A few years back I heard a sermon from a guest preacher that used the example of Jupiter’s presence in the solar system decreasing the number of comets etc. that might hit the Earth catastrophically as a ‘proof’ of the intelligent design (by God) of the solar system (and by implication the whole universe). (For an example of this see: Reasons To Believe: Spokane Chapter Newsletter – June 2006 – Jupiter and Saturn: Miraculous Planets)
As someone who has a passing interest in astronomy (I did a couple of undergraduate papers at university) that example always seemed too neat – surely things were more complicated than that in the celestial mechanics of the solar system? And now, things do appear more complicated over at Is Jupiter a Bodyguard or Troublemaker? — Schilling 2007 (824): 3 — ScienceNOW. I guess it’s time for a sermon retcon for a few preachers.
