Explorations In Faith: Evolution Weekend: A Mormon Perspective

Evolution is one of those charged words that get people’s attention. It almost immediately causes you to lock and load to get ready for a battle. Discussions of evolution often devolve into battles, which I think is very unfortunate. To science, evolution is one of the most beautiful and important discoveries in history. It forms the foundation of modern biology. The evolutionary geneticist Theodosius Dobzhansky put it well: “Nothing in Biology Makes Sense Except in the Light of Evolution.” [1] But sadly, evolution is something we are taught to be afraid of. It has been blamed for a slew of things from the general moral decay of society all the way to the Holocaust. [2] But none of that is true. Evolution is not something scary or evil. For the past few years, some churches have participated in Evolution Weekend or Evolution Sunday, held on the weekend nearest the birthday of Charles Darwin, February 12. The goal is “to demonstrate that religion and modern science are compatible.” [3] This is my own contribution to Evolution Weekend from a Mormon perspective. My belief is that evolution is not only harmless to religion but can even enhance and deepen it.

It would be dishonest of me to pretend that all Mormon leaders have been gung-ho evolution enthusiasts. That is certainly not the case. The most famous condemnation of evolution was by Bruce R. McConkie (a brilliant man by the way, whom I admire very much). In a talk at BYU he listed evolution among the “seven deadly heresies”. [4] That’s a pretty strong statement. But it is important to remember: “on the subject of organic evolution the Church has officially taken no position.” [5]

Other, less known, statements by church leaders have been more positive of evolution. Hugh B. Brown, also speaking at BYU more than 20 years earlier said the following: “But while very little was written originally on the details of the creation of the world and man’s advent upon it, it should be observed that God is the author of two accounts of the creation, one is written in the Bible and amplified by modern revelation and the other was written in the strata of the earth… Some scriptures in which we believe were written by the finger of God and given to Moses on tablets of stone, and other scriptures were dictated by the Lord to his prophet scribes, both in ancient and in modern times, and here we find the world’s greatest literature. Also there is no more fascinating story—nor one more accurate, when properly interpreted and understood—than that written, also figuratively by the finger of God, on the stony pages of the earth’s crust.” [6]

Students at BYU may be surprised when they attend biology class and learn about evolution. It would be hard to teach biology in any serious way without it, so this should not be a shock. In fact, BYU has employed many very respected scientists like Bill Bradshaw and Daniel J. Fairbanks who are both quite gifted teachers of evolution. There are plenty examples of other great Mormon scientists who were very devout in their faith and very comfortable with evolution.

One example is renowned chemist Henry Eyring, father of President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency. He wrote about evolution in his book, Reflections of a Scientist: “Some people object to the slightest hint of being related to the rest of the animal kingdom, particularly the hairy apes. The idea is right next to the three "s's"—spiders, snakes, and sharks—on their list of things beyond the pale. I've never had that particular aversion. In fact, I've kind of enjoyed what little I've seen of them… Animals seem pretty wonderful to me. I'd be content to discover that I share a common heritage with them, so long as God is at the controls.” [7]

I already mentioned Daniel J. Fairbanks, former dean of Undergraduate Education at BYU. He wrote one of the best books out there on evolution titled Relics of Eden: The Powerful Evidence of Evolution in Human DNA. Fairbanks said in his book: “Those who sincerely seek both scientific and spiritual understanding would do well to abandon the dichotomy [that one must choose between science and religion]. Denying the evidence of evolution, including human evolution, is honest only in ignorance. The incredible diversity of life on Earth, the many fossils unearthed, the varied yet similar anatomical features among species, the obvious hierarchical arrangement of life, and the literally millions of ancestral relics in our DNA—all undeniably attest to our common evolutionary origin with the rest of life. If someone can believe that all living organisms share the same creator, why not consider that all living organisms share a common genetic heritage? Indeed, we can find wonder, even comfort, in embracing our biological relationship with all living things. As Darwin understood, ‘[T]here is grandeur in this view of life.’” [8]

Then of course, I can’t leave out LDS mathematician and computer scientist David H. Bailey. Bailey is a prolific writer and among his articles are many discussions of science and religion, particularly in an LDS context. He is the editor of the website Science Meets Religion, which I highly recommend. It is jam-packed with resources on this subject. [9]

Spending time defending evolution is not the way I enjoy talking about the subject. It’s just the beginning. What is really interesting is getting into what it actually means. Most of my interest is scientific. But an appreciation of evolution can also enhance your view of all life on earth. If there is a religious message in all this I would say this—we are all connected. In scripture one of the most important symbols is the Tree of Life. Science has a Tree of Life too, first drawn by Charles Darwin in the Origin of Species. It shows that all living things are related to each other and part of a huge family. This gives me a deep reverence for life and every living thing on earth. It makes me appreciate animals and plants and bacteria and the complex ways we interact with each other. It also makes me want to be a better steward of this Garden of Eden, the Earth.

Notes

[1] T. Dobzhansky, “Nothing in Biology Makes Sense Except in the Light of Evolution,” American Biology Teacher 35 (1973): 125-29.

[2] Seriously. Ben Stein implicated Darwin’s theory of evolution by natural selection in the Nazi Holocaust. It was a big part of his movie Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed.

[3] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Evolution_Sunday (retrieved Feb 12, 2011).

[4] http://speeches.byu.edu/reader/reader.php?id=6770&x=40&y=3 (retrieved Feb 12, 2011). The talk was given June 1, 1980.

[5] That’s according to David O. McKay. An image of the original document cited can be seen here: http://www.sciencemeetsreligion.org/lds/lds-articles/mckay-evolution.pdf (retrieved Feb 12, 2011).

[6] Brown, Hugh B. Continuing the Quest. Deseret Book Company. 1961 pp. 206-207. An mp3 is available here: http://speeches.byu.edu/?act=viewitem&id=112 (Retrieved Feb 12, 2011). The talk was given March 25, 1958.

[7] Eyring, Harden Romney; Eyring, Henry (1983). Reflections of a scientist. Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co.

[8] Fairbanks, Relics of Eden, 170.

[9] http://www.sciencemeetsreligion.org