How I Changed My Mind About Evolution: Evangelicals Reflect on Faith and Science
Overview
Perhaps no topic appears as potentially threatening to evangelicals as evolution. The very idea seems to exclude God from the creation the book of Genesis celebrates.
Yet many evangelicals have come to accept the conclusions of science while still holding to a vigorous belief in God and the Bible. How did they make this journey? How did they come to embrace both evolution and faith?
Here are stories from a community of people who love Jesus and honor the authority of the Bible, but who also agree with what science says about the cosmos, our planet and the life that so abundantly fills it.
Key Features
- Presents a variety of perspectives on faith, God, and science
- Discusses the impact of science on understanding of life and God’s nature
- Shows how Scripture can suppport scientific insight
Top Highlights
“While the biblical text does not speak to the issue of how God created, it does insist that he was the Creator. This truth is not discernible by scientific inquiry but by the eyes of faith and belief in his Word. While humanity may not go back to a representative couple, it seems to me that the biblical text does present the idea of what I heard theologian Jamie Smith of Calvin College call the ‘episodic nature of the Fall.’ That is, when human beings were endowed with God’s image, they were morally innocent. Our sinful nature is not due to the way God made us, but the result of our own human rebellion.” (Page 53)
“The anchor and guide of the historic Christian faith prevented me from inflating a theological innovation like young-earth creationism to the status of orthodox litmus test.” (Page 26)
“Knowledge and being able to fathom mysteries have no meaning apart from love. Our goal is not simply to be correct, but to discover truth and express it in love.” (Page 114)
“Science, Creation and the Bible: Reconciling Rival Theories of Origins” (Page 53)
“main points: the world is not filled with many gods, but is ruled by one sovereign God” (Page 43)
Contributors Include
- Scientists such as
- Francis Collins
- Deborah Haarsma
- Denis Lamoureux
- Pastors such as
- John Ortberg
- Ken Fong
- Laura Truax
- Biblical scholars such as
- N.T. Wright
- Scot McKnight
- Tremper Longman III
- Theologians and philosophers such as
- James K.A. Smith
- Amos Yong
- Oliver Crisp
- And more!
Praise for the Print Edition
This collection of firsthand experiences is important for showing that firm belief in the truth-telling character of Scripture can support, rather than undermine, the best scientific investigations. It also provides more solid evidence for the good that BioLogos is doing to transform science and religion from a war zone to an instructive conversation.
—Mark Noll, Francis A. McAnaney Professor of History, University of Notre Dame
Atheists often cite religious opposition to evolution as a reason for their unbelief. This wonderful collection of essays by Bible-believing Christians demonstrates how unnecessary it is to oppose evolution in the name of faith. What is striking about the authors in this volume is the sheer range and diversity of their own spiritual journeys in coming to terms with science. It is my prayer that evolution might cease to be seen as a threat to faith on the part of some Christians rather than as an integral aspect of God's created order for which the Christian can rightly give praise.
—Denis R. Alexander, emeritus director, The Faraday Institute for Science and Religion
If we want to converse with someone, we must first be willing to listen, to understand. And these stories are easy to listen to—so well written, so personally engaging, so reflective of committed faith. You will find yourself liking the contributors as you get a glimpse into their thought processes. As someone who studies and ministers in the area of faith and science, I commend the authors and editors for this nicely done book.
—C. John Collins, professor of Old Testament, Covenant Theological Seminary
- Title: How I Changed My Mind About Evolution: Evangelicals Reflect on Faith and Science
- Authors: Kathryn Applegate, J. B. Stump, Deborah Haarsma
- Series: BioLogos Books on Science and Christianity
- Publisher: IVP Academic
- Print Publication Date: 2016
- Logos Release Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Resources: 1
- Format: Digital › Logos Research Edition
- Subjects: Evolution (Biology) › Religious aspects--Christianity; Religion and science; Evangelicalism
- ISBNs: 9780830899630, 9780830852901, 9780857217875, 9780857217882, 0830899634, 0830852905, 0857217879, 0857217887
- Resource ID: LLS:HWCHNGDMMNDVLTN
- Resource Type: Monograph
- Metadata Last Updated: 2024-03-06T20:43:57Z
About the Editors
Kathryn Applegate (PhD, The Scripps Research Institute) is program director at BioLogos, where she designs and coordinates programs aimed at translating scholarship on origins for the evangelical church. She earned bachelors degrees in biophysics and mathematics at Centenary College of Louisiana and a PhD in computational cell biology from The Scripps Research Institute (La Jolla). At Scripps she developed computer vision algorithms and mathematical models of the cell’s internal scaffold, the cytoskeleton. Kathryn enjoys an active involvement in both the science and faith community and in her church.
J.B. Stump (PhD, Boston University) is senior editor at BioLogos, where he oversees the development of new content and curates existing content for the BioLogos website and print materials. He has also been a philosophy professor and academic administrator, and he frequently speaks to churches and other groups on the intersection of science and Christianity. He is the author of Science and Christianity: An Introduction to the Issues, coauthor of Christian Thought: A Historical Introduction and coeditor of How I Changed My Mind About Evolution and The Blackwell Companion to Science and Christianity.
