Evolution is atheistic

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Contents 1 Claim 2 Source 3 Responses 4 Fallacies contained in this claim 5 External Links 6 References 7 Further Reading 8 Related claims 9 See Also 10 Acknowledgments

Claim

Evolution is atheistic.

Source

• Morris, Henry M., 1974. Scientific Creationism, Master Books, Arkansas, p. 215.
• The Trouble with Atheism

Responses

1. Initially, this claim is a simple misuse of the world "atheistic" when "secular" is more appropriate. However, as appears to be the case with many flawed arguments the misuse of terms is intentional. In this case, by labeling evolution as "atheistic" the creationist is able to slur evolution in the eyes of any theist.
2. Since evolution doesn't even mention God, it cannot be said to either affirm or deny the existence of God. Evolution's failure to mention God is shared by stamp collecting, baking cheesecake, and the rules of American football; why, then, is it that those Creationists who have a problem with "atheistic" evolution, do not have just as much of a problem with "atheistic" stamp collecting, "atheistic" cooking, or "atheistic" football? A fitting comparison along the same lines extends to the secular United States Constitution which although leaving room for God, doesn't confirm or deny his/her/its existence.
3. Evolution (changes in life) happens, God or no. The Theory of Evolution is the scientific explanation for how evolution happens and what the history of it has been. Although it is true that science provides naturalistic explanations, it does not deny the existence of God.
4. Many believers also accept evolution.
5. Creationists readily accept observed natural phenomena as the work of God (flowers, mountains, childbirth, etc.), therefore evolution, an observed natural phenomenon, can equally be a part of a theistic world view.
6. Saying "evolution is atheistic" is like saying "(osmosis/Brownian motion/light refraction in a prism) is atheistic" -- at worst, this anthropomorphizes a scientific description of a natural process by attributing to it an ability to hold a particular view on something the way a sentient being would; at best, it confers upon it the ability to somehow influence people's personal views on matters it does not even pretend to include.
7. Even if the claim were true, it is not relevant. Whether or not Evolution is atheistic has utterly no bearing on its validity. Descent with modification happens, that's it.
8. Darwin himself, and his correspondent Asa Gray, believed that evolution and religion are compatible. Darwin said this in the On the Origin of species, citing Charles Kingsley and Asa Gray as examples, and for himself, he had "never been an Atheist in the sense of denying the existence of a God".
9. If evolution is atheistic, how come prominent religious biologists, such as Theodosius Dobzhansky, Kenneth Miller, Francisco J. Ayala, Joan Roughgarde and Francis Collins, or even the two most recent Popes accept evolution and think that it is entirely compatible, if not required by their faith?
10. add more responses

Fallacies contained in this claim

• Hasty Generalization (there are evolutionists who are atheists, but they may be minority)
• Group Fallacy (even if evolutionists were atheists, they wouldn't do worse science than everybody else)
• Conceptual Fallacy (evolution is a scientific theory, not a sentient creature, and does not "believe" in anything, deity or otherwise, moreover, it does not discourage or encourage "belief" in anything)
• Equivocation (the term "atheistic" is used here for a connotation of unwholesomeness, rather than its denotative meaning)

External Links

• NCSE, n.d. Voices for Evolution: Statements from Religious Organizations. [1]

References

1. Scott, Jon, 2000. [What was the inspiration for the Genesis Panthesis web site?]. See also: Harris, Adam N., 7/24/2000. Re: Jon Scott has a new website! Message-ID , [2]
2. Morton, Glenn R., 2000. The transformation of a Young-earth Creationist. Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith 52(2): 81-83. [3]

Further Reading

• Ruse, Michael, 2001. Can a Darwinian Be a Christian?, Cambridge University Press.

Related claims

• Evolutionism goes back to pre-Christian times
• Darwin made it easy to become an intellectually fulfilled atheist
• Scientists aim to make God unnecessary
• Evolution's materialism or naturalism denies a role for God
• Naturalistic evolution rules out all but a Deist god
• Evolution is a religion
• If man comes from random causes, life has no purpose or meaning
• Without a literal Fall, there is no need for Jesus and redemption
• Animals are not moral, esthetic, idealistic, or religious
• Pope's statement about evolution was mistranslated
• The proposition that human beings are created in the image of God is one of the bedrock principles on which Western civilization was built
• Evolution is the foundation of an immoral worldview

See Also

• Why is Creationism not a Scientific Theory?

Acknowledgments

• Thomas Kettenring