Why Evolution Is True

During my couple of years of good scripture study habits, I also made it a habit to read from 'good books' to learn 'Of things both in heaven and in the earth, and under the earth; things which have been, things which are, things which must shortly come to pass.'  One of these books was Why Evolution Is True, by Jerry Coyne.  Coyne built a very strong argument (based on Darwin's argument, of course) showing why evolution must be true.  As I read it, his argument seemed to be mostly fine without God's involvement, but what I had the most trouble with was the incredibly small, nay, preposterously small probability that evolution could have created human kind.  I said in my head, "Yes, but God must have nudged us in that direction."  I had been taught all my life that there was a God and I still believed despite what any book or any person said.

Looking back I see that adding another preposterously small probability to the first seemed to calm my troubled mind.  Now I just see a very strong case of the primacy effect telling me that despite all of this evidence that God had no hand in human evolution, he still did it.

Charles Darwin

The book did seem to raise some more questions though.  I thought I understood evolution before.  I think I did, mostly.  What I didn't understand is how natural selection causes evolution.  Human kind was not created overnight.  It took a million tiny steps to get here.  Not a million random steps, but a million naturally selected steps (the best of steps possible.)  I think at this point I kind of started believing that the story of Adam and Eve could not be taken literally; they were a myth or legend.

The funny thing about the book, though, was that as 'troubling' as it was to my religious beliefs, it really felt right in my brain.  For the most part, it made sense.  Several years later, I can see even more clearly how much sense it made.

I should probably go back and read the book again to see if my viewpoint has changed any.  Or maybe I should just read the original tome, On the Origin of Species.  Or for an overview of the book, you can see a great review with notes on Why Evolution Is True.