Catholics, Genesis and Evolution

Fr. Robert J Carr talks about why Catholics are open to evolution. Fr. Carr is a signatory to the Clergy Letter Project http://www.clergyletterproject.org

Conference at Vatican on Evolution:
http://tinyurl.com/bz2xkp

http://www.stbenedictsomerville.com

Category:

Education

Tags:

• evolution
• clergy letter project
• evolution weekend
• genesis
• catholicism

[dogsieh]

stbenedict ,

could you please clarify as i have been debating this issue with family in the catholic faith . are you speaking of micro evolution or macro evolution ? as well is this your belief or the official catholic belief ?

your responce would greatly be appreciated and also put an end to a long debate .

[stbenedictsomerville]

Dogsieh, my comments do not get into issues of micro or macro evolution. They are more a look at evolution from a Christian stance. The Catholic Church has no official stance for or against most aspects of evolution except that we need to look at in light of the theological principles put forth in Genesis. (Cf Humanis Generis at Vatican Website.)

[ChristCommandsIt]

If Christ died for mankind, did He also die for our human ancestors before they developed rational brains? Where was the line crossed when our human ancestors became worth dying for? And since we supposedly evolve, is Christ not the human form of perfection since He lived 2,000 years ago? No, no, evolution simply does not agree with the Christian faith. It's hard to view it as anything other than heresy.

[stbenedictsomerville]

For the Record, YT says

ChristCommandsIt's account is closed. Yet since he asked. Humans are the only beings to evolve to the point that they can say "no" to God. So, in answer to his question about pre-rational brains. No, because they did not choose to sin.

[brewerbb]

25They exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen. 26Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. 27In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion.

[brewerbb]

21For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. 22Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools 23and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles. 24Therefore God gave them over in the sinful desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies with one another.

[NitroDSP]

This is why I love Catholicism, the Popes have allowed debates to be researched in scripture, instead of previous interpretations of scripture. Thank the Lord, He created us, but to think we could have it easy enough to have the Holy Book to give PERFECT advice throughout the ages without re-examination is a bit unrealistic, and I believe His plan is more about Faith than lectures.

[aldousjove]

In which page do we start do believe the bible? are the events of the exodus real? Is Christ born from a virgin? is there a real presence of the body of Christ in the Eucharist? It requires more faith to believe in evolution than to believe in the world of God. Time is relative the issue of the six days is not a problem for anybody who understand the basics of relativity but to believe in theistic evolution is a shame.

[KaiseRex42]

@kiwichristian2009 but what is the word of God and what does it say? And does it say as a literal fact or as a literary fact? If I say it is raining cats and dogs it is "nuts" to conclude it is raining domesticated animals from the sky! So the understanding that the earth was made in so many hours or days. The world was not made in this length of time indeed it is still being made today as earthquakes/coastal erosion testify etc. That it was made by and is made by God is the idea to Genesis.

[Padrino70NY]

If evolution is true, then there was death before sin and no need for a savior. A basic fundamental teaching of Christianity that Catholics have never understood.

[kiwichristian2009]

@dogsieh " is the 1st pope a liar?", no. all popes are liars and Christs' enemy and antichrist.Acts4:12. "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

[kiwichristian2009]

@KaiseRex42 "Anyone that believes the world was created in six days is nuts!" What does the Word of God say?

[johnthreesixteen316]

@Tiffany28ize Amen friend. You speak the truth. Genesis says God created every creature to 'reproduce after its own kind'. That sound quite specific to me. Clearly not evolution. Even the Vatican supports evolution. When I say evolution, I am refering to macro evolution, not micro.

[johnthreesixteen316]

@Tiffany28ize Amen friend. You speak the truth. Genesis says God created every creature to 'reproduce after its own kind'. That sound quite specific to me. Clearly not evolution.

[johnthreesixteen316]

Well Father Robert, if the 6 days of creation are not 6 literal days, then the 3 days Christ spent in the earth are not 3 literal days. So, maybe Christ won't actually be resurrected for a few million years. Besides, how did the flowers of day 3 survive without their symbiotic partners, the insects for millions of years? At what point in man's evolution did he actually become Adam, the first man?

[KaiseRex42]

Anyone that believes the world was created in six days is nuts! This is an excellent and theologically sound talk. Well Done Father (hope that doesnt sound patronizing!) But this is excellent and gives full account of rational thought over singular blind faith. Also what the church in the past or believed about Genesis is not absolutely binding and vatican 2 was not a deformation! Some commentators here are abusive and sinful!!! We thank God for vatican 2 and the popes that have ALL support it!