EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
A. OVERVIEW
1. THE CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEW
a. SINCE GENESIS IS PART OF THE WORD OF GOD, THE INFORMATION IT
CONTAINS MUST BE TRUE.
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
c.
CREATIONISM
1.
GOD’S WORK IN CREATING THE UNIVERSE OUT OF NOTHING
2.
ALL RECOUNTED IN GENESIS
3.
THE DOMINION MANDATE
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
4. THE FALL
a.
GENESIS 3 DESCRIBES MANKIND’S FIRST SIN AGAINST GOD WHEN
ADAM AND EVE VIOLATED THE ONLY RULE GOD HAD GIVEN THEM
5. THE REDEMPTION
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
2. BIBLICAL CREATIONISM
a. CREATION WEEK IS A LITERAL INTERPRETATION (YOUNG EARTH
CREATIONIST)
1.
THE CREATION ACCOUNT IN GENESIS STATES THAT GOD CREATED THE
UNIVERSE IN 6 DAYS
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
1. USED OVER 3000 TIMES IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
2. REFERS TO PASSING OF DARKNESS INTO LIGHT OR 1 SOLAR DAY
3. FOR EXAMPLE – “SIX DAYS SHALT THOUGH LABOR, AND DO ALL
THEY WORK: BU THE SEVENTH DAY IS THE SABBATH OF THE
LORD… FOR IN SIX DAYS THE LORD MADE HEAVEN AND EARTH,
THE SEA, AND ALL THAT IN THEM IS, AND RESTED ON THE
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
a. DAY 1 – LIGHT AND DARKNESS, DAY AND NIGHT
b. DAY 2 – FIRMAMENT (AIR), WATERS DIVIDED
c.
DAY 3 – DRY LAND AND SEAS, PLANTS
d. DAY 4 – SUN, MOON, STARS
e. DAY 5 – ANIMALS OF AIR AND WATER
f.
DAY 6 – LAND ANIMALS, MAN
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
b. CREATION WEEK IS A FIGURATIVE INTERPRETATION (OLD EARTH
CREATIONIST)
1.
THE GENESIS RECORD ALLOWS FOR BILLIONS OF PREHISTORIC YEARS TO
ALLOW FOR EVOLUTIONARY PROCESSES TO TAKE PLACE
2.
GENESIS IS READ THEREFORE NOT A HISTORICAL NARRATIVE
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
c.
BOTH YOUNG EARTH AND OLD EARTH CREATIONISTS:
1.
REJECT IDEA OF COMMON ANCESTRY
2.
AGREE ON ORIGIN OF ADAM FROM DUST AND EVE FROM ADAM
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
3. NON-CHRISTIAN WORLDVIEW
a. THOSE WHO HAVE NOT PUT THEIR FAITH IN CHRIST WILL HAVE A NON-CHRISTIAN
WORLDVIEW
b. EVOLUTION
1.
THEORY OF COSMOLOGICAL BEGINNINGS
a.
THE “BIG BANG” THEORY, OR THE UNIVERSE ALWAYS EXISTED
2.
THEORY OF BIOLOGICAL EVOLUTION
a.
LESS COMPLEX ORGANISMS GIVE RISE TO MORE COMPLEX ORGANISMS
3.
PHILOSOPHY OF EVOLUTION
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
c.
RESULTS OF BELIEVING EVOLUTIONARY THEORY:
1.
MAN IS NOT RESPONSIBLE TO GOD
a.
IF MAN IS A PRODUCT OF EVOLUTIONARY CHANGE, THEN HE HAS NO
CREATOR, HE IS NO RESPONSIBLE TO ANY GOD, THERE ARE NO ABSOLUTE
RIGHTS AND WRONGS
1.
THERE ARE NO MORAL CODES, UP TO US TO DECIDE
2.
MAN NO LONGER NEEDS A SAVIOR
a.
IF THERE IS NO RIGHT OR WRONG, THERE IS NO SIN, NO GOD TO SIN
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
3.
MAN IS HIGHLY EVOLVED ANIMAL
a.
MAN IS NO DIFFERENT FROM ANIMAL
b.
EXPERIMENTATION ON AND DESTRUCTION OF HUMAN EMBRYOS IS NOT
IMMORAL, SINCE WE DO IT ON ANIMALS
4.
MAN’S RELIGION SHOULD BE SCIENTISM
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
THE BIBLICAL RECORD
MATTER WAS CREATED BY GOD
EARTH WAS CREATED BEFORE SUN AND STARS OCEAN FORMED BEFORE LAND
THERE WAS LIGHT BEFORE THE SUN LAND PLANTS WERE EARTH’S FIRST LIFE PLANTS WERE CREATED BEFORE THE SUN FRUIT TREES WERE CREATED BEFORE FISH BIRDS WERE CREATED BEFORE REPTILES MAN LIVED BEFORE THERE WAS RAIN MAN WAS CREATED BEFORE THE WOMAN MAN WAS UNIQUELY FORMED IN PERFECTION THE CREATION IS FINISHED
THE EARTH IS ABOUT 6000 YEARS OLD
EVOLUTION’S ORDER
MATTER HAS FOREVER EXISTED
SUN AND STARS EXISTED BEFORE EARTH LAND EXISTED BEFORE THE OCEAN
THE SUN WAS THE EARTH’S FIRST LIGHT
MARINE ORGANISMS WERE EARTH’S FIRST LIFE THE SUN EXISTED LONG BEFORE PLANTS
FISH EXISTED LONG BEFORE FRUIT TREES INSECTS EXISTED LONG BEFORE BIRDS REPTILES EXISTED BEFORE BIRDS
RAIN FELL BEFORE MAN EXISTED A FEMALE HOMOSAPIEN WAS FIRST
MAN TOOK AGES TO DEVELOP FROM APES EVOLUTIONARY CREATION IS ONGOING
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
C. BIOLOGICAL EVOLUTION
1. JEAN BAPTISTE LAMARCK – 1801
a. CAME UP WITH 3 EVOLUTIONARY CONCEPTS:
1. THE THEORY OF NEED
a. IN ORDER FOR AN ORGANISM TO EVOLVE A STRUCTURE, IT MUST NEED A STRUCTURE
2. THE THEORY OF USE AND DISUSE
a. IF AN ORGANISM CONTINUES TO USE A PARTICULAR STRUCTURE, IT WILL CONTINUE TO EVOLVE. IF AN ORGANISM STOPS USING A
STRUCTURE, IT WILL DEGENERATE AND DISAPPEAR
3. THE THEORY OF INHERITANCE OF ACQUIRED CHARACTERISTICS
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
b. ALL THREE THEORIES CAN BE REFUTED
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
1. CHARLES DARWIN - 1831
a. SIGNED UP TO BE AN UNPAID NATURALIST ON THE HMS BEAGLE
TRAVELING TO GALAPAGOS ISLANDS
b. HE PUBLISHED
THE ORIGIN OF SPECIES BY MEANS OF NATURAL
SELECTION
IN 1859
1. HE STUDIED VARIATIONS OF FINCHES ON THE ISLAND
a. HE THEORIZED THAT ALL THE DIFFERENT SPECIES ON THE ISLAND ALL DESCENDED FROM A FEW SPECIES THAT
IMMIGRATED FROM SOUTH AMERICA DURING A STORM AND THEN EVOLVED INTO THE DIFFERENT SPECIES THEY ARE TODAY b. ADAPTATION – A FEATURE THAT ALLOWS AN ORGANISM TO BE
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
c. HE ALSO PUBLISHED
THE DESCENT OF MAN
IN 1872
1. EXPLAINS HOW MAN EVOLVED FROM A LOWER LIFE FORM
d. DARWIN’S IDEAS:
1. THE THEORY OF DESCENT WITH MODIFICATION
a. NEWER FORMS OF ORGANISMS ARE ACTUALLY THE MODIFIED DESCENDANTS OF MUCH OLDER SIMILAR ORGANISMS
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
2. THE THEORY OF NATURAL SELECTION a. SURVIVAL OF THE FITTEST
b. THE ENVIRONMENT MAY AFFECT INDIVIDUAL ORGANISMS IN A POPULATION
c. THE ORGANISMS HAVING THE BEST CHARACTERISTICS FOR SUCCESS IN THE STRUGGLE FOR SURVIVAL WILL SURVIVE,
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
e. DARWIN’S “EVIDENCE”:
1. FOSSILS – OLDER FOSSILS ARE FOUND IN DEEPER LAYERS
2. GEOGRAPHY – ISLAND SPECIES CLOSELY RESEMBLE THOSE ON THE MAINLAND, THEY MIGRATED
3. EMBRYOLOGY – SOME LARVAE OF DIFFERENT SPECIES LOOK SIMILAR – EX: BARNACLES AND CRABS
4. HOMOLOGOUS STRUCTURES – FEATURES THAT ARE SIMILAR IN STRUCTURE BUT APPEAR IN DIFFERENT ORGANISMS AND HAVE DIFFERENT FUNCTIONS a. MUST HAVE A COMMON ANCESTOR
b. EXAMPLE – HUMAN HAND VS. BAT WINGS VS. MOLE FOOT
5. VESTIGIAL STRUCTURES – REMNANTS OF ORGANS OR STRUCTURES THAT HAD A FUNCTION IN AN EARLY ANCESTOR
EVOLUTION VS. CREATIONISM
D. MODERN EVOLUTIONARY THOUGHT
1. ARTIFICIAL SELECTION LEADS TO NATURAL SELECTION
a. PROCESS BY WHICH HUMANS CHANGE A SPECIES BY BREEDING FOR
CERTAIN TRAITS
1. HUMANS SELECTIVELY BREED THE FRUITS, VEGETABLES, AND ANIMALS WE EAT TODAY
b. IF WE CAN “ARTIFICIALLY SELECT” SPECIES WITH THE MOST
DESIRABLE CHARACTERISTICS, THEN NATURE CAN “NATURALLY
SELECT” THE MOST DESIRABLE TRAITS FOR ORGANISMS TO SURVIVE
1. THEN, NATURAL SELECTION CAN EXPLAIN THE PROCESS OF EVOLUTION 2. NATURAL SELECTION – MECHANISM BY WHICH INDIVIDUALS HAVE
INHERITED BENEFICIAL ADAPTATIONS PRODUCE MORE OFFSPRING ON AVERAGE THAN DO OTHER INDIVIDUALS
