The debate that should not be

Passion. Not as in the story of Christ's suffering on the cross. Passion that is a complete and utter emotional explosion towards a certain topic, person, or place. When it comes to passion about excellence at his life's calling, I think of my Dad. I once described my friend Mike as being one of the most passionate individuals I know about life in general. I am extremely passionate about a small number of topics (and I'm not talking about my passion or love for the people in my life here - to ALL of them, and you know who you are, my love is immeasurable).
Anyway, one such topic is the theory of evolution. Another topic is religion, specifically the tenets of Roman Catholicism, and aligning or examining them to find a spiritual path in life that leads me to a more fulfilling and meaningful existence not only to myself but to as many other people as possible. I list these ideas separately because while I consider both of them with a great deal of interest and occasionally find it difficult to resolve both issues together, I ultimately feel that they are separate issues that are guided by a completely different set of principles. Evolution is called a theory, but not in the colloquial sense of, "I have a theory that the Red Sox will continue to win championships at a rate greater than the damn Yankees did for all those stinking years". A scientific theory has been proven. and proven. and proven. and then proven some more. It is based on evidence and the most widely accepted theory for the origin and diversification of species is the theory of evolution by natural selection. Religion however is based on faith. To use the same example as before, Red Sox fans (my Dad and Grandfather much more so than myself and my brothers) had an exorbitant amount of faith for years of believing that "next year will be the year". Little children have faith in Santa Claus, and it is a valid, strongly held belief that can change their behavior come Christmas time. In all seriousness, a deep faith is believing in something that by definition cannot be proven. Right or wrong. Nobody I know has ever physically met Jesus Christ. Sure, in that metaphorical sense, we might see Jesus in the beggar on the street or in the kind stranger who offers a helping hand. However, none of us has been offered, as Thomas the Apostle was, the chance to put our hands in Jesus' wounds so that we may believe in him.
So you see, its pretty simple - science deals with proving things. Religion deals with faith in things that cannot be proven (that would make it easy, don't ya think!). Why bring up this obvious difference? Because people are scared to death of the teaching of evolution and it has no boiled over into Hollywood. Ben Stein is set to release, "Expelled - No Intelligence Allowed" http://www.expelledthemovie.com/home.php on April 18th. Check out the trailer - guess what? - Scientists who "believe" in evolution (its not a belief people) can't sufficiently explain the origin of all life on earth. They can't! No scientist can. At least not yet. But "Intelligent Design" or "Creationism" can and this movie wants it to have its place in the classrooms and textbooks of America. Now I mentioned Evolution before - a topic I am very passionate about. By no means can I explain, nor do I claim to understand all the mechanisms by which Evolution and Natural Selection work. Since the movie is about "Intelligent Design" let me see if I can explain how these "scientists" think that life originated on earth.

God did it.

No, no wait, got that wrong.

An intelligent designer did it.

Did you see that? They just told us how it all happened! He DID it. See the higher order thinking there? - they actually explained HOW it was done without explaining HOW this unnamed deity did it! Thats what you want in MY science classroom? You have got to be joking. This movie will do a great disservice to the multitudes of people who do not have a fair understanding of the meaning of science and of evolution. Go ahead - believe that God, Zeus, Apollo, or the damn Easter Bunny created life and the Earth - Science can NEVER prove you wrong! Any decent scientist, even Richard Dawkins, the most controversial Atheist Scientist and author of "The God Delusion" would admit this. Sure, hes not going to hold your hand into your chosen place of worship, but why do we need people holding our hands? Believe what you want to believe and let science be science ONLY!
I cannot teach a science class, even one in a catholic school, that life was created by God. I can mention the controversy. But no science teacher should ever teach intelligent design. I say this not because evolution has too many holes and I am afraid but because ID and creationism are matters of faith. So scientists don't have a decent answer for the origin of life. Life has been around for BILLIONS of years. How long have we been studying HIV? And we don't have a cure yet?! How about the common cold? No? You have to be kidding - we can't figure these things out?
Science is a process and it benefits from continuous dialogue and disagreement. Religion and faith are matters of personal opinion that unfortunately spark a type of passion, in some, that manages to contradict the original purpose of the institution. Wars have been and continue to be fought in the name of "faith". Enough is enough people. Lets evolve as a species and come to an intellectual peace treaty. My fellow scientists and religious people, I ask you, "What beliefs do you feel passion for? Can they ALL be proven? Most importantly, can you give up your need to be right and enjoy the peace of believing what you believe?"