Evolution and Mormonism: A Quest for Understanding

by Trent D. Stephens, D. Jeffrey Meldrum

 Scientists discover more every day about how life developed on Earth. Details that stream in from the new field of molecular biology rival the ongoing findings of paleontologists as they fill in the missing pieces in the fossil record. Professors Stephens and Meldrum, aided by the perspective of a non-scientist, Forrest B. Peterson, review the data for a general Latter-day Saint audience. Their approach comes from a position of faith. They quote from the Creation account in the Pearl of Great  ”And the Gods Let us prepare the waters to bring forth abundantly the moving creatures that have life. And the Gods saw that they would be obeyed and that their plan was good.” In the authors’ view, the passage’s emphasis on process over end result is consistent with modern science. According to the LDS church, “Whether the mortal bodies of man evolved in natural processes to present perfection” or were formed by some other means is “not fully answered in the revealed word of God.” That God may have created the mechanism by which all life was formed—rather than each organism separately—is a concept that the authors find to be a satisfying and awe-inspiring possibility.

Genres: Religion, Science, Lds

250 pages, Paperback

First published December 9, 2000

Reviews

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

A while ago I was reading The Blind Watchmaker by Richard Dawkins, which essentially argues that because of the beautiful forces of evolution and the natural processes that create all life that there isn't a need for a God, and in fact, there is no God. To my scientific mind, his arguments were soundly reasoned. Like a scientific Korihor he ate at my faith, but my faith in God is stronger than my faith in Science, and I put the book down and didn't finish it. And so for a long time I didn't examine the discrepancies that exist between science and the commonly held beliefs that many Mormons hold about the creation and evolution. I just knew that the truth of it all would be consistent with my faith and with scientific fact, but that maybe it wasn't known yet, or I just didn't know it yet.

Stephens and Meldrum show that it is possible to retain one's faith in the face of science; that believing in what science can teach us doesn't mean not believing in God and what scripture can teach us. They nicely reconcile science and faith.

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've run into the evolution question at many different stages of Church history and seemed to find conflicting answers at every turn. There's a reason for that: the answers really are conflicting.

Here, two LDS biologists make a good argument that Darwinian evolution is compatible with LDS theology. Most Mormons are familiar with the emphatic denunciation of Darwin by the likes of Joseph Fielding Smith and Boyd K. Packer. Perhaps it is not as commonly known that many Mormon leaders have accepted the basic tenets of evolution, including James E. Talmage, Henry Eyring Sr., John A. Widtsoe, and, in its most extreme form, by B.H. Roberts. Even David O. McKay privately admitted that he could accept Darwinism.

So why the confusion? Because the Church has no official doctrine on evolution. As the disagreement raged early in the 20th Century, the First Presidency instructed the brethren to cease teaching their positions, because the answer was not yet known. Unfortunately, the opponents to science within the quorum outlived the others, and their position has come to be understood as Church doctrine. In reality, the Church has still not taken a definitive position on the matter.

The authors also offer a compelling argument for ceasing to bash evolution from the pulpit. If we teach that evolution is incompatible with faith in God, then many will question their faith entirely when the mounting evidence for evolution presents itself to them. Is it worth threatening the faith of our young people over something that is not even doctrine? It's at least worth thinking about.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

These two Mormon scientists give a thorough argument on how evolution and official LDS doctrine are compatible. The first four chapters talk about doctrine and traditions in the Church. The next six chapters talk about the science of evolution and how it relates to doctrine. When they talk about the science, they do it in terms that I can understand. The next three chapters talk about the Genesis creation story, the predictability of evolution (it used to be thought of as totally random, but scientists are now realizing the rules that govern it), and what the authors dub "eternal evoltion." The appendix includes three official LDS statements on evolution.

I think the most important point they make in this book is taken from the first official statement from the First Presidency. The authors said, "We have heard many times that these issues are not critical to our salvation. This is correct. What is critical to our salvation is adhering to the first priniples of the gospel, obeying God, and enduring to the end," (pg. 13).

This is an excellent book for members of the LDS church who want to know more about evolution and how it relates to their church doctrine.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I strongly recommend this book to anyone wondering how evolution and Mormon doctrine harmonize. It was very clearly and respectfully written and so refreshing to have a lot of "culturalisms" cleared up. So much of what LDS members THINK is doctrine often isn't, or what we THINK the interpretation of a certain scripture means really doesn't, or could have many different interpretations. So much of the evidence that supports, and proves, really, the theory of evolution has only come about in the last 20-30 years as advances in molecular biology have exploded. And most of what's been spoken of from church leaders regarding evolution was spoken of in the early 20th century. This is a really awesome book, written by LDS scientists, to help the average member like me make sense of both doctrine and science. Highly recommended!

[Jill · Rating 4 out of 5]

A remarkably kind book to LDS people who begin the pursuit of discovering truth about evolution who are sure that it's mostly a fallacy. It handholds the novice all the way through the scriptures ancient and modern and spoon feeds the difficult terms for a clarity of evolution that strips all preconceived notions. Their collective experience totalling over 50 yrs, the reader feels confident in the technical biological evidence laid out. With official statements from the First Presidency, scriptures, as well as those ideas we've made up ourselves to fill in the blanks, the authors do a great job presenting truth, reality, and courage to accept it.

[Jonathan Waite · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read for the LDS crowd about evolution from the perspective of two believing biologists. The book was written over 20 years ago so there is some dated scientific DNA things but it would just bolster their argument that there could be a divine creator conducting the beauty of evolution.

[Matthew Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

When you realize that Evolution and its denial has never been doctrine but tradition heavily influenced by the American Evangelical movement and their liberalization of scripture one becomes highly appreciative of the guidance of the Apostles and Prophets. To me, organic evolution is scientifically verifiable and beautiful. God is a Scientist. These Authors created a very nuanced book that'll bring understanding to those who question the Church's stance on evolution.

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

I definitely enjoyed learning about evolution from a Mormon perspective. I realize I was fairly ignorant on the subject. This book explains why it is so likely that we really did evolve from lower forms of life as well as giving some potential theories for how we can resolve this with many commonly held interpretations of scripture (which probably aren't exactly correct). One of the things that he suggests is that Adam and Eve (who had been created through the evolutionary process, with natural laws governing the process - and God "at the controls") were not mortal until they were actually placed in the Garden of Eden and were able to partake of the fruit of the tree of life which kept them immortal until they partook of the tree of knowledge of good and evil and then were cast out from the garden and no longer had access to the fruit of the tree of life. Interesting theory. They do say that this is just their own conjecture, and that the only way to fully understand scriptures is to study them out and receive our answers through personal revelation. Another thing I liked was how they compare our eternal progression to the evolutionary process. This was based on a quote put out by the First Presidency in 1910: "Man is the child of God, formed in the divine image and endowed with divine attributes, and even as the infant son of an earthly father and mother is capable in due time of becoming a man, so that undeveloped offspring of celestial parentage is capable, by experience through ages and aeons, of evolving into God."

[Nate · Rating 4 out of 5]

In this book the authors (2 faithful Mormon scientists and 1 non-scientist) argue that Evolution and Mormonism are compatible. The book gives overviews of science's function, religion's function, the historic hostility between religion and science, Darwin's On the Origin of Species, evidence that supports Evolution, the Genesis Creation account (along with the accounts in The Pearl of Great Price), the Church's official position on Evolution, the compatibility of Evolution and Mormonism, etc. The authors argue that many of the beliefs that Mormons have regarding Adam and Eve are traditional "interpretations" of scripture, and they offer other plausible interpretations that are consistent with modern scientific knowledge. They point out that most of the stuff written by influential Mormons on the subject of Evolution (1) is opinion and (2) was written before 1970. This matters because since 1970 there has been an explosion of evidence supporting Evolution, specifically DNA evidence, of which these early writers were unaware. While the authors don't have an airtight case, they do help readers think critically about the issues involved. I thoroughly enjoyed this provocative book.

[Katie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Okay, so I had to read it for school. Nonetheless, I found it a very good read. The authors were very knowledgeable about the science going on at the time, and what had been discovered so far, although much has progressed since. They were also very thorough in their research of what has been presented by the LDS Church about evolution. In contrast to the science, there is no new I formation from the Church regarding this topic.
While the authors mainly explain the resolution of faith and science from their own angle, they make sure to give as much information as possible and allow the reader to form their own opinions.

[Terrol Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very important contribution to the Mormon conversation on the topic. These are faithful Latter-day Saints, including a bishop, who are deep and faithful believers and who see no inherent contradiction between evolution and LDS belief and doctrine. I love their perspective and their offering of a reasonable reconciliation of the scientific evidence with LDS scripture and doctrine.

[Katie Henderson · Rating 5 out of 5]

ahhhhhh, a sigh of relief. It's NOT impossible to believe in science and God at the same time. Its tone is kind and easy to read, not the grumpy defensive tone I was scared it could possibly be. It's a must read for LDS members who study science.

[Markii · Rating 4 out of 5]

the best book on evo. and moism and argues how the two can go together in one cognitive dissonance-inflicted mind.

[Wendy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Haven't finished yet but really like...

[Kevin Black · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read by 2014, likely much earlier.

[Alistair Rae · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read and with excellent writing for the non scientist.