When one opens up the BioLogos website we are confronted with the following statement: “BioLogos invites the church and the world to see the harmony between science and biblical faith as we present an evolutionary understanding of God’s creation.”[1] Another name for what BioLogos supports is theistic evolution. But just what is theistic evolution? Wayne Grudem gives us a good definition of theistic evolution when he states: “God created matter and after that did not guide or intervene or act directly to cause any empirically detectable change in the natural behavior of matter until all living things had evolved by purely natural processes.”[2] Another definition says that theistic evolution is, “the idea that God, over immense periods of time, used evolutionary processes to create all physical life-forms from a single organism.”[3]
The question before us is can we hold to both creation and evolution as a Christian or in the words of BioLogos is there a place for an evolutionary understanding of God’s creation. After examining all the evidence, I hope to show that theistic evolution is the wrong compromise for Christians to make; and like fire and ice, the Bible and evolution don’t mix. First let’s examine some of the reasons in support of the doctrine of theistic evolution.
Most Scientists Believe in Evolution
Ever since Darwin there has been a growing consensus among scientists that evolution is an established fact. In fact, this consensus started fairly early on after Darwin proposed his evolutionary thesis, and continues right up to the present. According to Karl Giberson: “By 1875 evolution as a historical fact had been established to the satisfaction of most scientists as well as educated people who had taken the time to absorb Darwin’s argument.”[4] Francis Collins feels that this is also the case among Christian scientists. He shares: “Yet theistic evolution is the dominant position of serious biologists who are also serious believers.”[5]
The Catholic Church Endorses Theistic Evolution
Over the last fifty years the Catholic Church has moved more and more to supporting the idea of theistic evolution. Francis Collins echoes this idea when he states: “Pope John Paul II in his message to the Pontifical Academy of Sciences in 1996 offered a particularly thoughtful and courageous defense of theistic evolution. The pope stated that ‘new findings lead us toward the recognition of evolution as more than a hypothesis.’”[6]
Genesis 1-3 Were Never Intended to be Taken Literally
Most people in the theistic evolution camp deny that the genre of Genesis 1-3 is that of historical narrative. Instead they contend that these chapters are either poetic, figurative, or allegorical in nature and were never meant to be interpreted as historical. As a result, the idea that Adam and Eve were historical figures is an incorrect interpretation of Scripture. Grudem quotes Francis Collins who believes that Genesis 1-2 is best understood as poetry and allegory thus opening the door to the theistic evolution position. According to Collins: “Population geneticists…conclude that…our species…descended from a common set of founders, approximately 10,000 in number, who lived about 100,000 to 150,000 years ago.”[7] This thought is also expressed as the position of the BioLogos organization according to John M. Otis, who says according to BioLogos: “Genetic evidence shows that humans descended from a group of several thousand individuals who lived about 150,000 years ago.”[8] Thus we can see that if Adam and Eve were not historical figures the idea that humans descended from hominids becomes a distinct possibility. Again, Otis shares the BioLogos position relating to our latest scientific evidence: “The fossil record shows a gradual transition over 5 million years ago from chimpanzee-size creatures to hominids with larger brains who walked on two legs.”[9] Theistic Evolution advocates feel that once we separate Adam and Eve from their traditional historical setting that their case for evolution combined with the latest scientific evidence makes their case indeed compelling.
Since Evolution is a Fact God Must Have Used It
Most of us at one time or another have been told that science has proven that evolution is a fact. We are told that we must view the Bible through the lens of science in order to get a correct understanding of what the biblical writer in Genesis intended us to understand about creation. Since many Christians accept that science must be true they are left with the need to fit the “fact” of evolution into their theology. Karl Giberson uses this idea of the “scientific fact” of evolution to help us see why Christians need to embrace theistic evolution when he says: “The theory of evolution is a vast and complicated network of interlocking explanatory concepts tying together everything from the age of fossil bones to similarities between human and chimp DNA. There is, quite simply, a mountain of evidence from multiple sources supporting evolution.”[10] Giberson goes on to add: “We must also take note of another major distinction between evolution and creation. The thousands of scientists who work within the broad paradigm of evolution – the geneticists, paleontologists, biogeographers, biologists, biochemists and so on – all agree on the broad outlines of the theory. They all agree that common ancestry is a fact.”[11] Armed with this factual knowledge of evolution the logical conclusion for many Christians is that God must have used it to bring humanity into existence.
Fear of Being Viewed as “Anti-Intellectual” Causes Some to opt for Theistic Evolution
This can be a powerful reason many Christians have accepted theistic evolution. Depending on the group of people you are with can make a big difference in the belief system you adhere to. Bert Thompson shares this insightful comment: “The influence of co-workers, friends, or peers also cannot be ruled out. Pressure to conform to the status quo is quite severe, especially in the scientific community.”[12] Thompson continues along these same lines by quoting Stanley Beck, of the American Lutheran Church: “To call himself reasonably well-educated and informed, a Christian can hardly afford not to believe in evolution. Evolution, including human evolution, is no longer in contention. Evolution has been demonstrated so thoroughly…even produced experimentally, that it has ceased to be a matter of opinion. And to announce that you do not believe in evolution is as irrational as to announce that you do not believe in electricity.”[13] Sadly many Christians decide on important areas of doctrine, not by doing their own careful study of the Scriptures, but by bowing down to what people, in so called authority positions, happen to believe. And when these are scientists, the pressure to conform becomes that much greater.
[1]BioLogos website – Mission Statement, https://biologos.org/
[2] J. P. Moreland, Stephen C. Meyer, Christopher Shaw, Ann K. Gauger, and Wayne Grudem, Editors, Theistic Evolution: A Scientific, Philosophical, and Theological Critique. (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2017). p. 784.
[3] Dean Davis, Theistic Evolution: What Difference Does it Make? Creation Ministries International. https://creation.com/theistic-evolution-what-difference-does-it-make
[4] Karl W. Giberson, Saving Darwin: How to Be a Christian and Believe in Evolution. (New York: HarperOne, 2008). p. 57.
[5] Francis S. Collins, The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief. (New York: Free Press, 2006). p. 199.
[6] Ibid. p. 202.
[7] J. P. Moreland, Stephen C. Meyer, Christopher Shaw, Ann K. Gauger, and Wayne Grudem, Editors, Theistic Evolution: A Scientific, Philosophical, and Theological Critique. (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2017). p. 69.
[8] John M. Otis, Theistic Evolution: A Sinful Compromise. (Burlington, NC: Triumphant Publications Ministries, 2016). p. 116.
[9] Ibid. p. 114.
[10] Karl W. Giberson, Saving Darwin: How to Be a Christian and Believe in Evolution. (New York: HarperOne, 2008). p. 194.
[11] Ibid. p. 204.
[12] Bert Thompson, What’s Wrong with Theistic Evolution? Apologetics Press. 2001.
[13] Ibid.
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