Evolution leads to immorality?• Evolution is a scientific theory

• Science has nothing to say on morality• Morality is irrelevant to truth

– These two things are totally separate• What is true• What you want to be true

– Which are you trying to ascertain?

• If you want to justify hatred and atrocities, you can do that with evolution, religion, patriotism, sex, vegetarianism, whatever…

• If you want to justify goodness and benevolence, you can do that with evolution, religion, patriotism, sex, vegetarianism, whatever…

Is Evolution a religion?• re·li·gion (rĭ-lĭj'ən) n. 1. Religion

a. Belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe.

b. A personal or institutionalized system grounded in such belief and worship.

• sci·ence  (sī'əns)  n.1. Science

a. The observation, identification, description, experimental investigation, and theoretical explanation of phenomena.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth EditionCopyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.

Evolutionists follow Darwin• Science works by evaluating theories• The person proposing a theory is irrelevant

• A theory must:– Possess good underlying models– Provide strong supporting evidence– Make provable (correct) predictions

• Scientists greatly admire Darwin– He had an extremely important and courageous idea

• It revolutionised scientific thought• It was the result of decades of painstaking hard work

– Darwin’s original theories have been modified, corrected and updated over the last 150 years

• He would barely recognise modern biology!– The amazing thing is that the basic thesis was so simple and

powerful that it needed very little correction

Darwinism leads to killings• What leads to evil is almost always a failure to accept

rational free thought

• Here’s a list of the most evil people of the last century:– Adolf Hitler, Germany– Josef Stalin, Russia– Mao Tse Tung, China– Pol Pot, Cambodia

• Which of these was a society in which rational free thought and civil liberties were encouraged, and political decisions were based on well-documented scientific evidence?

• Or were they all societies in which free thought was ruthlessly suppressed and people were forced to do and say what they were told on pain of death?

• Were they, in short, religions with a human dictator at the head?

Eugenics• Eugenics: Systematically preventing certain ‘undesirable’

elements of the population from breeding in order to improve the gene pool

• Is it based on natural selection?– Yes, loosely.

• Is it morally right?– Science has no opinion on moral issues.

• Does it even work?– No, in most cases the traits that Eugenics was used to combat

were not even genetic.– Many genetic traits can be carried recessively without any

external signs.– Some genetic traits, when carried by both parents, can lead to

severe deformities in their children• Many people think that it is sensible to screen for such rare

coincidences before children are conceived

Social Darwinism• The discredited view that society should run the same way

as nature– Allow the weak to die– Support the strong

• Evolution explains how things work in nature– It does not imply that this is how things should be in human

society– Leave it to politicians to screw that up…

• Actually, evolution beautifully explains why humans cooperate– Natural selection rewards cooperation– Natural selection penalises antisocial behaviour– We are all family!

A corrupt tree…• …bringeth forth corrupt fruit• Every good thing can be abused

– A misunderstanding of natural selection no doubt inspired eugenics.

– Religion directly inspired the Crusades, the Inquisition, suicide bombings, suicide cults etc.

– Nuclear power led to nuclear weapons.– The internal combustion engine led to pollution,

destruction of natural habitats and road traffic accidents.– Sunshine leads to skin cancer.– Electricity leads to electrocutions.– Water leads to drowning.– Etc…

Claims of superior races• Evolution teaches us exactly the opposite:

– All races have the exact same origin• … in Africa

– Genetic differences are tiny• Race accounts for around 10% of the average genetic

difference between two people picked at random

– No one race was ever ‘preferred’ over any other

– No race has a special place in any ‘plan’

• The only way we can know that all races are equal is through understanding genetics

Evolution = Communism• Communism is anti-Christian?

– “He hat put down the mighty from their seat, and the rich he hath sent empty away” (Luke 1: 52, The Magnificat)

– “All the believers were together and had everything in common. Selling their possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need.” (Acts 2: 44-45)

– Sounds strikingly like Marx’s Communist Manifesto• Evolution does not imply (or require) communism

– In fact, it explains why communism doesn’t work

• Yes, Communism is stupid– We know this because we understand

• Evolutionary psychology• Game theory• History