There’s a collection of documentaries on Netflix called “Cosmos:
A Spacetime Odyssey.” It’s hosted by Neil deGrasse Tyson, who I’m actually not
a huge fan of. He’s kind of corny (he reminds me of LeVar Burton from Reading Rainbow,
except he talks about science, which is WAY more interesting), and he gives me
the impression that he has a pretty low opinion of those who do not believe in
evolution. I also get the impression that he isn’t a religious man, although I
don’t know if that’s true or not. But regardless of his personal views, the
first episode was absolutely eye-opening to me, and I think everyone should
watch it if they can. Seriously, do it. Like right now. Then come back and read
this, and maybe you’ll have an even more open mind. That episode actually strengthened
my testimony of Heavenly Father and his divinity.
This theory of evolution is a pretty touchy subject, and can
create some tension between men of God and men of science. I think it’s pretty
difficult for some of us to accept the fact that we’re related to monkeys, and
I still have problems with that. It’s hard to feel special when your “ancestors”
are merely animals. But I, personally, have decided to consider that fact or
theory or whatever you may consider it, and I’ll tell you why; here’s my theory (I know others have considered
this as well, so I apologize for the redundancy).
SCIENCE DOES NOT CONTRADICT THE EXISTENCE OF GOD; IT PROVES IT.
It’s no secret that I am obsessed with science, and this is
basically the reason for that. I have never seen greater physical evidence of His
power in anything else in this world. While searching for God through prayer
and scripture study is the most important way to learn of his love for us, it’s
not the only way. My belief in anything is
greatly strengthened when I understand the physical evidence behind it. Again,
I didn’t say that I needed PROOF. I just get excited when spiritual things are
backed by science.
I believe that evolution and the “Big Bang” are, in fact,
realistic ideas. You may not think so, but I would encourage you to at least
open up your mind to the possibility. I don’t even know if I’m going to accept
it as absolute truth yet because I don’t know for sure, and there might be
doctrine that disprove it, but this theory of mine makes me feel pretty dang
important in the eyes of God. So I think I’ll accept it until someone tells me
it’s absolutely wrong.
Billions and billions of years of evolution has led up to
this point. Maybe we are relatives of
monkeys. It wouldn’t be a crazy idea, after all. All of creation is built from
the same components, which makes us all inherently connected. The same iron
found on Mars can be found in our own bodies. To me, that’s pretty poetic. I
see that as a beautiful thing, that we are connected to every object and living
thing in the universe. Wow.
You look at the vastness of this universe and of all
existence, and you may feel small and insignificant. I mean, the number of
galaxies in the universe is just staggering, and their beauty is equally staggering.
There are not words to explain the wonders we see in the physical world; it’s
enough to make a person cry! It’s also enough to make one feel unimportant in
the grand scheme of things
But we are the exact opposite.
If you accept both God and science, this idea is much more
real. WE were the purpose behind the Big Bang. All of the trillions of galaxies
and stars were created in order for our existence. “Worlds without number have
I created.” HE created; not chance. But why?
FOR US.
I mentioned in a previous post that our passion is what
mainly sets us apart from all other life, but it’s obviously not the only thing. I think of our passion as
something that comes with our spirit, and that wasn’t necessarily created in
this physical world (maybe it was; the concept of the creation of our “spirit”
still leaves me mind-boggled). But we can also think and reason and make
choices when no other creature can. Our ability to create things is proof
enough that we have divine worth. The immense difference between us and other “intelligent”
life is incomprehensible. I don’t know what the next “most intelligent” species
is, but I think there’s a good chance that it actually IS monkeys (I mean, we’ve
found a way to communicate with them for heaven’s sake). So it would seem that
we may have actually evolved from monkeys. But, how can we then say that we
were created in the image of God?
We were created in His image, but maybe it took a long time
for us to get to that point. I don’t know if it says anywhere that our creation was achieved in an instant. In the
documentary, they talk about the “cosmic calendar,” where it puts all of time,
from the Big Bang to the present day, into one calendar year. Everything we
know, everything we read in history books about people who have once lived,
happened in the final SECOND of that “year” of creation. Biblically, we have
only been a species for thousands of years. So what about the dinosaurs? I
mean, the bones are there and they’re super old, so how were they created and why? Well, maybe God was
just giving us something to keep us busy and occupy our time. I don’t know. But
I don’t believe that it proves that God is not real, nor does it prove that
evolution is not real.
I was told by one of my religion teachers that God still has
to obey the rules of nature that are set for us. If that’s true, then it all
makes sense! Evolution would’ve just been a necessary part of the creation of
our bodies. But I believe that God
started our spiritual “timeline” at the creation of Adam and Eve. How
does that explain our prehistoric, cavemen ancestors? Maybe they just didn’t
have the luxury of having a spirit. But at the point that Adam and Eve were
created, the creation of our bodies was complete, OUR existence began, and our
purpose was revealed.
Russell M. Nelson said in a conference talk, “could an
explosion in a printing shop produce a dictionary?” Understand that I’m not
questioning his authority as a leader of the church. He’s right; saying that
some chance explosion created who we are today and the complexity of our bodies
and its regenerative properties is most ridiculous if you don’t include a
divine creator in the equation. There
is no way that it could happen by accident. But the theory makes me wonder if
it wasn’t an accident. If God has to obey his own laws of nature, then the Big
Bang might have been necessary for the development of the most basic elements
that make up our universe and our bodies.
So maybe that’s the purpose behind evolution; it was
necessary for the creation of our bodies (which
was created by God of course). But
Heavenly Father is also the creator of our spirit.
So I’ll reiterate; the creation of Adam and Eve was the beginning of the human
race as we know it to be today, and that is the point where we were set apart
from other species. Again, you look at all living things and even after all
those million of years of evolution, we are the only ones that have been able to think and create to the capacity
that we have achieved. I mean, I guess it’s possible that we could continue to
evolve as a species, and as far as I can tell, we have when it comes to our
capacity to understand things of this world. But I don’t think that we would have
nearly enough time to evolve into some kind of super-human that can fly and see
through walls and so on. When it comes to the evolution of the human race, I
think this is the end of it.
By understanding where we came from and how we came to be,
we can better understand God and his love for us. Of all of the incredible
creations and beauties of this universe, it is obvious that we are certainly
His most precious. We are His children, and He knows each of us personally. If
He put all of those billions of years of effort into creating my body to
be the host of my spirit, I find that as proof that He loves me more that
I can comprehend. He did all this for ME, and imperfect person, who may seem
insignificant, but in relation to all things in the universe, I am of
incredible importance. Regardless of our choices, we are important to our
Heavenly Father. Everyone is a child of God, even if they are a part of a
different religion or political group. He made the same effort to create them. So love them.
I know that there are still some holes in this theory, but
even in science, we’re NEVER going to be able to understand everything and how
it all fits together. When it comes to scientific discoveries, I believe we’ve
only scratched the surface, which is why miracles may seem impossible to us.
Maybe it’s the science that we DON’T understand that explains the possibility
of miracles. But that idea would require an open mind from both those that
believe in God and those that do not.
This is not doctrine, it’s just an idea. And while I can’t
prove it, I don’t think you can disprove either. But just think about it,
mmkay?
Just some food for thought.
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