HabteSelassie
Archon
Greetings in that Divine and Most Precious Name of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ!
For example, the Six stages of evolution can easily fit into the first six days of Creation within the Genesis narratives if ones examine both systems conceptually rather than literally. If we think of the first stage of the creation of Light as being synomous with the first stage of the Big Bang, the initial expansion of the Universe and follow from there we can loosely harmonize the both the Bible and the science theories. But we must be careful not become Thomas Jefferson deists about it, we must ever embrace Eternally Creating God, hence the term Living God (ie, Life-Giving God).
The fundamental premise of the purely scientific approach to evolution is utterly flawed, heretical, and rightfully condemned, because it does not suggest any sort of Order aside from that of coincidence. The orders of the Universe according to this model are purely random results of throwing every single dice roll at the same time and seeing what combination sticks, and those which do not cease to exist. Why is the Universe exactly the way it is today, because the previous versions were natural failures and ceased existing where as the laws and orders of our current system serendipitously worked themselves out like two and two naturally equals four.
This is what the Fathers condemn. If we rather see each phase and explanation of Evolution as being a shadow revealing the economic activities of an Invisible God, as the Incense smoke reveals the forces of wind, so to do study the orders of Creation reveal the underlying Will and intention of the Creator. It is the fundamental forces of the universe, gravity, electromagnetism, strong and weak nuclear forces which combine in their particular flavors to create the conditions of the Universe as we exist in it today. The Grace of God could be said to be the underlying force which creates, sustains, and empowers these material forces to shape our world. How gravity or weak nuclear forces keep atomic structures together to their design rather than chaotic disintegrating into nothingness is the Grace of God, what we see is just the shadow caused by the original force, the feeling of the breeze felt in the wind.
stay blessed,
habte selassie
Stay Blessed,
Habte Selassie
In the EO conception, I suppose that loosely we could associate the mechanisms of evolution (both cosmic and biological Fundamental Forces of the Cosmos) as being an activity of the Energies of God, and in the OO we could say these are the activity of the Holy Spirit, but we must accept one fundamental truth, the Fathers do not necessarily promote the concept changing God's order, so we have to reform our idea of evolution. The mechanistic flow we see in our explanations of evolution, to fit with the Church, would have to be seen as eternally part of God's creative Will, and not randomly changing. The Hindu cosmology of Maya is a good typology for this kind of thinking, the entire of creation is of one essence, Existence, and so even the differing forms and shapes of created things are not permanent so much as just temporal manifestations of the inner essence fitting the circumstances of its environment. So if we think of our observations of Evolution as not being the result of random mutations or cosmic coincidences, but rather direct, ordered, and precise acts of God, following a designed and eternally cohesive plan, then Evolution as we observe it can be said to fit into Orthodox cosmology.celticfan1888 said:I was just curious to read about everyone's opinions of evolution. Whether for or against, and I'd like to find out why/why not.
I am an evolutionary biology major, so obviously I do believe in evolution. I believe that the mechanisms of evolution: Natural Selection, Gene Flow, Biased Mutation, and Genetic Drift easily describe how it works. Also, I do not think that the concept of evolution contradicts Orthodoxy in any way. If anything I think that learning about evolution helps me better understand how God does things.
Looking forward to your opinions.
For example, the Six stages of evolution can easily fit into the first six days of Creation within the Genesis narratives if ones examine both systems conceptually rather than literally. If we think of the first stage of the creation of Light as being synomous with the first stage of the Big Bang, the initial expansion of the Universe and follow from there we can loosely harmonize the both the Bible and the science theories. But we must be careful not become Thomas Jefferson deists about it, we must ever embrace Eternally Creating God, hence the term Living God (ie, Life-Giving God).
The fundamental premise of the purely scientific approach to evolution is utterly flawed, heretical, and rightfully condemned, because it does not suggest any sort of Order aside from that of coincidence. The orders of the Universe according to this model are purely random results of throwing every single dice roll at the same time and seeing what combination sticks, and those which do not cease to exist. Why is the Universe exactly the way it is today, because the previous versions were natural failures and ceased existing where as the laws and orders of our current system serendipitously worked themselves out like two and two naturally equals four.
This is what the Fathers condemn. If we rather see each phase and explanation of Evolution as being a shadow revealing the economic activities of an Invisible God, as the Incense smoke reveals the forces of wind, so to do study the orders of Creation reveal the underlying Will and intention of the Creator. It is the fundamental forces of the universe, gravity, electromagnetism, strong and weak nuclear forces which combine in their particular flavors to create the conditions of the Universe as we exist in it today. The Grace of God could be said to be the underlying force which creates, sustains, and empowers these material forces to shape our world. How gravity or weak nuclear forces keep atomic structures together to their design rather than chaotic disintegrating into nothingness is the Grace of God, what we see is just the shadow caused by the original force, the feeling of the breeze felt in the wind.
stay blessed,
habte selassie
Stay Blessed,
Habte Selassie