Charles Darwin & God

Lecture 5: Apr 7, 2013

1. The Life & Times of ‘Rev.’ Charles Darwin

Trained for the ministry of the Word

Postponed it to embark on a 5-year circumnavigation of the world (1831-1836)

Read geology, considered the premises behind slavery, saw seashells on mountains

Came home, married, and started conversations, thinking and writing

Published major books in 1859, 1871

2. The Voyage of the Beagle: 1831-1836

18 months on the ship1 year in Tierra del Fuego5 weeks in the Galapagos

3 Fuegan kids captured by Fitzroy in a previous voyage and sent to London with new names (Jemmy Button, Fuega Basket and York Minster) and now they were being

returned home to convert their fellow Fuegans to Christianity. When the Beagle dropped anchor, Darwin encountered ‘uncivilized’ locals for the first time.All the missions property were destroyed and the 3 returned to their ‘savage’ state.

Were OUR ancestors also such as these. Civilization suddenly appeared thin and fragile.

3. The Origin of Species, 1859 & The Descent of Man, 1871

CompetitionMutationAdaptationNew Species

Common descentMan included

4. Darwin’s Dangerous Idea

Darwin’s Dangerous Idea – All men are equalCreation, Life on earth, Man’s place in natureForced us to re-examine the foundation of human behavior and morality

Why care about the implications of Darwin’s dangerous idea

Understood well – goodUnderstood badly – very bad (9/11, promotes conflict)

5. The Theological Implication of Evolution by Natural Selection

Has Darwin killed God or rather, an intellectual need for God?

ONLY if our idea of God is one that CAN be killed by Scientific explanations of reality

6. Did God create by evolution or did man evolve to create God?

7. Slavery, Original Sin &

Around the time of Darwin’s writings, David Livingston was recommending to Parliament to replace the slave trade with the 3 Cs – Christianity, Commerce and Civilization. After his death, Parliament added a 4th C - Conquest

8. Divine v Natural Selection

9. “The Church of my Youth”

“There is grandeur in this view of life…having been originally breathed by the Creator…from so simple a beginningendless forms most wonderful and most beautifulhave been, and are being evolved.”

Charles Darwin in Origin of Species

10. A Christian Proposal for Charles Darwin’s God

What was Darwin’s choice?

Belief in 19th century Anglican theology or follow the evidence

God created originalis, continua and novo.Process: Gradual evolution, to allow for freedom of will, love and weeding out of errorsCost: Collateral damage

Academy for Christian Thought 

Who Are We?We are a resource for Christian organizations seeking to understand the roles

of history, the natural sciences and philosophy in their ministries. We are an adoptive authority for both believer and skeptic seeking an

informed approach to understanding of divine reality with integrity.

Why is ACT different?1. We provide a safe space to learn and to discuss topical issues pertinent both to the

academy and the religious life of people. 2. We initiated a ‘copyleft’ program to distribute our materials royalty-free in the Two-

Thirds World, to counter limited access to our materials due to economic disparity.

3. We engage the academy through participation in international conferences on religion and the natural sciences - to narrow the distance of mutual suspicion between academy and church.

 4. We partner with churches and campus ministries - to bridge the cognitive gap

between the pulpit and the pew and serve as a clearing house of ideas and a trusted resource.