Intelligent Design

Thorswitch posted on christians teaching their kids to disrupt classrooms when evolution is brought up. (typical). Reading the post, I followed a link to a wikipedia article on Intelligent Design. Reading through it, I found that I pretty much agree with the theory.

What? You thought this was the "Pagan Side?" Well, it is. I do, pretty much, agree with the theory that there was some 'intelligent design' guiding evolution, even the creation of life. Granted, I probably disagree with the Source of that design. I don't think it was some grumpy old man in the sky.

The theory of Intelligent Design though, I believe in. Look, for example, at the interconnectedness of everything on earth. Animals (including people) breathe in Oxygen and use it in their bodily functions, then breathe out carbon dioxide. Plants then take in carbon dioxide to use in photosynthesis and growth, then 'exhale' oxygen. What a brilliant design - the Carbon cycle! Look at the human body! The lungs to take in oxygen, the blood stream, the immune system - we're a complex system! The design elements of the Human body are used over and over in vastly different arrangements. One interesting thing is that we are pretty much dependent on bacteria to live. "There are approximately 10 times as many bacterial cells as human cells in the human body, with large numbers of bacteria on the skin and in the digestive tract."(link and more info) How can that be an accident? Really? A symbiotic relationship with a single cell organism is essential to our survival. Brilliant!

The religious part of the Intelligent Design movement point to a separate, Christian, deity as the source of this wonder of engineering. That is one point that I greatly disagree with. In order to explain my theory, I feel that I must explain the process of reaching this conclusion.

I grew up in the Southern Baptist church. When I went to college, I was part of the Baptist Student Union. I was eventually on the BSU Leadership Council. At one point, I was giving testimonials and preaching with full intent to continue into the ministry. Unfortunately, I am smart and ethical. I read the bible and, in good christian form, believed what it told me. Essentially:
Jehovah created Adam and Eve, who then ate of the tree of knowledge and did not die despite Jehovah telling them they would - what I call the 'first lie'. They then began the Tribe of Israel with Cain and Abel. Cain and Abel took wives from the other tribes - in my humble belief, pre-existing, established tribes of people NOT created by Jehovah. Over hundreds of years Jehovah guides the Jewish people, the House of Israel. Eventually sending Jesus, who tells us that he was only sent to the lost children of the house of Israel - no one else. Now, Christians tell us that "the Lord" - which includes Jesus - can not lie. They describe this as a "test" of faith. Either it was a 'test' and Jesus lied about not being sent to everyone or he told the truth. I take it that he told the Truth. So, having done family genealogy, I find that I have no Jewish ancestry and therefore Jesus was not sent for me, leading me to the conclusion that Christianity was never meant for me as I am from the Other Tribes.

So, I did a LOT of prayer and observation and natural study. Eventually having a spiritual revelation about my path to Truth. I, having lead a fairly sheltered baptist life, thought I had come upon a new way of thinking, a new enlightenment! It was about two years later, after I had a pretty good outline of explaining my new faith, that I was told by a listener, "Oh, you're Pagan."

And now for my Theory. The Source of the Intelligent Design is, well, The Source. I believe that there is a Source of All Things and that everything is a part of The Source and it is within everything. Summing up, The Source is Omni-present. I see The Source as including all things - plants, animals, minerals, angels, gods, goddesses, devils, demons, stars, planets.... everything. The Source is the design as well as the designer. Within each of us is the model of the whole. We are all connected to each other and everything. Our survival depends on each and every thing in existence.

The Source - as in everything in existence - is constantly evolving. As rare species die out, something must evolve to replace them or a hole, a sickness of the whole is created. I hope, despite evidence, that Mankind is not becoming cancerous to the whole. I hope that we can reverse the trend of being more damaging than good. I hope we can become a part of the whole again instead of continuing to believe and act as though we are separate and above creation.