Christianity in Evolution: An Exploration Paperback – August 1, 2011

Even if we do not understand all the ins and outs of scientific evolution, we cannot help viewing ourselves and our world as a work in progress. Scientific knowledge grows by the day; our understanding of ourselves grows as we develop and age; our understanding of our beliefs can also grow and mature. Many of the formulations of Christian belief were shaped in a different, pre-scientific age and sit uncomfortably with a world-view that is constantly on the move rather than being a static picture. Our minds feel more like a stream of consciousness flowing over the river bed of a self that mysteriously endures than a recepticle where knowledge and images are stored. This book may help us come to terms with the way things are today and to feel more at ease with ourselves as we seek an ever more adequate understanding of our lives and what they mean.
The author notes that, while christian theologians have long accepted the idea of evolution, they have not given much attention to the implications of such a world-view for their theological beliefs.
While philosophers and socio-biologists may discuss (sometimes quite vehemently) the value and weaknesses of a purely materialistic view of human beings and their origin, Christians believe that humans are made in the image of God. Their God is not that of a philosophic first mover nor a kind of soul of all things but rather a communion of three loving persons who exist everlastingly, wondrously and joyously as they spread their infinite goodness to creatures they have created in their own image.While a materialist may view humans as evolving in an at times vicious struggle to survive, human sympathy for others is seen by Christians as the call of the creator to imitate the love of Father, Son and Spirit and thus to a life beyond mere survival.
'Man's inhumanity to man', ending in death for all, has been described in christian belief as the result of 'original sin'. a rejection of God's command in the beginning by the first pair that resulted in the blasting of all creation, the weakening of the human will to do good (concupiscence), even the total corruption of human nature, for which the punishment is by death. The author suggests that it may be more appropriate for us to see our leanings towards evil as the result of our being descended from life forms driven by the need to survive. At the same time, he describes our leanings towards good as the call to a life of love (altruism), that ends not in death but in the paradise for which we were made, that is, a sharing in the life of our brother, Christ, who became human to lead us through death to share His own new,glorious life that never ends, for which our hearts long, but which is beyond our wildest dreams. Furthermore, any tendency to see human nature as utterly corupt may have seemed agreeable in an ancient Jewish culture that centred around the notion of sacrifice but is hardly appropriate if one believes that "However much sin increased, grace was always greater." (Rom 5.20)
There is, the author points out, a long tradition in Christianity that Christ would have become man even if there had been no fall. Early Christians, however, influenced by their Jewish origins underlined Christ's death as a sacrifice which paid a debt incurred by sin. God the Father is almost seen as a kind of Shylock eagerly awaiting His blood sacrifice. Apart form the objections to this raised by 'the age of reason', one has to ask whether this image fits in with the God who is the Father of Christ and who, together with His Son, decided from eternity that the human race should be part of the Divine Family. This is not to say that Jesus' coming into this world would not entail enormous cost; His sufferings werec certainly an horrendous sacrifice but there is no God awaiting appeasement, rubbing His hands, as it were, till the last drop of blood should be shed.The author asks:"What kind of God?" The life and death of Jesus illustrates the love God has for us creatures who have sinned from the beginning and created a society where greed and injustice are woven into its very fabric and who are in dire need of healing and forgiveness.
If the presence of evil in the world presents a huge problem for belief in a loving creator and saviour, this is due to God's respecting the creation He has made with its limitations. His freedom is on a different level to that of humans; there is no clash between two beings, each choosing differnetly; our freedom is only so described by analogy with that of the creator. The laws of our universe are descriptions not prescriptions;nothing escapes His will and power.
In the Christian tradition humans pass through death and, if needing purification from sin, suffer while awaiting the resurrection of their bodies. This mind-set of a soul existing apart from a body is inherited from
Greek philosophy. A biblical view points rather to a complete person, body and soul, pervaded by the presence of God who is utterly interior to all creatures and who draws humans to share the God-consciousness of Christ and a mystical communion with each other. The Christian Church in the Euchartist offers to all a sharing of this life of Christ. It is in the form of a meal in which Christ who died and rose in glory becomes our life, sustaining and strengthening the divine life in us with a divine food. Here the difficulty for many may be the long tradition of describing the Mass as a sacrifice of expiation, a concept found in scripture, the Councils and the teaching of Popes. The author would have us distinguish cultural traditions from the teaching of revelation.
In a final chapter the author sums up the effects of taking evolution seriously on various areas of theology:
1. The nature of God remains virtually untouched.
2. Devotion to Our lady, the Mother of God, is also left (much to the relief of Catholics and Orthodox Christians), although the Immaculate Conception will have to be rethought; not a problem for the Orthodox who focus rather on Her sinlessness than on 'frredom from original sin'.
3. God as the stern judge waiting for the approriate punishment to be carried out may have to be considered more influecned by Jewish culture than revelation.
4. The notions of Divine and human causality should not be seen to clash, they are on different levels of understanding.
5. Nature and Grace are better seen as indistinguishable, the saving presence of God pervading all things.
6. Jesus became man to save us,not from a fallen state but rather to give us a life that, like His, conquers death.
7. Baptism is an initiation into the People of God, the Church.
8. Penance is a reconciliation with the Community.
9. The Eucharist is our source of inspiration and power, not a sacrifice of expiation.
10. Ordination to the priesthood confers, not the power to offer sacrifice but rather to lead worship and to preach the good news. (No objection to women priests ,then)
11. Ethics a is a call to mutual support for each other, destined to be friends for all eternity, and for all creation which is to share in the final glorification
12. The development of doctrine is not simply about growth in understanding while preserving its essential identity but also of rejecting errors in teaching and practice.
13. The abandoning of the concept of original sin does not ignore the fact that humans started sinning from the beginning and continue to do so, out of harmony with the creator's design.
For this reader the book brings a sigh of relief that such difficult questions have been so clearly expressed and addressed. It is not a book of controversy, though doubtless is will cause some, but rather an attempt to illuminate christian teaching for our time. It does not glibly thrust aside traditional christian formulations of doctrine but negotiates these tricky areas with careful thought and the support of an enormous bibliographical reference wich suggests to this reviewer the investment of much time, discussion and prayer.
One may not agree with every opinion---I do not like the notion of annihilation rather than eternal punishement-- but this is an adventure in self-discovery as one explores ones basic chritian beliefs and senses a growth in understanding.

In his introduction, Jack Mahoney describes this book as "a completed personal exploration of how Christian beliefs can be reassessed positively and instructively in an evolutionary context" (p. xiii) and that it is. Although he interacts almost exclusively with Roman Catholic doctrines, his book can be beneficial to any Christian who has accepted biological evolution as God's process for creating life and is struggling with how to integrate that presupposition into their Christian faith.

Mahoney proposes that biological evolution could ultimately have a positive impact on our understanding of Christian doctrines. He describes how one might rethink the Image of God, Original Sin, the Fall, Atonement, the purpose of the Incarnation, and the Eucharist. "The theological challenge, then, becomes one of identifying a positive purpose for the death of Jesus, a purpose that, as I propose, is impressively provided by reflection on modern evolutionary theory." (p. 91)

"More positively and fundamentally, an alternative reason for the incarnation is then required, and this is provided by an evolutionary theology that proposes that the motive for the Word becoming flesh was not to save humanity from any inherited congenital sinfulness; it was for Christ to lead and conduct the human species through the common evolutionary fate of individual extinction to a new level of living with God. Nor was this done by the offering of Christ as an expiatory sacrifice to placate an injured God; it was achieved by Christ freely confronting death and winning through to a new phase of existence to be imparted to his fellow humans in their evolutionary destiny to share fully in the life of God." (pp. 14-15)

His suggested solution is that the purpose of Christ's incarnation, crucifixion, and resurrection was primarily to teach altruism and to point the way to eternal life by the example of his life, death, and resurrection.

Mahoney concludes by saying, "This project will inevitably have involved mistakes, misunderstandings, and errors. My hope, however, is that the broad lines that I have developed here may prove basically acceptable and may encourage others to respond to the pope's challenge, to consider how the Christian religion can provide a welcome to the scientific advance of human understanding and find generous room for it, making the Christian gospel appealing, attractive, and life-giving to modern generations." (p. 168)

Mahoney's constant interaction with historical and current literature is evidenced by 586 end notes in only 168 pages of text.

Whether you agree with him or not, Mahoney builds a case for his position. Theologians are going to be busy for a long time.

Jack Mahoney published his "Christianity in Evolution: an Exploration" within a month of the release of my "Christianity in Evolution: Discovering the Harmony of Science and Faith." I have appreciated his discussion of the implications of NeoDarwinism for the doctrines of Original Sin, the Fall, atonement, and the need for sacrifices. I particularly liked his in-depth discussion of altruism, and his criticisms of NeoDarwinist evolutionary sociobiology as reductionistic. He develops a theology of altruism by recognizing that God is the source of all altruism. He then explores the implications of altruism for understanding the actions and teachings of Jesus, calling his altruism history's most important evolutionary advance.
I have found that our two "Christianity in Evolutions" specifically complement each other in this realm of altruism. In my book I describe in detail the practical mental operations that go into altruism. These mental operations are termed mentalizations, the idea that all altruism begins with the accurate and compassionate reading of the other person. I write that Jesus was the ultimate mentalizer.
In summary, I think that Mahoney has contributed fruitfully to the discussion of what biological evolution entails for Christian beliefs and doctrines, at a time when Christians are either defending science, or are busy defending God from science, or are paying no attention to this profoundly important debate.

Ralph H. Armstrong, M.D., psychiatrist, addictionist, former Adjunct Professor of Pastoral Counseling, St. John's Seminary, Camarillo, California