By coincidence I was listening to the free HHMI lectures DVDs this week.
In them a Catholic monk and educator puts forward the concept that his religious views suggest that God
had to have created the world with some way for life to be developing, changing etc.
He then pointed out that the biologists are willing to say that natural selection is a requirement for this (ie. there is no other way).
From this the Catholic suggests that God had to create life that evolves just as we see.
Your ideas have some resonance with what he has to say.
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