Epigraph:
“The most formidable weapon against errors of every kind is Reason. I have never used any other, and I trust I never shall.” Thomas Paine, one of the Founding Fathers of USA
October, 2014
Written and collected by Zia H Shah MD, Chief Editor of the Muslim Times
Charles Darwin published his On the origin of species by means of natural selection, on November 24, 1859. The first positive response from the Church came in 1996, when Pope John Paul II acknowledged that evidence from multiple disciplines was pointing to the truth of biological evolution.
The full title of Darwin’s book was On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection, or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life. For the sixth edition of 1872, the title was changed to The Origin of Species.
More than 150 years after the original writing of Darwin, on Monday, October 27, 2014, Pope Francis told an audience at the Vatican, Big Bang theory and evolution in nature “do not contradict” the idea of creation, adding God was not “a magician with a magic wand.” The Pope’s remarks to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences appeared to be a theological break from his predecessor Benedict XVI, a strong exponent of creationism.
Here, Pope Francis is supporting a concept of Guided or Theistic evolution, which has been suggested by several Muslim and Christian philosophers and scientists already. But, he purposely or unconsciously evaded a more important and relevant question and its ramifications, how is the concept of Original Sin reconciled with the biological evolution? If biological evolution is true, how can we have an Adam and an Eve, who are the common ancestors of all of humanity? How can we have the mistake or sin of Eve be transmitted to the whole of humanity? What process transfers our sins to our genome to be transmitted to our off spring?
If Homo sapiens were gradually evolving from other apes, over thousands or millions of years, there is no such person or couple, as common ancestor of all human beings. If you have hard time conceptualizing this idea then read a book, by Prof. Richard Dawkins’, The Ancestor’s Tale: A Pilgrimage to the Dawn of Evolution.
The delay in embracing Charles Darwin is not accidental, there is a deep seated conflict separating him from Christianity. No wonder only two Popes have had the courage to touch the subject of evolution in any positive way. Despite Pope John Paul II’s acknowledgment, Pope Benedict did not have much to say in favor of theory of evolution.
Pope Pius IX was the Pope at the time of Charles Darwin. There have been eleven Popes since him. The complete or partial silence of these eleven Popes since Darwin is very revealing.
If there is no Original Sin, Jesus had no need to die on the cross, for our sins. Would Pope Francis be kind enough to enlighten us? The great communicator that he is, would he dare to harmonize the two, the theory of evolution and the doctrine of Original Sin.
I have examined this conflict at greater length in my earlier article, Charles Darwin: An Epiphany for the Muslims, A Catastrophe for the Christians.
Zia H Shah MD, Chief Editor of the Muslim Times
If history is any guide, we will hear the answer to this key question in another 150 years. I will alert my fifth generation, in my Will that they will be getting a response from the Catholic Church, why and how we should still believe in Original Sin and Jesus’ vicarious atonment and biological evolution, common ancestry of all life forms and our relationship with other apes. All these apparently contradictory ideas are all true, Catholic Church will inform us in year 2160 or later.
You and I will not be around to hear the new Papal verdict or encyclical as it is officially called.
In 150 years our off springs may be inhabiting other planets and the concessions made by the Catholic Church in favor of biological sciences, may need to travel millions of miles.
I am sorry, but, don’t expect an earlier response from the Church. Every establishment responds to new truths by ignoring them, before they start ridiculing the new found truths. Mahatma Gandhi has nicely summarized the process for us, “First they ignore you, then they ridicule you, then they fight you, and then you win.”
Categories: Americas, Catholic Church, Catholicism, Catholics, Europe and Australia, Evolution, Highlight, Original Sin, Pope Francis
First, I want to state that I am not a theologian. These are my opinions.Evolution is not denied by the Catholic Church. And Jesus may have died for our sins but that does not mean that he died for ‘original sin’. I was taught Biology at UCD IN Ireland and my professor, a Jesuit said that Adam and Eve, as far as he was concerned, could have been two amoeba in the ocean. Original sin seems to have less and less significance nowadays. There is always that ‘begat in sin’ concept though…
Of course the professor can equate Adam and Eve to any virus, amebae, monkey or chimpanzee. There are possibly 30 million species and possibilities, if we are going to play this game.
But, the issue is what the teaching of the Church had been for 18 centuries, before Darwin and how Original Sin was linked to Jesus dying on the cross.
Otherwise, the poor man did not have to die ‘a cursed death.’
The fact of the matter is that the poor man, Jesus, was not on a suicidal mission, did not want to die on the cross and in fact did not die on the cross, as Thomas was able to feel his wounds, a few days later.
Jesus, may peace be on him, was a prophet of God like several other Jewish prophets, may peace of God be on all of them.
So, in this article, I am offering you pure science to refute what is basic and fundamental to Christian faith, as it has been practiced since the time of St. Paul.
Peace!
A more detailed coverage of Pope Franics’ news
Religion News Service | By Josephine McKenna
VATICAN CITY (RNS) Pope Francis on Monday (Oct. 27) waded into the controversial debate over the origins of human life, saying the big bang theory did not contradict the role of a divine creator, but even required it.
The pope was addressing the plenary assembly of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences, which gathered at the Vatican to discuss “Evolving Concepts of Nature.”
“When we read about Creation in Genesis, we run the risk of imagining God was a magician, with a magic wand able to do everything. But that is not so,” Francis said.
“He created human beings and let them develop according to the internal laws that he gave to each one so they would reach their fulfillment.”
Francis said the beginning of the world was not “a work of chaos” but created from a principle of love. He said sometimes competing beliefs in creation and evolution could co-exist.
“God is not a divine being or a magician, but the Creator who brought everything to life,” the pope said. “Evolution in nature is not inconsistent with the notion of creation, because evolution requires the creation of beings that evolve.”
Unlike much of evangelical Protestantism in the U.S., Catholic teaching traditionally has not been at odds with evolution. In 1950, Pope Pius XII proclaimed there was no opposition between evolution and Catholic doctrine. In 1996, St. John Paul II endorsed Pius’ statement.
Some wondered if Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI wanted to change that when he and some acolytes seemed to endorse the theory of intelligent design, the idea that the world is too complex to have evolved according to Charles Darwin’s theory of natural selection. Cardinal Christoph Schoenborn of Vienna, a close associate of Benedict, penned a widely noticed 2005 op-ed in The New York Times that said “Evolution in the sense of common ancestry might be true, but evolution in the neo-Darwinian sense — an unguided, unplanned process … is not.”
Giovanni Bignami, a professor and president of Italy’s National Institute for Astrophysics, welcomed Francis’ comments, saying he had buried the “pseudo theories” of creationists.
“The pope’s statement is significant,” Bignami told Italian news agency Adnkronos. “We are the direct descendents from the Big Bang that created the universe. Evolution came from creation.”
Giulio Giorello, professor of the philosophy of science at Milan’s University degli Studi, said he believed Francis was “trying to reduce the emotion of dispute or presumed disputes” with science.
Francis made his speech while unveiling a bust in honor of Benedict, his predecessor, at the Vatican.
“Benedict XVI was a great pope: great for the power and penetration of his intellect, great for his significant contribution to theology, great for his love of the church and of human beings, great for his virtue and piety,” he said.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/10/27/pope-francis-evolution_n_6057378.html?utm_hp_ref=religion
Zia,
Adam and Eve were neither amoeba nor viruses. They were fully grown human beings created by God.
We have been down this road before and I showed you from at least six verses that the quran mentions Adam and his wife as the first humans allah said it created. There is no reference to any other human being who was created before or simultaneously with Adam.
‘Scientists’ have sought in vain to dislodge this fact by searching for fossils which do not exist.
I ask you now, as I did then, are you contradicting the quran? If your view of evolution, which clearly contradicts the quran is correct, why should anybody believe that the quran was revealed?
…
While the debate was about fossil records, religious zealots had some ground to stand on, but, now the debate has moved to molecular biology and evidence is over whelming, in favor of common ancestry. So educate yourself and read two popular books by Kenneth Miller.
Like DNA can often be conclusive in Forensic Medicine, it is fairly conclusive on many issues pertaining to evolution, which is in a way equivalent to crime scene spread over millennia.
Please also understand that any propensity in humans to do wrong, can be understood in better metaphors than Original Sin, which was a poor idea coming from St. Paul and Augustine. But, they can be excused for they did not know any better. But, for the Christian apologists to insist on it and not accept that it was a bad theory arising out of ignorance after Darwin is ludicrous.
Why do you have to obsess over Jesus dying for you? Why cannot you live and die for yourself. Do good and be honest and God is very forgiving. If you let go of vicarious atonement, you will begin to see, how silly is Original Sin. Additionally, genetics do not allow for transferring anyone’s sins to his or her offspring.
Zia,
In an attempt to disprove the Holy Bible, you ended up confirming its infallibility. If molecular biology shows a common ancestry, it is merely confirming what the Bible has stated over the milennia that mankind descended from a common parentage: Adam and Eve. The Bible says that God created Adam from the dust of the earth and breathed into him the breath of life. After one and a half centuries of denial and senseless attacks, the skeptics have come to the realization that the Bible has been true all along.
The concept of original sin is not a poor concept formulated by Saints Paul and Augustine or anyone else. The truth of it is in the Bible which existed long before those two. There was a quotation by you to a verse in the Psalms to conception from iniquity. The quran holds the Psalms as having been revealed.
… Darwin dwelt on speculations which made him equivocal. That explains why his ideas remain fluid and are subject to adjustments each time they are proved wrong.
It is not the Christians who are ludicrous. It is anyone who pins his understanding of the universe on Darwin.
I am obsessed with Jesus dying for me because the quran says that HE is the Messiah. There are copious references to that and that word means only one thing: the Savior of the world. I will cease being ‘obsessed’ if you prove that the quran is wrong by its choice of that word.
God is merciful, gracious, kind and ever forgiving. But both the Bible and Muhammad say that our good works alone will not save us. As I showed you before, Bukhari quotes Muhammad as saying that even he will not be saved by his good works. It is only by the grace of God alone and that finds expression in the death of the only MESSIAH.
…
Namelee you could not choose to deny gravity, based on your misunderstanding of the Bible or the Quran or obsession over the person of Jesus of Nazareth or his “suicidal mission.”
Likewise, many aspects of theory of evolution are as true as gravity and by their ignorance, religious zealots should not deny them.
I believe that the Holy Quran should never be interpreted against the established laws of nature, otherwise it is tantamount to saying that All Knowing God does not know the laws of nature?
Zia,
If only you would point out my “misunderstanding of the Bible or the Quran or the obsession over the person of Jesus of Nazareth or his ‘suicidal mission'”.
It is clear that you are the one missing the point.
Gravity and Darwin’s evolution are two different things. It does not require religious zealotry to see darwinian or macro evolution for the fraud that it is. Just one aspect. Since Darwin, there has been no explanation for the Cambrian explosion which confirmed creation that organisms appear fully grown without having to evolve through intermediate stages. Darwin was perplexed by it.
Darwin was perhaps one of the greatest disbelievers of his own theory. He did not hide his fascination with the ‘design’ and the creator as there can be no design without a designer.
Richard Dawkins has further cast doubts on Darwin’s evolution. He said “DARWIN MAY HAVE BEEN TRIUMPHANT AT THE END OF THE 20TH CENTURY, BUT WE MUST ACKNOWLEDGE THE POSSIBILITY THAT NEW FACTS MAY COME TO LIGHT WHICH WILL FORCE OUR SUCCESSORS OF THE 21ST CENTURY TO ABANDON DARWIN OR MODIFY IT BEYOND RECOGNITION”. That is already happening.
Darwinism is more of politics than science. Those who are addicted to it form a cult and victimize those who disagree. Many dissenters have been made to lose their carriers by the powerful darwinian cabal ruling the academia.
I am not a fan of the quran. Even then, the quran is correct not to uphold the notion that life began in a cesspool. How many postulations of evolution have been replicated as science requires?
Darwin said that his theory will not hold true if the fossils for the intermediate stages are not found. There is a dearth, if not total absence, of those.
God is all powerful and all knowing. That is why HE cannot have anything to do with what you call natural laws such as ‘natural selection’ which totalitarian governments (the strong) apply in their policies of euthanasia, eugenics and extermination of the weak as a demonstration of the ‘survival of the fittest’.
For true Islamic believes, you will find that evolution from monkey/cimp race and human species, they are totally other line, as muslims we do not believe in humand evoled from any other race
Here is an article of Muslims point of view on evolution, an undeniable fact, for those who are interested
Thanks
https://www.alislam.org/library/links/original_sin.html