Evolution A Pseudo Science?

[reggieM]

It depends on him, but not He on it. He is not contained in this world: He is not going to appear as a character: except indirectly, by being man. God is not an historical character - Jesus is. God is different from the world - so, it can operate “as though” God did not exist. There is no “collision” - so the world is safe for science, & for other forms of study. Evolution does not happen to God - it happens to the world He has created. To deny this, would be like suggesting that Herman Melville got a cold from the water in that whaling story of his: why should he ? The water was in his story, not his personal experience; the book is not his diary: the two worlds are not on the same level.

I think you’re arguing against a different, unrelated point, or else not really addressing the issue.

You state that the world “depends on him”. This is the first problem because what kind of detail can you put around that statement? Does evolution “depend on him”? If so, in what way? Clearly, this is not a different track for the train, but a shared track to some degree. One train, “depends on” the action of the other.

So, you’re reversing the problem, thinking that the world is affecting God – that is not the issue. The point that the Holy See makes clear is that God is affecing the world.

You seem to be denying “to divine providence any truly causal role in the development of life in the universe” – to do so is to claim something “incompatible with the Catholic Faith”. You find this “ridiculous” because “Evolution does not happen to God”. Clearly, you’re confused by the point. The Divine Causality is not “evolution happening to God” but rather, “God happening to the universe, life and the world we live in”.

God is different from the world - so, it can operate “as though” God did not exist.

“As though” in this case, means “in an illusory way”. So, we would have God creating the illusion that He does not exist. Why would He do that? On the contrary, as St. Paul teaches (and Vatican Council I restated infallibly), God’s existence can be seen clearly in the things He created. Why? Because God wants His creatures to know He exists. He gives evidence of His creative power – most certainly in the life and teachings of Jesus.

To deny this, would be like suggesting that Herman Melville got a cold from the water in that whaling story of his: why should he ? The water was in his story, not his personal experience; the book is not his diary: the two worlds are not on the same level.

Again, this is a complete confusion of the teaching of the Pope (which you referred to as “ridiculous”). The point is not that the creature is doing something to God (although did Our Lord experience a bit of suffering from his people?). No, the point is that His creation is affected in a “truly causal” way by his “divine providence”.

What you should be wondering is if Herman Melville could have created the waves and the wetness in Captain Ahab’s shoes. Could he create the wind in the story and direct the ship to wherever he wanted? Do you read the story “as if” an author didn’t exist and it just came together accidentally?

So the analogy is actually a good one (since nobody would attempt to study the story without wanting to know the author and how he created it), but you’ve inverted it – and thus your comparison is what is “ridiculous”, not the teaching of the Church.