It’s a Thanksgiving custom with many families to go around the table and everyone has to say what he or she is especially thankful for. This puts everyone on the spot — perhaps that’s the point — and can be an occasion for awkwardness since some may feel more or less “blessed” than their dining companions.
But how about this? A reason to be thankful that equally encompasses every human being that has ever existed and will ever exist.
That’s the thesis advanced by biologist Michael Denton in the 33-mintue Discovery Institute documentary Privileged Species: The extraordinary fine-tuning of biology, chemistry, and physics powerfully testifies that the cosmos saw us coming from the beginning. Somehow, everything was set in place for creatures very much like ourselves.
Rather than argue about politics or sports — two other Thanksgiving staples — why not share Privileged Species with your friends and loved ones this holiday? There couldn’t be a more a persuasive case than the one Dr. Denton makes that human life is special and meaningful, and that its remarkable status in the universe is not just a matter of assertion but compelled by objective scientific evidence.