1.Lack of knowledge of evolution science(ie genetics,etc)or science in general
2.Brought up that science through parents,pastors,etc and in general evolution science is evil and doesn’t coincide with the Bible
3.Afraid that it will shake their faith and that they may end up becoming atheists
4.Improper hermeneutics/exegesis of the Bible
5.A combo of some or all of the above
Fear? Perhaps “not accept” is a better title.
I would like to comment on #3. You don’t “become” an atheist. Atheism is more like pealing the layers of an onion until there is no onion left. That said, I think #3 should be a real concern for those who are brought up thinking that #1 and #2 are true. I was brought up Catholic and went to Catholic grammar school in the 1960’s. Even back then evolution was taught. Science was treated as good for the future, especially space exploration. Catholic’s then and now really never talked about #4 because the Bible wasn’t treated as a science or Earth history book. So TE is pretty much what Catholic’s were brought up on. I don’t see anything at Biologos that is different than what the Pope, or the Vatican observatory, or any other Catholic group says. This seems to be true regionally with the more traditional Protestant views quite similar. So I don’t think #3 should be much of concern for Catholic and traditional Protestant but I do think #3 is a major concern for those who have been lied to about evolution and science. They will eventually see the lie and that is where TE can help. But Biologos needs to have a big catcher’s mitt as most of these folks are going to be quite upset when they figure out that Christians like AiG are totally fabricators when it comes to scientific understanding.
They don’t acknowledge the difference between the Word of God and an interpretation of the Word of God. When scientific findings (or archaeological evidence, or linguistic analysis, or comparative literary analysis) point out things that challenge their interpretation of the Word of God, they think God’s Word itself is being challenged (or mocked or demoted or disrespected or subjugated or other threatening things) and that engenders an emotional and defensive reaction.
All of those things are actually true for me when I was a YEC. I would say that “afraid” is not always the right word to describe it, but it certainly was for me. At this point, I’ve spent about a year developing a new theology for myself (with the help of many others) in the area of Creation. But I was certainly afraid. I was 15 years old this time last year, and my faith had never been shaken. I thought that if I accepted evolution, I was in big trouble. And in some ways I was right, but it’s not as scary as I thought it was. I’ve learned that even though I know a lot more than I did a year ago, it’s also okay to sometimes say “I don’t know that yet”.
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