Expert: Quentin Parker - 6/30/2009

Question
I am going to give a talk at my University on the affects of Darwinism on Christianity. I would like to show two graphs to the audience to provide a visual summary.

I have compiled twelve subjects under two headings (A and B). If you are in position to provide answers, can you please rate each subject from 0 to 5. 0 being not relevant, 1 being slightly relevant, and 5 being very relevant. I will provide one graph for heading A and another graph for heading B.


A. Assess top level changes in religion in relation to Darwinism:
1. Complements Christianity (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g complements the literal interpretation of Bible and potentially responsible for more followers)
2. Conflicts with Christianity (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. conflicts with the literal interpretation of Bible and potentially responsible for loss of followers)
3. Causes compromise in Christianity (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. some may argue intelligent design and theistic evolution are compromises)
4. Causes conflict within and towards Christianity (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. Conflict within: conflict within the Church as the result of different interpretation of Darwinism) / (e.g. Conflict towards: Increased conflict initiated from atheists)
5. Greater interfaith interaction with other religions (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. interfaith interaction with other Abrahamic religions and Indic religions)
6. None of the above subjects (rate 0 to 5)

B) Assess reasons for continued stability of belief in Christianity in relation to Darwinism
7. Darwinism does not perfectly answers evolution (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. Recent genetic theory called genetic drift is also an important factor in evolution)
8. Scientific answers supporting Darwinism not always satisfactory (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. Passing genes is not a satisfying reason for meaning and purpose of life)
9. Antisocial interpretations of Darwinism in society (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. racism, eugenics and euthanasia)
10. Neutrality or benefits of religion in society (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. Neutrality: Not always responsible for all wars and genocide) / (e.g. Benefits: Provides fabric of society, and fair distribution of financial resources)
11. Rise of a global community (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. The sharp rise in Christianity in Africa)
12. None of the above subjects (rate 0 to 5)

I appreciate any comment that you can provide such as the reasons for your answers.

Many thanks.


Answer
Hello,

Thanks for your question!

I have rated each of the twelve subjects you listed and offered brief explanations to support my ratings.

A. Assess top level changes in religion in relation to Darwinism:
  
1. Complements Christianity (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g complements the literal interpretation of Bible and potentially responsible for more followers)

(0) Christianity did not gain more followers as a result of Darwinism. Also, Darwinism does not complement the literal interpretation of Genesis 1 and 2; rather it is entirely contradictory to the clear teaching of Scripture. Some Christians have erroneously attempted to combine the two religions but their traitorous treatment of Scripture has gained them few evolutionary converts to Christianity.

2. Conflicts with Christianity (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. conflicts with the literal interpretation of Bible and potentially responsible for loss of followers)

(5) Darwinism stands in direct opposition to the plain, literal interpretation of Scripture and many non-Christians hailed it gladly as an alibi for their rejection of the truth of God’s Word and welcomed it as providing a ‘justification’ their disbelief in the existence of God.

3. Causes compromise in Christianity (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. some may argue intelligent design and theistic evolution are compromises)

(5) Darwinism has caused many professing Christians to compromise the teaching of God’s Word. However such compromise does not strengthen the Christian argument but degrades it. There is no need for Christians to attempt to adjust the meaning of Scripture to cohere with the transient, ever-changing theories of finite men. It’s not the job of a godly Christian to attempt to twist Scripture to comply with the currently popular theories of men.  The God-fearing, Scripture-honoring Christian wants to know the truth about the beginning of the world and what God’s Word really says about what happened. God’s Word is the source of truth about the world, God, and ourselves; we don’t need to look anywhere else. Special revelation is the authority on general revelation.  Any Christian who wants to make Scripture comport with unbelieving theories and fads is not concerned about obeying God or knowing the truth but about appearances and ‘looking good’ in the eyes of the world. It’s our job to know what God’s Word really says and obey it and apply it; not try to make it say what we want it to say. No Christian should be afraid of what the Bible teaches, or fear to stand up and confidently affirm its teachings. As Isaiah 40:8 says: “The grass withers and the flower fades: but the Word of our God endures forever.” What ought we to trust more: the inerrant Words of God or the shifting sands of popular scientific theories?

4. Causes conflict within and towards Christianity (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. Conflict within: conflict within the Church as the result of different interpretation of Darwinism) / (e.g. Conflict towards: Increased conflict initiated from atheists)

(5) Darwinism has caused a great deal of conflict within the church between those who would try to integrate evolutionary theory with Scripture and ‘read into’ passages such as Genesis 1 and 2 and those who hold true to the doctrine of ‘sola Scriptura’: the authority of Scripture and Scripture alone provide all that is necessary for life and godliness.

It has also caused increased opposition from atheists/secular humanists who look to evolution as their ‘excuse’ for disbelief in God and who attempt to purport evolutionary theory and the religion of Darwinism as scientific fact in order to frighten the Christians out of the public arena.

5. Greater interfaith interaction with other religions (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. interfaith interaction with other Abrahamic religions and Indic religions)

(0)

6. None of the above subjects (rate 0 to 5)

(0)

B) Assess reasons for continued stability of belief in Christianity in relation to Darwinism

7. Darwinism does not perfectly answers evolution (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. Recent genetic theory called genetic drift is also an important factor in evolution)

(5) It is true that scientific research is increasingly casting doubts on Darwin’s theories.

8. Scientific answers supporting Darwinism not always satisfactory (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. Passing genes is not a satisfying reason for meaning and purpose of life)

(5) I think the previous reason and this reason ought to be treated under the same heading as they’re quite similar.

9. Antisocial interpretations of Darwinism in society (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. racism, eugenics and euthanasia)

(5) Darwinist principles have been behind such atrocities as the Holocaust, Marxism, racism, eugenics, and euthanasia.

10. Neutrality or benefits of religion in society (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. Neutrality: Not always responsible for all wars and genocide) / (e.g. Benefits: Provides fabric of society, and fair distribution of financial resources)

(5) Christianity is not only the only basis for justice and morality in civil law but apart from Christianity there is no absolute standard by which to judge what comprises just war or an absolute standard from which to condemn genocide.

Also the Christian worldview is the only worldview that provides the foundation for such principles as belief in the uniformity of nature, the reliability of sense perception, and induction. These necessary principles are only made intelligible by the Christian worldview and form the basis for the scientific research which spawns advances in science and technology. Evolutionists are inconsistent and borrow principles and concepts from the Christian worldview so advances in science have been made after the advent and popularity of Darwinism, but only through borrowed capital from the Christian worldview.


11. Rise of a global community (rate 0 to 5)
(e.g. The sharp rise in Christianity in Africa)

(0) True but this topic is not extremely relevant to the Darwinism versus Christianity debate.

12. None of the above subjects (rate 0 to 5)

(0)

Thanks again for your questions! I hope my answers were helpful to you. I pray your presentation goes well.

-   Quentin Parker