To Christians who believe in evolution?

Question

This question is actually only directed to Christians who believe in evolution. Please no anti-evolution stuff.

So I would assume that being Christian means you believe in heaven. So at which point on the evolutionary timetable do you think people started going to heaven? In other words, if you believe animals don't go to heaven and people do, there would have to be a specific time where our ancestors were no longer considered animals and where then humans. I am just curious to see what people think on this subject. Also, give me some of you other ideas on the subject (ie you believe all animals go to heaven too).

Answer 1

That's an interesting point. Since chimpanzees don't go to heaven, presumably neither would their ancestors, who happen to be our ancestors. So ostensibly at some point, when we evolved consciousness, we were then capable of sinning and whatnot.

Answer 2

I'll answer your last one first. GOD I hope that animals go to heaven! I have a few pets that I would love to see again. I am a Christan and yes I do believe in evolution. I believe that one went to heaven no matter what they believed in. When in time God created man had the opp. to make a choice. That is when it all began. If we did indeed evolve from an ape the ape might of not had the copatiabilty or the brain to know right from wrong. Thence the evolution of man. Man had the brain to think with as in knowing right from wrong. Hope this will make your answer if not discard it. THis is just what i think.

Answer 3

I don't "believe in" evolution. I believe in God. I recognize evolution as a natural process, and have considerable knowledge about it, but speaking of "believing in" evolution makes about as much sense as "believing in" photosynthesis.

The Bible addresses your question pretty well. It says that God first formed the human body, that is the biological nature of the human species, from inorganic matter ("the dust of the earth", as the Bible describes it). The process by which God did this is not described, nor is the time frame involved. Evolutionary biology fills in that information, which the Bible does not provide. Why would it? The Bible is not a biology text. It doesn't describe photosynthesis either.

Then the Bible states that after the biological body of man was formed through an undescribed process, God breathed into this biological entity spiritual life, moral capacity, and an immortal soul. At that moment the first human came into existence, for a human being by definition is the union of a mortal biological nature with an immortal spiritual nature. We do not know at what point in the biological evolution of our species this event occurred, and never will know it. God has not revealed that information, and science cannot provide it, for spiritual realities lie outside the purview of science.
.

Answer 4

My imperfect understanding is that the soul goes to heaven. The soul must be separate from the body and the mind - we know the body does not go to heaven, and people with severe dementia likely still possess a soul but no longer possess a mind. Thus, any sentient being with a soul can go to heaven.

I would not be surprised to see dolphins in heaven, nor some of the other primates. Again, we have an imperfect understanding.

I compare our understanding to that of my dog. He believes that all life consists of eating, sleeping, pooping and playing. If I'm not doing one of the first three, I must be playing. But he has no framework to understand games like washing the dishes and mowing the grass. We have no framework of understanding for concepts such as soul and afterlife, other than what we believe.

Answer 5

not all evolution falls into the category you describ. There are areas of evolution within a species which have been proved, and in those I believe as correct although this type of adjusting might not answer all questions about differentiation within a species I figure it classifys most such changes.

my belief is thatr animals have souls and are either reincarnated or have a place in heaven. I have checked out the translations in the areas about this and found this is possible.

Answer 6

I used to believe in Evolution, too, but later have to discard the theory because it is just impossible to keept the two together.
I hope you do not generalize Christians, because Roman Catholicism is actually only Christian in name, but most of their doctrines are from Roman paganism, thus the name Roman Catholicism.

I don't believe at all that animals from this earth with be taken to heaven. Animals will be in heaven, but they will be of an entirely different nature from the animals on earth at the present time. They will be just like the animals in the garden of Eden. So they must be created after we arrived there. That's why the text in Revelation 21:1-5 says:
21:1 Now I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away. Also there was no more sea.
21:2 Then I, John, saw the holy city, New Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.

Isaiah 11:6 "The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb, The leopard shall lie down with the young goat, The calf and the young lion and the fatling together; And a little child shall lead them.
11:7 The cow and the bear shall graze; Their young ones shall lie down together; And the lion shall eat straw like the ox.
11:8 The nursing child shall play by the cobra's hole, And the weaned child shall put his hand in the viper's den.
11:9 They shall not hurt nor destroy in all My holy mountain, For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD As the waters cover the sea.

21:3 And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, "Behold, the tabernacle of God [is] with men, and He will dwell with them, and they shall be His people. God Himself will be with them [and be] their God.
21:4 "And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying. There shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away."
21:5 Then He who sat on the throne said, "Behold, I make all things new." And He said to me, "Write, for these words are true and faithful."

Answer 7

Just a slight correction. One does not "believe in" evolution. Evolution is widely accepted by the educated public as fact. There is enough evidence to support it that anyone with a functioning mind and the ability to look something up can verify it themselves.

The correct terminology in this case would be those who "accept" evolution. Evolution isn't a god, you don't have to "believe in it" to make it real.

Answer 8

Any belief is no more or less true then any other; all are arbitrary. They can believe that point 'on the evolutionary timetable' was yesterday morning and tomorrow believe it was last week Saturday and neither is no more or less refutable than the other.

Answer 9

Hmm. Very interesting. Maybe there was some sort of divine intervention to distinguish homo habilis from homo erectus -- they speculate language may have emerged at that time. My son thinks chimpanzees and dolphins and parrots and border collies (oops I forgot elephants) are sentient, so maybe they do have souls. I'm not holding my breath though.

Answer 10

I believe animals go to heaven too.