Intro
We are often told that the theory of evolution and the Bible are incompatible, in direct opposition, and that if you believe in one the other must be wrong. I have often heard people who base their understanding of the world on scientific principles say that they cannot believe in the Bible or God because Christianity is anti-science. Likewise, I have heard people who base their understanding of the world on Biblical ideals say that science has no credibility because of theories like evolution and the big bang because they are anti-creation. Is that truly the case? To find this answer we must look at both what the Bible says about evolution and Creation as well as the principles of biology guiding the theory of evolution.
The Theory of Evolution
Charles Darwin proposed the theory of evolution by natural selection in the 19th century. Ever since its origin, it has been hotly debated by the public, scientists, and people of various religious practices. Today the theory of evolution and evolutionary biology has become a well-adopted theory by the scientific community and most educated people. Essentially the Theory of Evolution says that natural selection promotes life in creatures that are suitably adapted to their environment and weeds out mutations that are ill-suited to thriving in their environment. The culmination of these mutations and adaptations where those that survive to pass on their genes over many generations could lead to the development of a new species. The evidence for evolution helping to support the theory has steadily increased as our understanding of the natural world progresses. We as a civilization have found evidence for evolution in DNA, the fossil record, as well as in developmental biology. It is very clear on a micro-scale that adaptation leads to significant changes in the traits of animals when their environment changes. The strong survive and the weak perish, with survival their genes are passed on, and in perishing weak genetic traits are removed or diluted in the gene pool. Small adaptations happen very quickly within only a couple of years as shown by the beaks of the finches Darwin discovered and many other examples since then. A new species is… a whole new animal. These macro-changes tend to take millennia and require prolonged and significant adaptations. New species are formed when a member of a particular species gains an advantage over their environment due to a mutation that gives them an edge. This could be a significant increase in camouflage, limbs that better accomplish a job the original species did with mediocrity, eyes that are better adapted to night, or a mutation that gives access to a new food source originally inaccessible, such as swimming to catch fish. Over many generations as these adaptations strengthen in the gene pool and become such an effective part of that creature’s survival that only the individuals with that gene survive, in essence creating a newly adapted species.
Biblical Creationism
Christianity believes in creationism and that God created the heavens and the earth. In essence, God created all living things, and the universe itself. This belief finds its roots in the book of Genesis where God created the heavens and the earth and everything in them in 7 days. Most Christians today do not take this literally but more so as a way to frame God’s identity as the creator within human terms. Biblical scholars widely agree that Genesis rides the line between history and myth. It is in no small part the history of the founding of the Israelites. It is also a national story of the Israelites’ God, their heroes, and the lessons they learned from their failures. If you treat the creation story in the book of Genesis as a myth meant to shed light on who God is, how his people should have awe for him, and a way for an ancient people to understand the world as it was and is you come to many different conclusions about the time frame of the universe than if you take the creation story literally. Unfortunately, the Church used to take the creation story literally due to flawed understandings of the world as we know it and in the category of the book that Genesis was set in historically. Biblical scholars around the world have placed Genesis largely in the section of a myth that teaches truths about people and God. Our understanding of the ancient Israelites also lines up with this as for generations Genesis was passed down verbally in storytelling. Another biblical principle is that God is the Alpha and the Omega. This means that he is the beginning and the end, essentially that God is outside of space and time, with this understanding and the modern framework of the timeline of our universe we can easily say that a day to God may be a few billion years. In fact, if each day for God is ~2.25 billion years then the Creation story lines up perfectly with the leading scientific theories of our timeline today. Amazingly, the Creation story even lines up with Evolution if we look at it with an open mind.
Day 1: God created the heavens and the earth. He separated the light from the darkness and He called the light day and the dark night.Day 2: God made a vault and separated the waters from the vault. And God called the vault sky.
Day 3: God said “Let the water under the sky be gathered to one place, and let dry ground appear.”… “Let the land produce vegetation: seed-bearing plants and trees on the land that bear fruit with seed in it, according to their various kinds.”
Day 4: “Let there be lights in the vault of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark sacred times, and days and years, 15 and let them be lights in the vault of the sky to give light on the earth.”
Day 5: “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.”
Day 6: “Let the land produce living creatures according to their kinds: the livestock, the creatures that move along the ground, and the wild animals, each according to its kind.”… “Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.” So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.”
Day 7: By the seventh day God had finished the work he had been doing; so on the seventh day he rested from all his work. Then God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it he rested from all the work of creating that he had done.
The modern Christian understanding of the Creation story is that God lays outside of time, that God created the entire universe and everything in it, and that God made humanity both male and female in his own image. Very few contemporary Christians believe the creation story is literal, most find it to be a great way for God to reveal his power to humanity, help humanity understand the world around them, as well as to help humanity understand itself in relation to the world. It is a story that ought to inspire awe and worship of God, as well as an understanding of one’s mortality and consciousness. It is not a story to be taken literally or factually but rather it is one that should be taken metaphorically and truthfully.
Conclusion
So why all of the fighting between Christianity and the scientific field when it comes to evolution? Modern Christians believe that the creation story is true and gives us a better understanding of humanity in relation to the world and more importantly God as well as it shows us God’s power. The evidence for evolution has mounted and becomes quite compelling. With an open mind, I believe we can find common ground. The timeline in the creation story lines up nearly perfectly with our modern scientific understanding of the earth and the universe’s timeline.
Day 1: Light was separated from the darkness i.e. the big bang theory.
Day 2: The sky is separate from the land and from space, the atmosphere on Earth is important to the survival of life. The atmosphere on Earth was key to the generation of life on our planet.
Day 3: The continents form, rising up out of the water, and plant life begins to appear. This shows the change on the surface of the earth and how a magma core is a key to life.
Day 4: The stars, the sun, and the moon are important for navigation, marking days, years, and important events. This is important for time with humanity and for humanity’s expansion but also for the tides and for warmth on Earth.
Day 5: Fish life and birds begin to appear. Plants came before fish and the contemporary theory behind evolution is that life rose out of the oceans.
Day 6: Animals begin to appear and walk along the ground. This is followed by humanity rising up and beginning to spread across the earth. However, humanity is different humanity is made in the image of God, most scientists today would call this consciousness, and most religious people would call this the soul.
Day 7: God rested and said that his creation was good.
If we take the word days in the creation story literally there is an innate conflict between science and the Bible but if we understand that God is outside of time, that he is unchanging and that he is a creator why wouldn’t he make his creations in a way that would ensure that they are able to adapt and change to thrive in their environment? The theory of evolution and the Bible tells us a similar story, that the earth was formed in a certain way, that humanity is different from other animals, and that there are powerful forces out there that we are amazed and awed by. Did God create humanity through evolution? I am not sure, though the fact that we are the only things created in his image makes me believe that humanity is special, that humanity is outside the line of evolution, however, if that is wrong and we are the last and most important creation at the end of the evolutionary timeline that doesn’t bother me and I don’t think it goes against the teachings of the Bible. Evolution? Creation? Why not both? I am unable to find a reason why the Theory of Evolution would nullify our understanding of God or contradict the Bible, and I find no reason why the Bible would discredit evolution. In fact, if we look at the world with our modern understanding through the eyes of the ancient Israelites I believe both theories of our history line up. One teaches facts about the physical world the other explains the mystery of God and gives us a place and job in the world. Facts are important for understanding how the world works, truth is key to understanding our minds, souls, and our relationship with God. They do not have to be in conflict, in contrast, I believe that the two are both paramount to understanding our lives, the world around us, our history, and our future. They keep us open-minded to the things we do not fully understand and inspire us to seek deeper and broader understanding.