcos. They are in the process of finishing the renovation of the house that flooded a year ago. The recent rain has been kind to them. In fact, the river has been down for several months so that one of the dams could be repaired. Too much "big" stuff has gone over the spillways during the recent floods!
Pat and Mel Oakes enjoyed a 6 day visit to Iowa to visit the Oakes/Buck family. They were there to help son-in-law Eugene and daughter Beth out with child care while the Maia Quartet auditioned a potential new first violinist. Needless to say, the doting grandparents had a wonderful time with Emily, 4, and Ethan, 2. The weather was quite mild for early March and they were able to go play in the park without donning parkas, snow boots, and ear muffs. Beth is the last remaining original member of the quartet and is finding the process of replacing players to be a bit on the challenging side, to say the least.
Steven and Jeanine Neuse report that their trip to Thailand and Cambodia was a great experience. They feel so lucky to be able to do this traveling. They are back home in Arkansas safe and sound, recovering from jet lag and getting back into the swing of their volunteer activities, gearing up for a trip to Texas. It is time to visit family at the Eden Home and see their son Jonathan, daughter-in-law D'Lana, and grandson Nathanael in San Antonio.
A message from Dennis Murphy today that he is putting together (belatedly) a video of Yoshi's retirement service. He wonders if anyone else has video, either of the service or of Yoshi during his tenure at the church. If anyone has suitable video, contact Dennis.
BACK BAY MISSION TRIP
JUNE 26 to JULY 2
Here's some information that may be helpful. We can bring anywhere from 12 to 24 people. The mission work is housing rehab with a lot of scraping and painting. There is also some recreational time scheduled. We stay in dorms, and the cost is $50.00 per person for the week. Our group must purchase and prepare its own food. Our church must pay a $150 registration fee. The camp experience is geared toward High School youth and their adult chaperones. However, Junior High youth may participate as long as they are mature, willing to work, and do not consist of more than 25% of the total group. Please keep your eyes and ears open for our next information and planning meeting.
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