In the middle of the 19th Century, as Britain ruled over India and, indirectly, China, a man by the name of Charles Darwin published a theory that the animals evolved from earlier forms naturally, scientifically.
Darwin's world had been taught fairy tales from the words of its half-understood holy book, The Bible, of God creating the animals.
Of God creating man out of clay.
And so when Charles Darwin showed them that man evolved from monkeys and chimpanzees (for indeed we were monkeys before we were apes), that the first man was born of an ape and not fashioned from clay by God, then many people in Charles Darwin's world decided that their fairy tales from The Bible were simply not true, and that their religion was not true.
And perhaps Charles Darwin's theory showed people that the old, but not that old, European religion that taught the people to not utter certain words or the Devil will get them and drag them to hell was not true.
But Europe was a young and ignorant land.
If they had really understood their Greek philosophy they would have known that the fact that man evolved from an ape, and that ape from a monkey, was not reason to not believe in God
For if they had read their Aristotle the Victorians would have known that the best evidence for God is that anything exists at all!
Why does the universe exist?
Why does anything exist at all?
Something must be its own cause!
And it makes so much more sense that that something was something intelligent!
And that's how we know that there is a God! Because how else would anything exist at all! Surely God can be His own cause!
And if the Victorians had really read their Bible, they would know that their God was not an angry God who wanted us to fear saying the wrong thing in front of the Devil!
For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. John 3:16
God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son!
For us!
This is not a God who wants us to fear the Devil!
This is not an angry God!
If they had read their Plato, if they had really understood their Bible, the Victorians would have known that!
And the God of Plato, of the true Jesus whether Messiah or Prophet, would want us to do science and understand how He used the process of evolution to create the different forms of animals- after creating life out of His own substance- for there is plenty of room in the world for both God and Darwin!
And Darwin's theory uncovers many wonderful stories- the story of how birds descended from dinosaurs, the story of how man was descended from small tree-dwelling animals living among dinosaurs, and much more!
For there is lots of room for both God and Darwin in this world!
God loves you! God loves Darwin and Darwin's theory is how He created the different forms! God loves you!
Sincerely,
David S. Annderson