quote:
Originally posted by bucane:
As a anthropology student, and a christian I have a torn belief about creation and evolution. Could both have happened? Well the topic that I would like to get going is with Chimps and Gorillas being as close as they are genically to humans wouldn't it suggest that humans have evolved from apes?? I'm not saying that why evolved from modern apes but somewhere in the distant past humans branched off and here we are today. What are your thoughts??
An articulate and well-phrased question. To answer it, man and modern-day apes evolved from a common ancestor, now extinct. That previous sentence is as close to 'proven fact' as you can get in science (given that science isn't about 'proving' things - proof is for mathematics and alcohol). And regarding your first question - could creation and evolution BOTH have happened - certainly. Evolutionary theory says absolutely nothing about any god, who may or may not have created something (using evolution as his tool). Evolutionary theory conflicts with no popular religious belief - only a very small subset of right-wing christians who choose to interpret portions of the bible literally, in spite of all scientific discoveries and knowledge to the contrary. Definitely, do not feel you are being 'unfaithful' or something similar to your beliefs in a creator/God by also acknowledging the truth of evolutionary theory.
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