Comment on My Goal for La Sierra University by Shane Hilde.
Bradley has had plenty of time to correct any statements that have been published by the media. In fact it would have been ideal for him to tell LSU admin that he really didn’t say it like it reads when they published their response to his interview:
Dr. Gary Bradley, semi-retired biology professor in the Department of Biology of La Sierra University, gave an interview to an internet-based higher education news service on August 31, in which he shared his perspectives on the discussion of how creation and evolution are taught in La Sierra University classrooms.
Perhaps they didn’t bother to check with Bradley first before confirming what the article said he said. They were quick to deny what he said though:
Dr. Bradley does not speak on behalf of the university or the biology department. Some of Dr. Bradley’s statements as reported in the article posted September 1 do not reflect the views of the university. They are his views alone.
They even expressed regret over his statements:
Nevertheless, the university is saddened that some of his statements, as reported in this interview do not reflect the university’s commitment to help our students navigate the important issues of faith and science in the context of Seventh-day Adventist higher education.
AAA made an interesting observation (page 6):
La Sierra’s reputation on this issue was damaged by public statements by some biology faculty. La Sierra exacerbated the problem by using some of these same faculty to teach a course meant to help address the church’s view of creation. That further damaged the school’s credibility with respect to the teaching of the Adventist view of creation.
They’re talking about Bradley. Interestingly enough he still hadn’t bothered to correct any misquoted statements. You would think that if he was damaging the schools reputation so much with misquotes, he’d correct that immediately.
It would be nice if Bradley didn’t believe what he does or say the things he said. Your arguments just don’t hold up in the face of the observations of LSU and AAA.
You should be well familiar with these types of comments from Bradley since you’ve listened to the accidental recording. Bradley has been quite honest and forthright about what he believes and teaches. More than I can say for the university.
Shane Hilde Also Commented
My Goal for La Sierra University
Phillip Brantley: I believe everyone at Educate Truth shares your high regard for that organization. That Educate Truth has a high regard for Discovery Institute tells us everything we need to know about Educate Truth.
You’ve made a bit of leap. Bob, while an avid commenter here at Educate Truth, does not represent Educate Truth. I or Sean do not have a high regard for ICR. I don’t recall ever referencing it either in any post. I don’t think Sean has either.
My Goal for La Sierra University
LSU Alumnus 1996: is it truly your understanding that your beliefs are in the majority among your peers?
Your question is a bit broad but if you’re referring to my belief in a recent, six-day creation, then yes, I believe the majority of Seventh-day Adventists believe in the historicity of Genesis 1-11. But we don’t believe this to be true because the majority of the church also believes it, we believe it because we believe the Bible to be true. Having the majority on your side is a luxury and says absolutely nothing about the truth.
This isn’t our church, it’s God’s church, and as a representative of his church I have a responsibility to represent the beliefs of the church in all aspects of my life.
Now regarding your question about a survey, there was a survey done by the Institute of Church Ministry at Andrews University in 2002. You can read the whole thing here. Question 31 asked members if they believed “the creation took place in six literal days several thousand years ago.” The survey response mean was 92.83% agreed with the statement.
This was 9 years ago, so it would be interesting to see what that statistic would be now.
My Goal for La Sierra University
LSU Alumnus 1996: There were never any hidden, underground classes meeting in the basement of San Fernando Hall to undermine the church by teaching evolution. There were no undue restrictions placed on students desiring to take the classes, no secret handshakes, no non-disclosure agreements signed on the first day of class.
Did you read the expanded version? Allow me to cut and paste it here for you:
There is an inconsistency between the biology department and the university administration in regard to how evolution is taught. The administration says evolution isn’t promoted, yet the evidence from the biology department strongly suggests otherwise. In other words, the professors have been open about what they believe and teach, but the administration denies what they’re doing.
LSU Alumnus 1996: Dr. Bradley and rest of the biology department supported the rights of students to believe in the creation myth OR the facts of evolution.
I agree; however, LSU is employing professors who are not representing the beliefs of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in their classes. When applicable, we would like to see evidence for the biblical creation presented and promoted in the relevant science classes.
LSU Alumnus 1996: I can assure you that the environment at LSU is nothing but “fair,†and furthermore, that it is unfailingly supportive of those who choose to align themselves with the official church position.
That’s great! I really hope things are improving in this area. This doesn’t negate the experience of Seventh-day Adventist students who have not been treated as they ought.
LSU Alumnus 1996: Those passages of the Bible that describe the origin of the world are fundamentally incompatible with science, and any attempt to bring them into harmony is a fool’s errand.
If you’re talking about mainstream interpretation of science, then I’d absolutely agree with you. This is primarily why I have a problem with how the LSU biology department is teaching evolution.
Recent Comments by Shane Hilde
La Sierra University Hires Another Darwinist
ADvindicate has also published an article about LSU and Raul Diaz that expands on a few details.
http://advindicate.com/?p=2625
A little-known history about Belief 6
@Eddie: The Bible does not specify an age of accountability (to my knowledge), but the Israelites considered the age of 12 to be the turning point. I wouldn’t base a theology off of tradition though. Also, it’s not our place to judge what happens to those who have not been able to make a decision.
Perspectives from alleged LSU students
@Blodgett: Was there a comment you’d like to add?
At La Sierra, Biology Faculty Affirms Importance of Teaching About Creation in Curriculum
@David Read: And perhaps not something Christ would do. I can understand your frustration though. I’ve been on the verge of quitting this whole thing many times. I’ve been guilty of letting that frustration control and influence things I shouldn’t have said.
I have to remind myself to look at the big picture. In the end all those who are not supposed to be in the church will be sifted out. I pray I am not one of them.
Board of Trustees Addresses Curriculum Proposal
I know from talking to a couple of reporters from Press Enterprise and Inside Higher Ed that Randal Wisbey was effective in shutting down communication between any outsiders and the biology faculty. It appears he made himself the only channel of communication between the board and biology faculty.
I emailed Larry Becker about what bylaw the board members broke that was worthy of dismissal, and I have yet to hear a response from him.
I would also note that board members at other universities appear to be free to talk to the faculty.
Another interesting point. He removes three board members for trying to work on the problem and come up with a solution, and then turns around sort of embraces what they’re doing. He can’t publicly condemn it because everyone can see, whether you agree with what they wrote or not, that it’s a significant step for the faculty to be speaking to the church.
Did he forbid the document from being published? No. If you’re really excited about seeing the biology department making advancements in solving the issue, why are you removing the people who are making that happen. He never did anything like that.
What has Wisbey done to address and fix this issue? Nothing. He’s dragged it out, lied about what’s been happening, and told everyone involved to shut up or get in trouble. What on earth is he trying to do?
Who knows, he might even be a part of the underground movement to sever LSU from the church by using WASC as the big hammer. It’s obvious from one former board member, there was interest in using WASC to manipulate the situation.
