This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
In response to the letter, "Scientific illiteracy is still high in America" (May 29), I wholeheartedly agree that scientific illiteracy is a problem. Faith is a very important part in many peoples' lives, yet theism continues to contribute to the slow acceptance of science in a time when it plays an increasingly important role in our society.
That being said, I don't think targeting God-guided evolution is any real solution.
Religion helps people by answering some unanswerable questions. It helps to build communities, teach morals and provides hope. While some questions about our world now have scientifically based answers, some still do not. While I, as a twenty-something, do not often ask myself these questions, many people do and in time I likely will as well.
Therefore, most people are not comfortable with blaming faith as the source of scientific illiteracy, and doing so will only discourage people from listening to new ideas. Science is not destined to be in some sort of fight against God, and pitting science against religion is a waste of effort when we can pursue coexistence.
If that coexistence includes God-guided evolution as a popular explanation, so be it, so long as science gets the credit it deserves.
Landon Troester
Murray