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Darwinian Evolution
Introduction
The articles within the 'New World Order' part of our Resource Hub have been written to make readers aware of the global trends which have shaped, and are shaping, our world. All have their part to play in the formation of the one world government and religion which will emerge at the end of the age.
Following the release of his most famous work in 1859, ‘On the Origin of Species,’ Charles Darwin went on to publish ‘The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex’ in 1871. In it he applied evolutionary theory to human evolution, and detailed his theory of sexual selection. It discussed many related issues including evolutionary psychology, evolutionary ethics, differences between human races, differences between sexes, the dominant role of women in choosing mating partners and the relevance of evolutionary theory to society.
It is possible however to reduce all he said to two main postulations:
- All things on earth are descended from a universal common ancestor
- All creatures have been produced by a blind, impersonal material process of natural selection, by survival of the fittest
Together with his more famous first work, Darwin’s theories quickly gained acceptance because they gave a scientific justification for godless materialism. In the latter part of the 19th century, most scientists were trying to find rational answers, not spiritual ones. They saw all reality as part and parcel of the same thing, i.e. they were monists.
Disraeli famously remarked:
Is man an ape or an angel? My Lord, I am on the side of the angels
His comments raised a laugh in Parliament but his views were soon in the minority. Today, not much more than a century later, every school textbook and every TV documentary assumes the truth of Darwin’s theory, even though it has never been proved.
Those, like us here at Christian Spectrum, who adhere to a biblical worldview in which God is the creator and sustainer of life on earth, and man is distinct from the rest of his creation with a specific mandate to steward creation, are increasingly getting a similar reaction from society as Disraeli did in his day.
At odds with the biblical worldview
Why is evolutionary theory at odds with the biblical worldview? We will look briefly at the major planks in Darwin’s hypotheses:
Remaking ethics
Darwin redefined morality. He said that moral rules were ultimately determined by reproductive success. Rather than having a Creator God who determines morality, and is the ‘law above the law’ to whom we submit, Darwin saw any acts that lead to survival of more healthy offspring being enshrined as moral laws. Any practice existing in nature could be justified in this way. Darwin therefore promoted amorality, not immorality.
Remaking family
Darwin saw nothing sacrosanct about monogamous marriage as the preferred form of human mating. He saw marriage as just another evolving product of the struggle to survive. Alfred Kinsey, whose controversial ideas about sexual behaviour are considered by many to be the precursor of the sexual revolution of the 1960s and 1970s, was trained in evolutionary biology. He reduced all kinds of sexual behaviour to ‘normal mammalian behaviour’.
Remaking humanity
Darwin’s conviction that there is no fundamental difference between humans and animals naturally leads to a low view of the sanctity and value of human life. Yet, Darwin thought there were vast differences between different human races and he claimed that it was sympathy which prevented us from eliminating the weak and the poor, in the way the animal kingdom would. He therefore suggested that humanitarianism is an obstacle to progress.
Darwin’s cousin, James Galton, was strongly influenced by Darwin. Galton is known as the father of the eugenics movement. His thinking led to seeing abortion as a form of natural selection. He and Alexander Sanger, son of Margaret Sanger (who instigated Planned Parenthood) had much in common. Indeed, behind the current popularity of ‘population control’ are Darwinian ideas.
Take Sir David Attenborough, for example. He has recently said that he believes humans are a plague on the earth. Some environmentalists want to see a 90% reduction in human life on our planet by natural selection. They would support the idea that wars, abortion, euthanasia, poverty, diseases, etc, are all natural and legitimate ways to curb population growth, using the principle of survival of the fittest.
Remaking God
The new, popular atheists of our generation, exemplified by Richard Dawkins, base their ideas on Darwinian thinking. Both atheists and agnostics are attracted by the idea that there is no more in man than the mere breath of his body. They believe life is made up of unguided processes and there is no design in nature.
Summary
In summary, the Darwinian view of life is bleak. It has no meaning, it’s just a materialistic progression. The response of many is to seek to give life meaning by turning to countless forms of pagan spirituality. Some Christians who try to reconcile evolutionary theory with the biblical worldview end up distorting the great overarching themes in the Bible.
What does the Bible say?
The omniscience of God
Our biblical worldview tells us that life is the product of God’s specific direction and intention, whereas evolutionists would say that life is an unguided process. Kenneth Miller, American cell biologist and molecular biologist, has said that ‘mankind’s appearance was not preordained. We are here as an afterthought, a minor detail, a happenstance in a history that might just as well have left us out.’
Christians influenced by evolutionary theory, such as Rev John Polkinghorne, author of books on physics and the relationship between science and religion, say that ‘not even God could know that human life would come to be.'
Man was created good
Evolutionary theory teaches that life is the survival of the most selfish; in fact, selfishness drove it from the beginning. But if humans have always been selfish, there cannot have been a Fall. The biblical worldview illustrates that human life was originally good and the Fall brought about a distinct change, necessitating the need for a saviour.
Creation displays the glory of God
The Bible clearly states that God’s design can be detected by looking at nature. For example:
Since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities – his eternal power and divine nature – have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse (Romans 1:20)
It almost beggars belief that Richard Dawkins has stated that ‘biology is the study of complicated things that give the appearance of having been designed for a purpose.' His efforts to deny God’s design in creation only affirm the opposite. His comments indicate that modern science has to accept that we have a purposeful creation.
Where will it all end?
Evolution evolves! It progresses selfishly and keeps on going. In contrast, our biblical worldview confirms over and over again that the Creator of our world, who lived in it for a season to fulfil his redemptive purpose, will one day bring history to an end. It won’t be a super-race who have overcome all the natural obstacles who will inherit the earth, it will be sinners saved by grace who will live to see creation transformed.
Evolution evolves! It progresses selfishly and keeps on going. In contrast, our biblical worldview confirms over and over again that the Creator of our world, who lived in it for a season to fulfil his redemptive purpose, will one day bring history to an end. It won’t be a super-race who have overcome all the natural obstacles who will inherit the earth, it will be sinners saved by grace who will live to see creation transformed . . .