Up the Bush       (2 of 2 Down the Ladder ...)

Remember, I disowned the ladder image of evolution. After reading

Stephen Jay Gould I've opted for the bush as best depicting the

course of  evolution:  non-directed straight-line A to B development

of the species species, no ladder-implied value judgements  ranking

life in  a medieval hierarchical pyramid

as higher and "better" than

its ancient predecessors (maybe I could take on a Tyrannosaur Rex

in a verbal debate, but  concede him my better in a wrestling match),

no denial of the haphazard, chance-filled history of life (God or

no God).  So, looking at the fossil record horses and we (primates)

 don't  appear  the divinely planned culmination of an orderly

development  of life but more the sorry rump of families of species

that once enjoyed more prosperous days (in terms of numbers,

and  extent of habitat)  Probably,we humans are darn lucky to be here!

 I mean if the asteroid that plowed intothe Yucatan peninsula

65 million years ago had been twice as large, homo sapiens may

never have evolved on earth.  And if the asteroid had hit the

sun instead, dinosaurs might still rule the earth. And Adam and

Eve may have set down on some planet five million galaxiesto the

south of us. Well, my religious instincts do die hard.  I've lost

my ladder but in true Christian style I refuse to remain earthbound.

  I will not let go of heaven easily.  There I'm as tenacious as a

Bible-beltfundamentalist.  So I'll take a little lesson from Dr.

Gould and accept his 'bush' image as a reasonable representation of

life's development.  But, what can I do with a bush? Number 1,

I won't hide behind it as Adam did.  With modern communications and

probing media, a bush is pretty flimsy protection.  And hide from God,

forget it.A more relevant Bible bush  is Moses' Burning Bush out

there in Midian.  The bush that launched the great Exodus theme of

the whole Bible and some say of Western Civilization.  A bush that

disobeyed the 2ndLaw of Thermodynamics and "oxidized but was not

reducued to ash."  Now that is a great bush to putbeside Gould's

'lineage of evolution' bush.  Both bushes have history; pedigree.

Both bushes say a lot about where we coming from - physically and

culturally.  Both symbols yield much info and are maps of reality.

Both touch on the limits of human thinking (mystery). Evolution

may say volumes about the origin of species but the intricacies

and twists and turns of Gould's speciation bush may go unanswered

forever.    Of course, the burning bush is a symbol even if there

was a jet of burning  natural gas in Midian ignited by a thunder

bolt.  A symbol of something far more important than a miraculously

burning bush or plant.   Truly a symbol that God does exist.

 No more than that.  God exists and cares for humans. Furthermore,

this caring, loving God gets mixed up in human history and communicates

himself and his purposes to men/women. So I'll buy Dr. Gould's

bush image.  Correlate it with  Moses' burning bush.  Now what kind

of song could we write about that!?                    More Theology