Buddhist and christian view on evolution Research Paper

Buddhist and christian view on evolution - Research Paper Example Eventually, evolution of organisms over time leads to presence of a stronger and a more complex species. Darwin’s theory of evolution erupted a great deal of debate as it challenged traditional religious explanations of the world and nature (Boeree 26). His work encouraged further research into the concept of evolution and other unsolved mysteries of life at the time. Therefore, it is important to explore the evolutionary theory from various religious perspectives in order to understand how the theory fits in. this leads to extensive knowledge on the various impact evolution has on world religions and what the reactions are. As such, this paper focuses on the Christian and Buddhist view of the evolution theory. It is a popular belief in the world that man and all of nature was created by a sacred deity for whom all mankind ought to be grateful. This is evidenced in Christianity with enormous reference to the story of creation in the Bible. Everything in the world was created b y God and is still under control of God. However, the evolution theory serves to upset this belief at the expense of most believers who find it imperative to defend and preserve it. Among Christian scholars and believers, the evolution theory denies the role by God as the sole creator of the world while most scientific research ignores divine activity. This is achieved by the proposition of antitheist theories by renowned naturalists who suggest the existence of the world is due to a less explored scientific phenomenon. As such, Christians have always voiced their concerns on scientific theories that contradict the creation theory. The clergy and the Christian community have always united to call for the rejection of the naturalism theories based on philosophical, theological, and historical grounds. As a result, Christianity and the scientific community have always being at loggerheads with each other. To them, it is a violation of what is divine and contrary to the widespread beli ef of a powerful God who is capable of doing anything including creating. Universally, Christians fail to understand how God’s involvement in creation is recognized in events that lack scientific explanations while His overall role is ignored. This illustrates how meaningful divine action is shelved only do be adopted where gaps in human knowledge prevail and a scientific description is lacking (Miller 8). As such, naturalistic proposals such as the evolution theory serve to belittle divine action thus fuel conflict between science and the Christian faith. For instance, Christians and scientists differ on the role of pain, suffering, and death in the world. Among Christians, it is widely accepted that God exercises His sovereignty, transcendence, and providence with regard to natural evil that creates pain and suffering. On the hand, the scientific community readily accepts the theory of natural selection in which Darwin believed that all species had a common ancestor, but ev olved to survive due to the process of natural selection. Organisms that fail to adapt to their habitat do not prevail under the new environmental conditions and hence, cannot survive, which explains natural selection where only the strong and mighty thrive effectively. While the scriptures present the evidence of God’