How can we reconcile the proof of Evolution with the ideals of God?

Question

And yes, there is proof if ye can understand it, for both evolution and some creator force.

Answer 1

There is no problem between evolution and the ideals of God. I know there are many Christians in America who think that evolution and creation are irreconcilable, but this is not true. There are also many educated.Christians who believe in evolution. There are even Christian organizations such as, Reasons to Believe, who accept evolution and the ideals of Christianity.

http://www.reasons.org/about/staff/ross.shtml

Dr. Hugh Ross is just one example.

Answer 2

In the Bible, it says that God made the earth and created everything in it in 6 days and on the 7th day He rested. If one is a fundamentalist and take the literal translation of the Bible, then religion/faith and science would not reconcile and would not have a common ground. But what if the Bible is a parable, and the stories in it are symbolical and have hidden meanings? That the 7 days referred to in there is not our ordinary 24-hr time frame? The concept of God is mind-boggling, an immensity that our ordinary intelligence cannot comprehend, hence 7 days in God's calendar might mean millions and billions of years in human time wherein evolution would have taken place from the simple mineral kingdom to plant, to animal and eventually, the human kingdom.

Those who advocate evolution and even important religious figures like Pope John Paul II contend that the time-tested theory of evolution does not refute the presence of God. If evolution must take place, there must be a higher force that would govern the development on this earth. Things would not just evolve by themselves without the help of a Divine plan and intervention.

Answer 3

This is a sincere answer, in hopes that you will understand more fully>>> it sounds like you're possibly leaning toward trying to believe both ways.
That can only lead to confusion.
1st Corinthians 14:33... God is not the author of confusion, but of peace.
Matthew 6:24 Jesus said... No man can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.
One cannot serve the "evolution" faith & serve the Lord (the Creator) at the same time.
We're either on one side or the other.
Joshua 24:15... Choose you this day whom ye will serve.

Answer 4

Sigh....evolution has been proved. Heard of genetics? It has shown that we even share DNA with cats! Anyway, that is an aside. I don't know about you, but I have difficulty believing in a book that was written in pieces over thousands of years and that contradicts itself so many times. It conveniently leaves out important information like how Adam and Eve procreated to produce the human race as we see it today with all the races and cultures that exist. Are you honestly telling me that 2 human beings created all of this. I sincerely doubt it and I find it extremely offensive to think that I would be related to Osama Bin Laden in ANY WAY.
It is genetically impossible for the human race to have evolved from 2 people. It would create a catastrophic genetic dilution. On top of all of this, the explanation that Cain and Abel married sisters is counter to the very teachings in the bible that state that incest is a sin. If you analyze the book, it would never stand up to a logical analysis. My money is with the scientists who at least have proof before they start spewing theories....and once the theory is proven inaccurate, they will change their view, unlike people who believe that the bible is the source of all truth and are not prepared to change their view no matter what.

Answer 5

I can see evidence of a source of the universe, but to call that source a "creator" implies that one should associate a personality and will with that source. There is no reason to assume this.

I also need more information about the "ideals of God" we are being asked to reconcile with evolution. It seems like this might be an interesting exercise, but I don't have enough information to participate.

Answer 6

I don't see the reconciliation of these two ideas a problem at all--in fact it's a very exciting topic to read about, as many theologians, scientists and philosophers are working along these lines. Process theology is one field of theology where much innovative thinking is happening these days.

Have a look at some of the resources below:
From "Darwin, the Scientific Creationist":
Throughout his life Darwin held the view that evolution does not supplant creation, but that they supplement each other. He believed that a rational God who established a law-abiding cosmos is more worthy of devotion than a capricious God who intervenes in the natural order. http://www.religion-online.org/showarticle.asp?title=1681

Nature and God by C.L. Birch: This book presents clearly the contributions of scientists, philosophers, and recent Christian writers, such as Whitehead, Tillich, and Teilhard de Chardin, who have had a vision of God within the natural process. Birch shows how the modern understanding of evolution makes sense in the light of modern biblical understanding of creation. Entire book online at http://www.religion-online.org/showbook.asp?title=2234

Answer 7

Evolution is outside the realm of ethics and morality. It's not good or bad, it doesn't have a purpose, it just is.

But then you have us humans who evolved with this excess brain capacity and a desperate need to do something with it ;-), so we invented good and bad. Which was probably a good thing as we'd gotten so efficient at killing each other. We like concepts and names, so we evolved our ideas of gods and creators and such. And now when we kill each other, we like to say that it's because of God. Or justice (like the death penalty), which is usually just a few brain cells over.

God, whatever that enigma is, and Evolution are both integral with Nature -- there is no conflict whatsoever. It's people's ideas and interpretations of God that cause the problems.

Answer 8

when you use the terms evolution and the ideals of God (creationism) my thoughts go right to man being created by God vs man decending from apes although evolution could be viewed simply as the way species have adapted to their surroundings over the centuries. I would have to say there is no proof of either. You must have faith in God to believe the accounts in the Bible. And the theory of evolution is just that a theory.
I do believe God did create everything but things change ie evolution, I view the ability for species to adapt and change as gift from God. As for man vs ape I believe as stated in the Bible man was created in His image and He also created ape as totally different species.

Answer 9

There isn't any reason why it couldn't have been created to evolve. The meaning of the word day has been used in many contexts in the bible, and in the eyes of God is generally not considered a 24 hour day. In this way we can see that the history of evolution isn't really different from the process described in Genesis; rather it is an elaborate unraveling of how it occured, step by step, on one of God's "days".

Christians and proponents of Evolution have no real reason to disagree.

Answer 10

God is totally cabable to create things aged. If you were in the garden of Eden and met Adam the day he was made, do you think that he was a day old baby or a man? Christians do not deny Evolution, we just deny the part that there was not a Creator. Evolution Theory is a theory!