Honorable Mention: Athiest professor speaks to freshman
Chris Brittain
Issue date: 10/1/09 Section: News
Standing in front of nearly one hundred honors students, at least 90 percent of which claiming to have some belief in a higher power, Dr. Dan Shaw told them why he thought they were wrong.
For the sixth year in a row, the Honors Program brought in Shaw, a professor of philosophy at Lock Haven University and an open atheist, to speak to new freshmen about his religious beliefs. As is the tradition, he was met with welcome opposition.
"I come back to this speaker every year because he's so well-spoken and he keeps it interesting each time," said Chris Carroll, a sophomore in the program. "I don't necessarily agree with everything he says, but I respect that he comes out and is open about it."
Shaw began by explaining his childhood and his upbringing in a Catholic family, "I got the complete indoctrination. What struck me was the idea that more than half of the human race would spend eternity in hell," said Shaw. "And I thought, 'What could we have done to have brought that on ourselves?' It just didn't seem fair."
His story then ranged from his first feelings of Catholic guilt, to his doubts after entering college, to finally his mother's death, "At that moment, watching her die, I ended up giving up the last vestiges of my faith."
Shaw then explained the history of Christianity, citing historical events as well as Biblical passages, "As it turned out, what makes you a good slave is what got you to heaven: meekness denial, suffering, turning the other cheek. It was a convenient way of suppressing an entire class of people with no reason to live."
After an hour of monologue in which he quoted Nietzsche, Hume, Freud, and the Bible, Shaw opened it up to a question-and-answer session and allowed the students who disagreed to voice their opinions.
Josh Tatham, a freshman in the program, asked "How do you explain the enormous complexity of life on earth?"
After an example involving the difference between red and white foxes, Shaw responded, "My answer to that question would be that the earth has had about 4 billion years to evolve to this point. You can evolve a lot of mutation and natural selection in that time period."
Andrew Epps, a freshman in the honors program, asked Shaw, "Where did the first life come from?"
"I'm not an evolutiuonary scientist," said Shaw, "but they've found ways to generate aerobic bacteria from anaerobic bacteria."
Before finishing up, Shaw explained that his speech wasn't intended to change anyone's views, just to inform those who perhaps hadn't been exposed to thought of Atheism or questioned their own views.
"I don't think Atheism is for everyone," said Shaw, "but I think everyone should have the intellectual integrity to question your beliefs."
For the sixth year in a row, the Honors Program brought in Shaw, a professor of philosophy at Lock Haven University and an open atheist, to speak to new freshmen about his religious beliefs. As is the tradition, he was met with welcome opposition.
"I come back to this speaker every year because he's so well-spoken and he keeps it interesting each time," said Chris Carroll, a sophomore in the program. "I don't necessarily agree with everything he says, but I respect that he comes out and is open about it."
Shaw began by explaining his childhood and his upbringing in a Catholic family, "I got the complete indoctrination. What struck me was the idea that more than half of the human race would spend eternity in hell," said Shaw. "And I thought, 'What could we have done to have brought that on ourselves?' It just didn't seem fair."
His story then ranged from his first feelings of Catholic guilt, to his doubts after entering college, to finally his mother's death, "At that moment, watching her die, I ended up giving up the last vestiges of my faith."
Shaw then explained the history of Christianity, citing historical events as well as Biblical passages, "As it turned out, what makes you a good slave is what got you to heaven: meekness denial, suffering, turning the other cheek. It was a convenient way of suppressing an entire class of people with no reason to live."
After an hour of monologue in which he quoted Nietzsche, Hume, Freud, and the Bible, Shaw opened it up to a question-and-answer session and allowed the students who disagreed to voice their opinions.
Josh Tatham, a freshman in the program, asked "How do you explain the enormous complexity of life on earth?"
After an example involving the difference between red and white foxes, Shaw responded, "My answer to that question would be that the earth has had about 4 billion years to evolve to this point. You can evolve a lot of mutation and natural selection in that time period."
Andrew Epps, a freshman in the honors program, asked Shaw, "Where did the first life come from?"
"I'm not an evolutiuonary scientist," said Shaw, "but they've found ways to generate aerobic bacteria from anaerobic bacteria."
Before finishing up, Shaw explained that his speech wasn't intended to change anyone's views, just to inform those who perhaps hadn't been exposed to thought of Atheism or questioned their own views.
"I don't think Atheism is for everyone," said Shaw, "but I think everyone should have the intellectual integrity to question your beliefs."
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Steven
posted 12/10/09 @ 8:25 PM EST
I currently have Dr. Dan Shaw as a professor in a Philosophy class. I too was grown and raised in a Catholic religous family where if I dared to question God or my faith, I would simply be yelled at. (Continued…)
interstate moving companies
posted 1/21/10 @ 12:04 PM EST
It's great that Dr. Shaw comes every year to do this talk. I think it's useful for everyone to challenge their own beliefs once in a while.
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