GN Commentary: February 12, 2009 - Lincoln or Darwin?

The lives of both Lincoln, the Bible reader and Darwin, the naturalist, are being celebrated far and wide today! Wouldn't most of the celebrants be shocked to learn that the Bible and science are in complete harmony? They are.

Related Resources

The Bible and Science
Earlier centuries saw little conflict between the Scriptures and science. It was common for scientists and churchmen alike to view the Bible and science as in complete agreement. If an apparent discrepancy came to light, the Bible was considered more trustworthy, but the two were widely accepted as harmonious.

Can You Believe Both the Bible and Evolution?
A number of the world's mainstream religions have come to accept Darwinian evolution as the explanation for our existence. But does Darwinism really square with the Scriptures?

Creation or Evolution: Does It Really Matter What You Believe?
Why has evolution become so widely accepted, and why has the Bible come to be viewed with such hostility? What has changed?

Charles Darwin: Evolution of a Man and His Ideas
Almost 150 years have passed since the publication of Charles Darwin's The Origin of Species launched a theological, philosophical and scientific revolution. Nearly everyone knows about the theory of evolution, but few know the man and motives behind it.

Can You Prove the Bible Is True?
Belief in the Bible as the inspired and accurate Word of God is plunging. Here are some simple proofs you can use to show that the Bible is indeed what it claims to be—the very Word of God.

Video Transcript

Abraham Lincoln and Charles Darwin were born 200 years ago on the exact same day—February 12, 1809. Born into dramatically different circumstances, each would one day change the world. But would each change the world for good?

Darwin was born in Shrewsbury, England into upper middle class English society. Lincoln on the other hand was born to uneducated farmers in a one-room log cabin in Kentucky, on the American frontier

While Darwin was sitting in the classrooms of some of the most prominent teachers, from childhood to university, Lincoln had only 18 months of formal schooling. He educated himself, often by reading the Bible by the light of the fire.

Molded and shaped by contrasting experiences, these two men came to worldwide prominence at nearly the same time—with lasting influence on the way we think.

Charles Darwin published his history-changing book, On the Origin of Species in 1858. Here, he introduced the world to the theories of natural selection and evolution. These theories led to a belief that all life developed from a single species. This opened the door for the world to come to a vastly different view of creation than that described in the Bible, which had been one of Darwin's early textbooks. The Bible and belief in God became suspect.

A year later, Abraham Lincoln became the President of the United States. As President, he issued the Emancipation Proclamation to end slavery in America. He is credited with saving the union of North and South and thus preserving the nation in spite of civil war.

President Lincoln continued to read and quote the Bible. His legacy includes numerous speeches and proclamations urging citizens to acknowledge God. In the darkest days of the Civil War, Mr. Lincoln issued his "Proclamation Appointing a National Fast Day,' in which we find these words:

"We have been the recipients of the choicest bounties of Heaven; we have been preserved these many years in peace and prosperity; we have grown in numbers, wealth and power as no other nation has ever grown. But we have forgotten God."

Isn't it ironic that while Lincoln, the great political leader, was calling on people to remember God, Darwin, the luminary in science was inadvertently laying the foundation for man to turn away from God?

Lincoln's proclamation continues:

"We have vainly imagined, in the deceitfulness of our hearts, that all these blessings were produced by some superior wisdom and virtue of our own. Intoxicated with unbroken success, we have become too self-sufficient..., too proud to pray to the God that made us!"

Today, scientists promoting Darwin Day Celebrations put forth this defense of evolution on their Web site:

"Current research in the field of genetics, including that on the human genome, has conclusively shown that all humans are essentially identical and that we are genetically related to all other living things on this planet. Thus an enlightened view of genetics is one of unity and equality among all humans and also one that fosters a deeper sense of respect and appreciation for all life."

Does this conclusion based on the similarity of life forms, contradict the Bible? It doesn't have to. In fact, it actually underscores Biblical truth. The Psalms extol a Creator God, "Who made heaven and earth, the sea and all that is in them" (Psalm 146:6). One great Architect and Master Builder for all of creation.

The lives of both Lincoln, the Bible reader and Darwin, the naturalist, are being celebrated far and wide today! Wouldn't most of the celebrants be shocked to learn that the Bible and science are in complete harmony? They are.

It is our collective understanding of both science and the Bible that is faulty.

For GN magazine, I'm Larry Salyer.