Evolution In Catholic Churches

593 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Creation vs evolution argumentitive essay

Many of the Catholic Churches Popes have had very different views of how evolution should be treated. Some such as Pope Pius XII believes that , in the eyes of the church, evolution should be disregarded and the creation story in the Bible is the truth. Other Popes such as Pope John Paul II believe that ideas of evolution should be accepted into maybe even changing some of the churches teachings. He believes that evolution is a real thing and cannot be denied. Personally, I believe in evolution. In my opinion, if Catholics believe in evolution, they are not committing a sin against God. I fully believe that God does exist, but I know that humans didn't just appear out of nowhere and were not made in a day. Humans came to exist by things such as natural selection and …show more content…

Our current Pope, Pope Francis has said, " The evolution in nature is not opposed to the notion of Creation, because evolution presupposes the creation of beings that evolve." He also said, “When we read in Genesis the account of Creation, we risk imagining that God was a magician, with such a magic wand as to be able to do everything,” he said. “However, it was not like that. He created beings and left them to develop according to the internal laws that He gave each one, so that they would develop, and reach their fullness.” These statement support both sides of the story, although it takes a little out of the creation story. These statements suggest that when God created Adam and Eve, they were not humans like us, but rather humans more similar to cavemen. Pope Francis is saying that evolution is real for sure, and that he believes the creation story is true as well. Personally I love this statement he throws out, I think it compromises many debates and satisfies both sides of belief. Francis has only been Pope of the Catholic Church for two years, yet has made many revolutionary

Show More
Related

  • Summary: What Electric Eels Tell Us About The Evolution Of Religion

    931 Words  | 2 Pages

    Article: What Electric Eels Tell Us About the Evolution of Religion (The World Until Yesterday Ch. 9), Jared Diamond

    Read More

  • The History Of The Scopes Monkey Trial

    1647 Words  | 4 Pages

    Charles Darwin, the Father of Evolution, was a British scientist who laid the foundations of the theory of evolution, transforming the thinking of the entire world about the living things around us (Charles Darwin (1809 – 1882)). After working on his theory for nearly 20 years, he published On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection in 1859. As soon as the book was released, the controversy began with each sides gaining followers until the climax on July 10, 1925. The idea that animals could “evolve” and change into new species, including humans, was one that challenged not only how people thought about the natural world, but challenged the story of the creation from the Bible itself. Even though Darwin himself never said that humans “evolved” from apes, everyone took it as a logical extension of his new theory. It went against the idea of argument for design that had unified theology and science for decades (Moran 5). This new threat to Christianity and the social culture of the time was one that would transform state laws on their educational curriculum.

    Read More

  • Social Darwinism: Herbert Spencer and The Catholic Church

    475 Words  | 1 Pages

    Herbert Spencer was the most important Social Darwinist of the 19th Century. He was the first to begin thinking about evolutionist long before Darwin came out with his book on the "Origins of Species". He had many theories such as that everything evolves from one basic creature and then breaks off into more diverse species (Haberman (Hab.), 171). His theory was that social, political, and intellectual movements were caused by the development from the homogeneous to the heterogeneous.

    Read More

  • Science and Religion: A Christian's Response to Biology

    2748 Words  | 6 Pages

    Ross, H. (1997c). The Shell Game of Evolution and Creation. [Online]. Available: http://www.reasons.org/resources/papers/shellgame.html. [Oct. 1997].

    Read More

  • Views of the Episcopal Church

    1294 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Episcopal Church of the United States is one of the most debatable when it comes to the subject of homosexuality and creating equal rights amongst its members. The church embraces a new kind of transitioning belief that sets them aside from other denominations. The Episcopal Church stems from the Church of England, dating to at least the second century. The Church was founded from the very beginnings on the Christian beliefs and is customary to regard the St. Augustine of Canterbury's mission to England. This was the official beginning of the church under papal authority. In time, these churches branched away from their mother church and gained their individuality without raising and eyebrow retaining important connections with Anglican Communion by abiding by their religious laws (Episcopal Church 1999). Subsequently, the topic of homosexuality has placed a huge amount of stress and turmoil on the denomination, with conflicting views in the church community and with the Angelic communion who does not support the strides made by the Episcopalians. This isn’t the first time, certainly not the last for the Episcopal Church they have made great steps in including the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender community and encompassed a new kind of dedication to their members. The Episcopal Church throughout history and in today’s society are very well known for their unstandardized laws, ever changing structure and futuristic traditions.

    Read More

  • The Controversy of Evolution in Catholicism, Christianity, and Islam

    435 Words  | 1 Pages

    The idea of evolution by Darwin indicated that the world is not created by God, but through some kind of modification. This controversial idea is strongly objected by most of the religions, such as Catholic, Christian, and Islam etc. These religions sturdily believe that God is the creator of the world, the creator of everything. However, to some extent, Buddhism does teach the similar theory to Darwin’s idea, which Buddhism does not include the idea of God. Also, like the way Darwin talks about “Natural Selection”, Buddhism says that if a person wants to have improvement, he or she must do the good things and undo the bad things. Therefore, as a Buddhist, the idea of evolution shown a positive affect on my beliefs, and it emphasizes and truly proves the teaching of Buddha in a scientific way.

    Read More

  • Examining Religious Evolution and Interpretations

    1213 Words  | 3 Pages

    Different types of religion have existed almost as long as mankind has. Many people believe in the institute of religion, but what constitutes religion is still highly debated today. This is largely due to the fact that religion continues to evolve based on cultural norms of the world. Each religion has a set of beliefs that go along with it, and often these beliefs differ from those of another religion. These differences often lead to heated debate and contention as to which religion will best allow people to lead virtuous lives. This confusion leads people to have distorted views about their faith and what it actually means to them. This debate even occurs within different subdivisions of a single religion. Harriet Beecher Stowe 's novel,

    Read More

  • Religion: An Evolutionary Coping Mechanism?

    1879 Words  | 4 Pages

    Imagine that you’ve been suffering through a time of immense hardship and you are economically disadvantaged. You haven’t eaten in days, you’re home is about to be foreclosed, and you are hopeless about finding employment. You take what little food you have left, scrounge together whatever possessions of yours that have value, and for good measure throw in your first-born son. Taking all of these items, you then light them on fire and utterly destroy them. If this happened today, no doubt would a person be arrested and deemed a risk to himself and others. But for centuries, people carried out these sacrificial rituals, wasting precious resources and time & energy, in hopes that things would get better. Religion is immensely costly both in terms of resources and time. We know that the most evolutionary fit creatures do not waste their energy on pointless tasks and that everything done in life is because the reward is bigger than the risk. So we ask ourselves, what is the reward of following religion given its immense expenditure. How has religion survived for so long and what does it offer to those who follow it? Furthermore, how did religion come to being and what purpose did it serve in the early days of its inception? When human beings first invented agriculture and settled down, the foundations of society began shaping. Tribes grew and became more permanent, people interacted with each other in more sophisticated ways, and civilization formed. Through this communal “puberty”, culture was born and memes (ideas, behaviors, and styles that spread from person to person) came to being. If we look at religion through an inverse perspective, one that says human society and culture developed religion as opposed to religion dictating so...

    Read More

  • The Evolution of Religion

    1331 Words  | 3 Pages

    In The Wizard of Oz (1939), Dorothy and her friends journey to the Emerald City in seek of Oz – the great and powerful wizard. Upon finally reaching him, Dorothy’s dog opens a curtain to reveal that the Wizard is merely an ordinary man speaking into a microphone while using various knobs and levers to create a smoke-and-mirrors effect. In many ways this story is similar to the creation and interpretation of religion by individuals within society.

    Read More

  • Evolution Vs. Creationism

    1322 Words  | 3 Pages

    The information presented in evolution studies must be viewed with an open mind since there is no definite proof or law of evolution. The dilemma boils down to science vs. religion. God has been our creator since beginning of time, but the discoveries of recent science are sudde...

    Read More

  • Evolution: Evolution And The Theory Of Evolution

    559 Words  | 2 Pages

    The thought of evolution is filled with theories, ideas and beliefs. The definition of evolution is rather simple. According to Jerry A. Coyle, evolution is “the change in the inherited characteristics of biological populations over successive generations (2). Evolution gives rise to diversity when it comes to the hierarchy of life otherwise known as biological organization. Many people find the topic of evolution to be troubling and very confusing. Throughout history churches have preached that evolution is atheistic and a sin if even thought about. Famous scientist, Charles Darwin, is said to really be the first to formulate debated theory of evolution by the means of natural selection. Eventually in the 20th century genetics was compounded with Charles Darwin’s theories of evolution. Even today scientists continue to study different aspects of the theory of evolution.

    Read More

  • Modern Science and Christianity

    1115 Words  | 3 Pages

    In the past centuries scientific innovations have occupied people’s mind. People have been looking for answers about their existence with the help of science and the scientific method. But nothing has changed with people’s culture or behavior. However, something happened two thousand years ago that influenced and changed how some people perceive the world and self existence. It was the beginning of Christianity.

    Read More

  • History and the Roman Catholic Church

    2797 Words  | 6 Pages

    Christianity most specifically, the Holy Roman Catholic Church has been involved in the world throughout time. Since Christianity, when if first became a major religion in society the involvement of the Roman Catholic Church has affected many areas of history. The Roman Catholic Church has affected the world historically, as demonstrated by it's impact upon the historical figures like Hypatia, Joan of Arc, and Jan Hus, historical events such as the Salem Witch Trials, and many other eras and events. The Roman Catholic Church slowed down scientific advancement during the Middle Ages when they had the greatest control over society, due to their personal beliefs. Finally, the Roman Catholic Church for a time changed the world ethically for women and homosexuals, although this is not inclusive. Without the extreme control the Roman Catholic Church had, the world would be a completely different place to live in. To prove this, topics such as the effect the Roman Catholic Church has had throughout history, how science has been affected by the Roman Catholic Church, and how the Roman Catholic Church has affected society ethically to a small and temporary degree.

    Read More

  • The Relationship Between Science and Religion

    1381 Words  | 3 Pages

    Frame, Randy. "Evolution: Pope Says Evolution More than a Hypothesis." Christianity Today. December 9, 1996. http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/1996/december9/6te072.html (accessed December 19, 2011).

    Read More

  • The Theory Of Evolution And Philosophy Of Science

    843 Words  | 2 Pages

    Many scholars discussed in the chapter, do not believe that evolution and religion cannot go hand-in-hand. It is believed that if God plays a role in evolution, then it is no longer a process of natural selection. Another point that the scholars agree on in the chapter is the fact that humans cannot be viewed as products of evolution. DeWitt gives an example in his book when he looks at the extinction dinosaurs and how the asteroid impact...

    Read More

More about Evolution In Catholic Churches

Open Document