30 miles, 3 days, and an interesting fella

I plan to post some photos later today or at least by tomorrow of our trek.

Wow. What an exhilirating, tiring, beautiful time. 12 miles a day the first two days, and a six-mile finale on the last.

Had some great talks with Will and Rose (and of course, Holly) and some other folks we met along the way.

Probably the most curious conversation was one that we had at Foster Point–a viewing-spot where you can see most of the tallest peaks in SoCal–with this retired schoolteacher. He was originally from Scotland, but had spent decades in California, lobbying for 'rational thought'. He wore a shirt that said, "Keep Church and State Separate."

I just asked him what his shirt was about and let him roll. He had a great deal to say about fundamentalist Christians and how evil they are, wanting to get their 'creation myths' into the classroom, wanting to 'hijack science', etcetera and onward.

I asked him if he'd met any people of faith that were evolutionists, and he didn't even understand my question. He stood so blinded by his own dogma that he couldn't even see a possible resolve, or at least a plurality of opinions being valid.

And that's what gets me. I hate–really hate–that Christians are typically so closed-minded, so neglecting of scientific data, so ir-rational, so brainwashed and dogmatic (with others' dogma). I can infuriate me.

But to see the other side of the... shall we call them the 'fundamentalist scientific community'? or the 'fundamentalist left'? They can be equally dogmatic and ridiculous, holding that rational thought and science can prove everything... as if that would solve the world's ills! Come on.

What about dialogue? What about listening? What about not being so brainwashed that you can't see straight? What about a plurality of opinions, or of approaches, or at least of perspectives? Can't we together work towards a more holistic picture? Isn't this the Kingdom of God? Science and belief, faith and works, heart and head... working together, in tension, but not against each other? Helping to bring balance, but working to not obliterate one another? Perhaps I'm to idealistic. I dunno.