Creation and Evolution 295 



mental questions about the nature of God, about the nature 

 of the world, and about the nature of man. 



It is necessary first of all to differentiate both various 

 kinds of evolution theory and various kinds of creation 

 theory. It may be admitted at once that *' creation " as an 

 explanation of the world is the most complete that anyone 

 can ask for, and at the same time the least satisfactory for 

 anyone to whom the question How? has any real meaning. 

 The church fathers who had come in contact with pagan 

 philosophers were stimulated and influenced by them. Saint 

 Augustine and others were particularly sensitive about ap- 

 pearing foolish and ignorant in the presence of these schol- 

 ars. In harmony with the prevailing thought of the time 

 they looked upon the historical process as an evolutionary 

 one. God in his act of creation gave to matter those qualities 

 which we today consider inorganic and also those others 

 which made possible for it to become highly organized, and 

 eventually living matter, through the operation of natural 

 forces — that is, in accordance with observable uniformi- 

 ties of action. This doctrine is today acceptable to many 

 devout Catholics in good standing, including leaders in the 

 church. 



In the effort to avoid the idea of transformation and 

 at the same time accept the facts, various curiosities of 

 reasoning have been put forth. One interpretation of Saint 

 Augustine's position, for example, grants that the church- 

 man conceived creation to have established a material world 

 in which living things would evolve out of non-living 

 matter, but does not grant that this includes the evolution 

 of species. This view means, in effect, that each type of liv- 

 ing thing may have arisen originally from non-living matter 

 — through spontaneous generation — by virtue of the prop- 

 erties with which non-living matter was endowed by the 

 act of creation, but that each species has remained constant 

 ever since. The only issue between the scientist and the 

 creationist is here one of fact : Has there been transformation 

 of species? 



