I misunderstood evolution so let me tell you a little story as I don't think I ever have told it on here
- I have never been truly devout deep down at any point in my life although I did try my best to do what I could Islamically & did in general believe. Approximately 10 years ago I felt a need to take an extra step & start to become more practicing so I had just started to read/study Quran, pray etc. more frequently with a view to becoming a practicing muslim. I even started debating in defence of Islam online against people of other faiths but mainly against quite unsophisticated agnostics/atheists. I discovered I was a reasonable debater & could give anyone I encountered a run for their money if the subject was right.
Anyway, I knew nothing about evolution apart from what I had studied (in quite a lot of depth) from creationist/intelligent design propaganda. I was sure evolution was a false theory & I was on the side of truth but one day I came up against someone (a woman) who was not only incredibly smart (gifted- I'd say) but was deeply knowledgable about science & probably the most talented online debater I have ever encountered.
To cut a long story short, whilst I put up a good fight she ripped my arguments to shreds by explaining & presenting the multiple lines of evidence for it in such a persuasive manner that I simply had to concede it. The encounter with her really shook me. After the encounter, I started to delve deeper into the evidence until I realised that it was an irrefutable fact.
Basically, it was that encounter that made me start to really think critically about everything including Islam & from that point on my whole philosophy changed & that is why I chose the apt name of Homo Sapien when I joined the site.
The moral of the story - thinking about evolution & the fact that it is true in light of evidence & in spite of what others were telling me had the power to change me into who I am today (a disbeliever) & I believe it has the power to change other muslims too or at least make them think & maybe even doubt.
Thanks for sharing that. It is amazing the power of a good debate, no? At that moment, people may not relent because we all have egos to protect. But a good debate will make all parties THINK when they go home, the next day, the days after. I think it is very important to keep intellectual debates going for this reason. And to use kindness more than harshness (though that depends on all the parties involved, not just one). Because at that moment, even if you have the best evidence for your side, you may not get the other party to concede, but you can rest assured, you will have gotten them to think. Even if it takes them a long to admit this openly.
ETA: I've learned that it's also a good idea, no matter how much I think I know about a topic, there is always something more for me to learn. Even if the person on the other side is acting completely irrationally, there is a lesson in each and every debate I've ever gotten into online and IRL. Even if it's only a clearer idea of how they think or why they would think or act like that, or some level of empathy with them, or understanding their POV, etc.
Topic: Have Muslims misunderstood evolution?