The Theory of Evolution
Charles Darwin wrote about this in his book ‘The Origin of Species’ in 1859
How did Darwin come up with his theory?
On a five year voyage that took him to the Galapagos
Islands, he saw lots of different variations of the
same bird (the finch).
 On the different islands each variation of finch had
adapted to their individual environments.
 He began to wonder why God would have bothered
making different species for each different island.
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He then began to think that there was no ‘fixity of species’ like it said in
the Bible, but that they might instead be developing from an ‘original species’ (a
one-celled organism).
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What is the theory of evolution?
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Life began with simple single-celled creatures.
By chance they mutated and developed into more complex life forms.
Species develop and adapt to their environment.
Those more suited to survival, pass on their genes to their offspring
(Natural Selection).
Life originated 3,500-4,000 million years ago.
Initial species developed with the fittest surviving.
Competition amongst species lead to the fittest offspring surviving (there
are always more babies than the environment can support – they compete for
resources to survive and best adapted wins!)
Variation in life is caused by random gene mutations. These survive if they
allow best adaptation to environment.
This process of change happens over many generations.
What evidence is there for evolution?
Homologies
• Refers to any similarity between characteristics of organisms that is due
to their shared ancestry
Drug resistant bacteria
• This is when bacteria in the body evolves to have the ability to withstand
the effects of drugs, particularly antibiotics
Transitional forms
• Fossils or organisms that show the intermediate states between an
ancestral form and that of its descendants are referred to as
transitional forms.
Similar embryos
Fossils
Why might some Christians oppose evolutionary theory?
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Creationists
God made Adam and Eve
Missing Link theory
Not mentioned in Bible
Humans are special- we did not evolve from something else.
All species were set by God
Timescale doesn’t match- 6000 years vs 14 billion
Difficult to understand
Not enough proof- only a theory
Based on belief
We weren’t there!
Evolution does show how organisms have adapted but it hasn’t proved that
one species changes into another
There are gaps in the fossil record
Why might some evolutionary theorists oppose the origins of life according
to Christianity?
• Evolution has taken billions of years, not 6 days
• Women weren’t made from men's ribs
• More evidence in Evolution theory than Bible
• Evolution is a logical explanation
• Homologies (similar characteristics in different species)
• Transitional forms (intermediate stages of evolution between species)
• Drug resistant bacteria
• Fossils
How can the two agree?
• Intelligent designer- could be the way God chose to create the world
(Teleological Argument)
• The conditions for life are so precise that there must have been a
purpose behind it
• The creation story isn’t meant to be a scientific account
• Science may explain HOW the world evolved
• The creation story tells WHY we are here
• You don’t have to take the creation story literally
• Timescale not a problem- mistranslation
• Evolution order matches Biblical order- starts off with simplicity
• When the Bible was written people didn’t have the scientific grasp we
have today. Genesis story is the only way to explain things.
• Evolution could be an ongoing form of creation- we could still be in the
6th day