Creationism, Evolutionism, Interventionism and The Scopes Monkey Trials

 Read through the package on creationism, evolution and interventionism and fill in the chart provided

 The idea that all living things developed from a few simple life forms. Many different and complex life forms developed over time as a result of adaptation to various environments.

 If you have:  Variation  Inheritance  Selection and  Time  Then you get evolution

 The 4 essential requirements of evolution: VARIATION: All life forms vary genetically within a population. It is this genetic variation upon which selection works. INHERITANCE: Genetic traits are inherited from parents and are passed on to offspring. SURVIVAL: Organisms with traits that are favorable to their survival get to live and pass on their genes to the next generation. TIME: Evolution takes time. Evolution can happen in a few generations, but major change, such as speciation, often takes long periods of time.

 The idea that all things were created – in much the same form as they now exist – by an all-powerful creator.

 Many people believe in creationism.  This is the belief that man (and all other beings) were created by God  For many this belief is grounded in the book of Genesis.  Chapter 1, Verse 27: “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created them; male and female created them.”  Many other religions have a creation story as well. One example is Islamic Qur’an which states: Your Guardian Lord is Allah, who created the heavens and the earth in six days, then He settled Himself on the Throne. He draws the night as a veil over the day, each quickly following the other. And the sun and the moon and the stars are all under His command. Surah 7:54

 Believers in creation suggest that the major plants and animals on earth were placed on the earth in their final form.  This also suggests that man/women were placed on the earth in his/her current fully human form.  In this view, earth was not a spontaneous creation but rather a specific and divine event by our creator.

 The idea that evolution was guided by the creator. Evolution was at work up to the Homo erectus stage, where a superior being intervened and changed Homo erectus into Homo sapiens.

 It’s important to note that Evolution and religion are not necessarily incompatible.  While creationists stick to a literal interpretation of holy scripture, the official position of many religious authorities (such as the Catholic church) is that evolution does not contradict religious teachings.  Evolution is still possible under the guidance of a creator, as long as one is open to interpreting scripture.

 It’s also important to note that the Theory of Evolution is itself still evolving.  Darwin, for example, had no understanding of genetics.  Even today, the discovery of things like biological feedback loops that suggest living things can guide their own evolution (rather than evolution being a product of random mutations) mean that we still likely don’t have the complete picture of how evolution works.

 Diluvial Theory:  supported the Bible  fossils of extinct animals formed by a major flood  Objections:  no single event like Flood could account for progression of fossils in layers, each lower level is older  discovery of pre-flood fossils related to animals living after the flood

 George Cuvier ( )  explained sequence of fossil layers by proposing a corresponding series of major catastrophes interspersed with periods of calm when plant and animal populations restocked the Earth  Noah’s flood just one of many catastrophes (between )

 Why was (is) the theory of evolution so controversial?  At the time of Darwin’s publication of the Origin of Species (1859) creation was the most widely accepted version of how the earth and all life on it was created.  To many it seemed that the theory of evolution was an attempt to contradict religious belief.  But, Darwin himself was deeply religious.  The idea that humans came from apes was also offensive to some people.

 Scopes Monkey Trials – summarize the main points of the story as you watch   WNUxUM WNUxUM  What was the controversy?  Why do you think it was illegal?  Do you think this controversy still exists today?  m-vs-evolution-what-to-teach/ m-vs-evolution-what-to-teach/

1. Evolution is a theory about the origin of life.

2. Evolution is like a climb up a ladder of progress; organisms are always getting better.

3. Natural selection involves organisms ‘trying’ to adapt.