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"When I view all beings not as special creations, but as the lineal descendants of some few beings which lived long before the first bed of the Cambrian system was deposited, they seem to me to become ennobled."
— Charles Darwin, On the Origin of Species (1859)The theory of evolution is absolutely stunning to me. An understanding of it and the immense weight it brings to our existence may terrify some, but it should enthral and excite us all: it provides the true account of our origins, uniting us with everything on Earth alive today and everything that once was. ♥
Something I do wanna address is this: although many people choose not to accept it (weirdly, around 40% of USA and UK citizens don't) it’s not a case of belief, and denying it due to faith is just ignoring what we've found. The entirety of human and animal biology only makes sense because evolution has happened. The common 'argument' that evolution is "only a theory" misses the point of what that actually means: it's accepted as scientific fact just like gravity, or the existence of atoms and how they interact, which too are "only theories". A scientific theory is more than just speculation: it's a well thought-out group of propositions and principles that explain facts about the real world, which must be testable and allow for verifiable predictions. "Making predictions" doesn't mean that we can predict the future of evolution – that's pretty much impossible – but that we can predict what we should find when looking at the fossil record and into animals' genetic codes, and with every new discovery these predictions are proven again and again to be true. A theory becomes 'truth' when so much evidence has accumulated in its favour (with an absence of decisive evidence against it) that virtually all reasonable people will accept it. This makes evolution fact in the eyes of science. This doesn't mean that a 'true' theory can’t ever be falsified, of course – science shouldn't be arrogant, and theories are always subject to change in the light of new evidence. But as it stands, it doesn't seem at all likely that the theory of evolution – such an obvious phenomenon when you come to understand it – will ever be overturned.
Removing an 'intelligent designer' from our world view needn't reduce the awe or beauty in how we see ourselves: we weren't deliberately created for any purpose, but have arisen through billions of years of unconscious tinkering by natural selection, set in motion by conditions that could have produced something so different had they been ever so slightly changed, to become what we are, as has everything else around us. To me – and hopefully many others – that's so much more beautiful and satisfying as an explanation of our existence.
Of course, many who accept evolutionary theory into a religious world-view believe that an intelligent creator set evolution in motion through some means, which is totally reasonable: religion doesn't have to be incompatible with evolution!
Discussion and questions in the comments are very welcome! With a good understanding of evolution I can hopefully give decent answers or at least direct you to where you can find them c:
For those wanting to better-familiarise themselves with the theory and evidence – perhaps because you're not sure about where you stand, or would just like to add to your current understanding – I'd really recommend the book Why Evolution Is True by Jerry A. Coyne, which is a very readable recent text.
The fossil in the background is my favourite famous dinosaur-bird transitional species, Archaeopteryx! ♥
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Find me on: tumblrPsst.. remember to check out the rest of my stamp collection; there's guaranteed to be more you like! ♥
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© 2013 - 2024 Kezzi-Rose
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What's next for humanity? It's so exciting to think of the possibilities!