Christian and Evolution

1. Entity type Lemma
2. Original titleХристианин и эволюция
3. Language term Russian
4. lemma author Saprykin, Dmitry
5. lemma category Co-existence
6. Publication date 2002
7. lemma work Шихляров Лев [Author]. Christian and Evolution
8. lemma manifestations Благовещение. Библиотека православного христианина
9. Keywords Evolution
10. Citations
    1. http://www.wco.ru/biblio/books/shihlyar2/Main.htm
11. Lemma body

    1. The article discusses the possibility for a Christian to accept the idea of evolution as a form of the life origin in the world. The author believes that there is nothing anti-Christian in the view of the world originating under the Creator Providence influence, which was accomplished gradually, through the development of living beings.

       Moreover, according to the author, it is in the Bible that the model of the developing world is represented, as opposed to many other religious concepts. "The Holy Scripture opposes to the eternal world, world cyclically disappearing and emerging, the immovable world, the degrading world - this diverse ancient mythologies - the idea of the universe arising from non-being by God's will, in which man appears, called to introduce the existence of this universe into the Divine life; and therefore the idea of gradually developing world." Man appears first of all as a spiritualized animal with tasks and goal, suggesting his filial in relation to the Creator reign in the universe, adds the author.

       Atheistic thought, as the author claims, proudly rejecting the authority of the God’s Word, has taken the very idea of progress from the Bible. Outside the Bible though, outside the Divine plan, every conversation about progress is absurd: the "forward" movement can simultaneously turn out to be a movement "down".

       The author points out that it is incorrect to oppose, and even more to compare science and religion. Religion is the search for reunification with God and the experience arising from the encounter with Him. In science, a revelation is possible, but there is no encounter, there is only a human search, and therefore science can be compared not with religion, but with theology, i.e. with an attempt to express the truths of faith in a scientific and philosophical way.

       Science and theology have completely different tasks in relation to the world and man. Science tries to answer the question, when and how this world emerged, what are its material laws, what are the most convenient ways for man to exist in this world. Theology formulates answers to other questions: why did the world and man appear, what is the eternal, non-earthly goal of man existence in the world, what is the moral law given to man.