EVIL, ORIGINAL SIN, AND EVOLUTION

Author: PENDERGAST S.J., RICHARD J.¹

Source: The Heythrop Journal, Volume 50, Number 5, September 2009 , pp. 833-845(13)

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Abstract:

This article has three sections. The first discusses the problem of evil; the second, the sins of both angels and men that originally introduced evil into the world; the third, a teleological theory of evolution that clarifies the relationship between the first two sections. At present there is a great deal of discussion about the nature of the evolutionary process. Some argue that ultimately it is a strictly random one. But it is quite impossible to prove scientifically that evolution is strictly random. From a Christian point of view the best way to view it is to see it not only as the result of divine intelligence, but also as due to a ferocious conflict between superhuman powers - the biblical angels and demons to whom God in the beginning gave the power to guide and develop his creation.

Document Type: Research article

DOI: 10.1111/j.1468-2265.2009.00472.x

Affiliations: 1: Fordham University, Bronx, U.S.A.