Charles Darwin, c1854

Darwin Day and the Churches

Friday February 10 2017

The Rev Dr Russel Moffat asks whether and how churches should be involved with 'Darwin Day'.

This Sunday (February 12) is the birthday of Charles Darwin, which in many parts of the world is increasingly being marked as “Darwin Day.”

There is an international campaign to have this date recognised as a public holiday. The proponents of this are overwhelmingly secular/humanist in orientation, although this may be changing. The British Humanist Society is keen to have more public holidays for non-Christians, and commemorating and celebrating one of the greatest and most influential thinkers in history would be, for them, a good start.

In the United States, the vision of secular humanists for the occasion is that of a day of celebration, activism, and international cooperation for the promotion and advancement of science, education, and human well-being, focussed especially on science as a means for human betterment. It is the opportunity to inspire people with values seen to be embodied in the life and work of Charles Darwin, namely 'intellectual bravery', 'perpetual curiosity' and 'hunger for truth'.

Sounds good, but is there an anti-religious or anti-theological agenda here too? Unfortunately, Darwinian evolution was an ideological battleground in the 19^th century and still is today. The perpetuation of the historical myth of a constant war between science and religion is still being propagated in some quarters (e.g. New Atheists), making this a complex topic.

However, there should be no problem, in principle, with the Christian Churches helping to promote the idea of Darwin Day. In the United States an interesting development has taken place. In order to combat the influence of 'creation science' and 'intelligent design' in schools and colleges, Michael Zimmerman, Professor of Biology at Butler University Indianapolis, began the Clergy Letter Project, which enlisted the support of Christian leaders in the teaching of Evolution in educational establishments.

An offshoot of this is Evolution Weekend (formerly Evolution Sunday), where congregations are encouraged to reflect on science. A list of over 1000 scientists has been established to act as teaching consultants in assisting Christian congregations with questions and queries. This is an ongoing success. Eugenie Scott, from the National Center for Science Education, herself a regular participant in debates with creationists and intelligent design proponents, has said: “I have found that the most effective allies for evolution are people of the faith community. One clergyman with a backward collar is worth two biologists at a school board meeting any day.”

I grant that we are in a very different situation here in the UK. Nonetheless, this story is instructive for us in demonstrating that positive collaboration between science and religion is possible and can be fruitful. So can and should the British Churches support the idea of Darwin Day? My own answer is a resounding yes!

Science does not belong to atheists, evolution is not the preserve of secularism, and Darwin is not the property of humanism. Rather, they are the common inheritance of the human race including those who are religious. To those of us who find the interaction between science and theology fascinating, challenging, and deeply rewarding, the celebration and commemoration of the great man from Down House is a 'no-brainer'.

Can a conversation begin on this topic? Perhaps February 2018 will see a coordinated and enthusiastic promotion of Darwin Day by the Christian Churches. I for one would be very glad to see that happen.

The Rev Dr Russel Moffat is minister of Balquhidder linked with Killin