Darwin, Charles (1809–1882)

Charles Robert Darwin (1809–1882) is one of the greatest naturalists in the history of science. His theory of organic evolution delivered a blow to traditional thought by offering a new worldview with disquieting ramifications for understanding and appreciating the human species within natural history. The geobiologist had presented his conceptual revolution in terms of science and reason (i.e., his evolutionary framework is based upon convincing empirical evidence and rational arguments). As a result of Darwinian evolution grounded in mechanism and materialism, philosophy and theology would never again be the [Page 688]same; just as the human species is now placed within primate history in particular and within the organic evolution of all life forms on this planet in general, religious beliefs and practices are now seen to be products of the sociocultural development of human thought and behavior.

Source: Courtesy of the Library of Congress.

The implications and consequences of biological evolution for the human species were both farreaching and unsettling. It is no surprise that the brute fact of organic evolution disturbed Darwin himself, because he had been trained in theology at Christ's College, Cambridge, where he had become interested in William Paley's Natural Theology (1802). A strictly mechanistic and materialistic view of the emergence of humankind in terms of evolution challenged the most entrenched religious beliefs, for example, the existence of a personal God, human free will, the personal immortality of the soul, and a divine destiny for moral persons: If evolution were a fact, then the human animal would be an evolved ape, not a fallen angel.

Naturalists were becoming aware of the unfathomable age of this planet. Incomplete as they were (although ongoing scientific research is closing the gaps), the geological column and its fossil record argued for the heretical idea that species are, in fact, mutable throughout organic history.

For the theist, this universe was created by, is sustained by, and will be completed by a personal God, a perfect being that loves our species as the cosmic center of His divine creation. It is impossible, however, to reconcile materialistic evolution with traditional theology; science and reason have challenged the belief that earth history and the process of evolution are the result of a preestablished plan within the alleged order and design of this dynamic universe. Consequently, it is not surprising that some biblical fundamentalists and religious creationists reject the scientific theory of organic evolution and desire to discredit it and prevent both evolutionary research and the teaching of evolution. For others, it takes an extraordinary leap of faith and speculation to believe that a personal God could be both the beginning and the end of cosmic evolution. Biological evolution is a process that is long and complex, with pain and suffering as well as death and species extinction (five recorded mass extinctions on a global scale)pervading organic history, not to mention the endless appearance of deleterious mutations involving physical characteristics and behavior patterns. Surely, philosophy and theology now have a difficult time in maintaining teleology and essentialism as built-in aspects of cosmic evolution in general and the emergence of life forms (including the human animal) in particular.

...