Review: Evolution and
Christian Faith: Reflections of an Evolutionary Biologist
By Joan Roughgarden
Reviewed by Byron Anderson
Northern Illinois
University, USA
Joan
Roughgarden. Evolution and Christian Faith:
Reflections of an Evolutionary Biologist. Washington, DC: Island Press,
2006. 155 pp. ISBN: 1-59726-098-3 (hardcover); US$15.95. Printed on recycled,
acid-free paper.
Evolution
and Christian Faith
is about plants, animals, humans and the Bible existing coherently on one
planet. It bridges the gap in understanding between evolutionary biology and
Christian beliefs. Roughgarden, professor of
biological sciences and geophysics (Stanford), believes that evolutionary
biology has been poorly presented to the public and that the Bible is often
misrepresented in matters of creation. The book is premised on two facts of
evolutionary biology, first, all of life is related, symbolically called the
one family tree, and second, species change. These do not conflict with the
literal text of the Bible.
Roughgarden engages the reader through a first-person
account of a Christian teaching evolutionary biology. She insists that
"evolutionary science is limited to studying the origin of the body, not
the soul or the basis for human dignity" (p. 55), and that "the Bible
does not have a scientific end but a religious end" (p. 63). Through DNA,
we know that we inherit our bodies from ancestors, including ancestors of other
species; we do not inherit our souls from ancestors. She believes humanity's
evolution is a willful act of God rather than a by-product of evolutionary
processes.
Roughgarden analyzes Christian thinking on evolution,
particularly the Catholic Church's statements on the evolutionary process,
including the influences of Cardinal Schőnborn
and his criticism of atheistic materialism as a dominant philosophy in secular
societies. Roughgarden criticizes the intelligent
design movement which preaches that evolutionary biologists are foisting
anti-religious dogma on innocent children. She views intelligent design as bad
science and believes that it should be taught as such. The chapter on Gender
and Sexuality defends homosexuality in nature, and shows how certain Bible
versus, frequently invoked against homosexuality, are not represented
correctly.
Future
directions are suggested in bringing evolutionary biology and Christianity
together. Individuals need to avoid getting caught up in polarizing positions,
for example, evolutionary biologist Richard Dawkins' views of competition in
nature and the selfish-gene philosophy, and televangelist Pat Robertson's
preaching of a wrathful God. The book ends on a moral issue-"our Christian
responsibility to care for God's creation" (p. 141).
Evolution
and Christian Faith
is not a scholarly treatise of the subject. It lacks references, though there
is an index, and it does not build on current scholarship, which is abundant
for those interested. The book is a thoughtful treatment of those issues
keeping evolution and religion apart. Easily read, the book is ideal for the
general public, and is recommended for personal and general library
collections.
Byron
Anderson <banderson@niu.edu>,
Acting Associate Dean for Public Services, Northern Illinois University,
University Libraries, DeKalb, IL 60115 USA. TEL: 815-753-9804.
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Electronic
Green Journal,
Issue 25, 2007
ISSN: 1076-7975