A bit tangential to your question but I think germane: Many Christians have
been able to accept "common descent" but have been uncomfortable with natural selection
as its primary mechanism: 19th century liberal theology is an example, as is to some
extent Teilhard de Chardin. Something like Lamarck's idea, roughly that organisms get
rewarded for trying to survive, is very attractive. It's a kind of "biological works
righteousness". I would argue that Darwinism is more in accord with the biblical
picture of the God who creates in situations in which we see creation to be impossible -
the resurrection of the dead and the justification of the ungodly. (Romans 4 is a good
thing to look at here.)
George L. Murphy
gmurphy@raex.com
http://web.raex.com/~gmurphy/