The Thomistic Institute Does Evolutionary Theory Disprove Christianity? | Fr. Michael Dodds OP
Dec 19, 2018
Fr. Michael Dodds OP explores the perceived conflict between evolutionary theory and Christianity, debunking misconceptions and harmonizing both perspectives. Topics include the history of evolutionary theory, the scientific method, astronomical models, certainty levels of evolution, and the intersection of evolution with creationism. The discussion addresses societal influences on interpretations of evolution and the challenge of separating empirical science from controversial societal views.
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Darwinian Core: Descent With Modification
- Evolution is descent with modification by natural selection as Darwin summarized, explaining biodiversity through variation, inheritance, and differential survival.
- Darwin highlighted natural selection as a slow, continual process producing 'endless forms most beautiful' from simple beginnings over geological time.
Genetics Filled Darwin's Mechanistic Gap
- Genetics completed Darwin by explaining how variations arise and are inherited, with Mendel's particulate inheritance and Watson & Crick's DNA structure.
- Mendel's pea experiments (1868 rediscovered early 20th century) and 1953 DNA clarified mutation plus inheritance as mechanisms for evolution.
Conflict Often Stems From Ideological Accretions
- Many conflicts come from ideological accretions like social Darwinism and scientism, not from the empirical theory itself.
- Thinkers such as Herbert Spencer and Thomas Huxley extended Darwin into social or atheistic claims that go beyond evolutionary science.