70 his attempt to change the policy and program of the School, and the publi- cation of his controversal book, Peter, the Fisherman Philosopher . The first two issues were less- difficu it"to --deai with; and given time, Macinnis might . have been able to clarify his position on these issues to the satisfaction of his critics. However, the publication of his book was the final blow to his career with Biola, making it impossible for him to extricate himself from the position in which he had placed himself. The first criticism lodged against Dr. Macinnis resulted from his pub- lie statements made at his inauguration on the subjects of evolution and funda- mentalism versus liberalism, released to the Press and published in several Newspapers in Southern California. Inunediately the question was asked by many, "Is the new Dean of Biola an evolutionist and a modernist in theology?" In one of his public statements, Dr • .Macinnis said, "Speaking of evolut- ion, theologians, scientists and the public agree that God made the world and all that is in it, including man, but as to the method of his creation and the time involved, no one can be certain As could be expected, this statement was not well received in fundamental circles. To understand fully its significance and the damage it did to the Dean's image, one needs only to understand the fierceness of the battle at that time being waged between the evolutionists and fundamentalists, and that the founders of Biola were extremely anti-evolutionists. Therefore, anything short of condemnation of the theory was anathema to Biola's friends and supporters. Consequently , for the new Dean to make such remarks publicly was interpreted by many to mean he was either aligned with the evolutionists, or at least he was "soft" on the issue. This was certainly no way "to win friends and influence people" for Biola. Another statement released to the Press stated, "Dr. Macinnis is allied THE DEAN'S PUBLIC STATEMENTS
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