Human Origins Seminar Series
at Calvin College
Sponsored by the Provost's Office
Co-sponsored by the
Religion, Philosophy, and History Departments and the Science Division
This seminar series is intended to promote discussion and exchange information about issues related to human origins. Expertise is drawn from many departments: Religion, philosophy, history, psychology, geology, biology, the physical sciences, and others – as wells as Calvin Theological Seminary and several of our sister Christian colleges.
Time and place: Seminars are typically held several Wednesdays and Fridays, starting at 3:30 or 7:00 p.m. For exact time and room locations, see the schedule below. See Calvin's Visitor Resources for directions to campus and a campus map. Faculty, students, staff and off-campus visitors are welcome. If you would like to receive regular email announcements for each week's seminar, or if you have other questions or comments, contact Loren Haarsma.
These seminars will also be announced on the Christian Perspectives in Science web page.
(This seminar series officially began in fall of 2010; however, some earlier seminars at Calvin College which are relevant to this topic are included on this web page.)
2010-2011 Academic Year Schedule
|
Date |
Title |
Speaker |
|
October 8, 2010 (3:30 p.m.) (SB-110) |
Scientific and Theological Issues on Human Origins |
Loren Haarsma,
Physics and Astronomy Department, Calvin College. |
|
October 15, 2010 (3:30 p.m.) (North Hall 157) |
Follow-up
discussion to "Scientific and Theological Issues on Human
Origins" |
. |
|
October 20, 2010 (7:00 p.m.) (SB-010) |
Evolution and Explanation abstract powerpoint slides handout (co-sponsored by Calvin Integrated Sciences Research
Institute) (co-sponsored by Calvin
College Biology Department) |
Steve Matheson,
Biology Department, Calvin College. |
|
November 5, 2010 (3:30 p.m.) (SB-010) |
Reading Genesis 2-3 in an Age of Evolutionary
Science abstract handout audio
recording (.wma) |
Daniel Harlow, Religion Department, Calvin College |
|
November 12, 2010 (3:30 p.m.) (North Hall 161) |
Follow-up
discussion to "Reading Genesis 2-3 in an Age of Evolutionary Science" |
. |
|
Wednesday February 9, 2011 7:00 p.m. (SB-010) |
Those Scary Fossils:
History of Paleoanthropological Discoveries |
Ralph Stearley,
Geology, Geography and Environmental Studies Department, Calvin College. |
|
Friday Feb. 11, 2011 3:30 p.m. (SB-010) |
Adam's Bloodline: Genesis, Race, and Human Origins |
David N.
Livingstone, Professor
of Geography & Intellectual History, Queen's University Belfast |
|
Thursday Feb. 17, 2011 3:30 p.m. (CFAC 107 Recital Hall) |
Evolution and the Fall: Clarifying the Issues,
Imagining the Possibilities |
James K.A. Smith,
Philosophy Department, Calvin College. |
|
Friday Feb. 18, 2011 3:30 p.m. (SB-010) |
What can Evolutionary Psychology Tell Us about Sin? |
Paul Moes,
Psychology Department, Calvin College. |
|
Wednesday March 2, 2011 7:00 p.m. (CFAC 107 Recital Hall) |
God, Chance, and Purpose |
Kelly Clark,
Philosophy Department, Calvin College. |
|
Friday March 4, 2011 3:30 p.m. (SB-010) |
A Historian’s Approach to Ancient Stories of Human
Origin and Cosmic Structure |
Bert deVries,
History Department, Calvin College. |
|
Friday March 11, 2011 3:30 p.m. (SB-010) |
"Tell me: How long did Adam dwell in
Paradise?" Traditions of reading sacred texts in the light of
modern biblical criticism. |
Frans vanLiere,
History Department, Calvin College. |
|
Thursday March 17, 2011 3:30 p.m. (NH-161) |
Discussion of article "Assessing Evidences for the Evolution of a Human Cognitive Platform for 'Soulish Behaviors' " by Ralph Stearley, Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith v.61 n.3 p.152-174. http://www.asa3.org/ASA/PSCF/2009/PSCF9-09Stearley.pdf abstract audio recording (.wma) powerpoint slides (1st half) overhead slides (2nd half) |
Lead by Ralph Stearley, Geology, Geography
and Environmental Studies Department, Calvin College |
|
Wednesday March 30, 2011 7:30 p.m. (Commons Annex Lecture Hall) |
What Augustine Still Has to Teach Us about Human
Origins and God's Creating Work |
Laura Smit,
Religion Department, Calvin College. |
|
Wednesday April 6, 2011 7:00 p.m. (SB-010) |
What's Original about Original Sin? Reading Genesis 1-3 within the Christian
Canon |
David Crump,
Religion Department, Calvin College. |
|
Wednesday April 13, 2011 3:30 p.m. (SB-010) |
What Social and Natural Scientists Need to Know
about Evil |
Brian Madison,
Religion Department, Calvin College. |
|
Wednesday
April 13 7:30
p.m.* (CFAC 107 Recital Hall) |
Evolution
Matters: Does Evolution Explain Religion?* (Calvin Philosophy Department: 2011 Jellema
Lectures) |
Michael Murray, Executive
Vice President, Programs & Vice President, Philosophy & Theology,
John Templeton Foundation |
|
Thursday
April 14 3:30
p.m.* (CFAC 107 Recital Hall) |
Evolution
Matters: Death, Predation, Extinction and ... a Loving Creator?* (Calvin Philosophy Department: 2011 Jellema
Lectures) |
Michael Murray, Executive
Vice President, Programs & Vice President, Philosophy & Theology,
John Templeton Foundation |
|
Thursday April 28, 2011 7:00 p.m. (CFAC 107 Recital Hall) |
What about the cross? |
Suzanne McDonald,
Religion Department, Calvin College. |
|
Friday April 29 3:30 p.m. (SB-010) |
The CRC and Human Origins Since Synod 2010 |
John Cooper, Professor
of Philosophical Theology, Calvin Theological Seminary. |
|
Friday May 6 12:30 p.m. (Meeter Center Lecture Hall) |
Trinity and Truth: Making Truth Claims in Theology exerpt from book Trinity and Truth book
review 1 (Buckley) book
review 2 (Reno) (sponsored by Calvin
College Religion
Department) (co-sponsored by Calvin Center for Christian
Scholarship) |
Bruce Marshall, Professor
of Historical Theology, Southern Methodist University. |
|
Friday May 6 3:20 p.m. (Meeter Center Lecture Hall) |
Faith and Certainty (sponsored by Calvin
College Religion
Department) (co-sponsored by Calvin Center for Christian
Scholarship) |
Bruce Marshall, Professor
of Historical Theology, Southern Methodist University. |
*Events
with an asterix are not part of the CPiS seminar series, but should be of
interest to many attenders of CPiS seminars.
Previous seminars
Spring 2010
Schedule
|
Date |
Title |
Speaker |
|
March 12 (3:30 p.m.) (SB-110) |
What Scientists Should Know About the Doctrine of
Creation |
Brian Madison,
Religion Department, Calvin College. |
|
April 9 (3:30 p.m.) (SB-110) |
A discussion of the
Divine Action Project |
Jim Bradley, emeritus Mathematics and Statistics Department, Calvin College |
|
April 16 (3:30 p.m.) (SB-110) |
Philosophical Materialism and Moral Nihilism abstract handout
notes (recording not
available) |
Loren Haarsma,
Physics and Astronomy Department, Calvin College. |
|
April 30 (3:30 p.m.) (SB-010) |
Convergence and chance in the construction of the tree of life abstract |
Steve Matheson,
Biology Department, Calvin College. |
Spring 2009 Schedule
|
Date |
Title |
Speaker |
|
May 1 (3:30 p.m.) (SB-110) |
Why is there no controversy surrounding theistic
embryology? Dissecting critical
responses to theistic evolution. abstract powerpoint
slides audio
recording (.wma) |
Steve Matheson,
Biology Department, Calvin College. |
Fall 2007 Schedule
|
Date |
Title |
Speaker |
|
September 28 (3:30 p.m.) (SB-110) |
A Classical Christian Emergent Anthropology |
John Cooper, Professor
of Philosophical Theology, Calvin Theological Seminary. |
|
October 12 (3:30 p.m.) (SB-010) |
Origins: A Reformed Look at Creation, Design, and
Evolution |
Deborah Haarsma, Physics
& Astronomy Department; Loren
Haarsma, Physics & Astronomy Department, |
Fall 2006
|
Date |
Title |
Speaker |
|
October 27 (3:30 p.m.) (SB-110) |
Human Origins:
Scientific Theories and Christian Theologies (audio recording unavailable due to
technical glitch) |
John Cooper, Professor of Philosophical Theology, Calvin Theological Seminary |
|
November 17 (3:30 p.m.) (SB-110) |
Intelligent Design on Trial |
Edward B. Davis, Professor of
the History of Science, |
Abstracts
Friday,
October 27, 2006, 3:30 p.m. in
Speaker: John Cooper,
Professor of Philosophical Theology, Calvin Theological Seminary.
Title: Human Origins: Scientific
Theories and Christian Theologies
This presentation attempts a
general mapping of the various positions on creation and evolution held by
Christians. It identifies three main
readings of Genesis 1-3 (literal-historical-theological,
literary-historical-theological, and literary-theological), three main
theological paradigms of redemptive-history (Augustinian, Neo-platonic, and
Modernist), and four theories of human origins (recent creation, progressive
creation, biological evolution, anthropological evolution). The presentation then explores the
implications, convergences, and tensions among these positions. This is the overview I present to students at
Calvin Seminary before locating the position taken by the Synod of the
Christian Reformed Church. Dialogue and
criticism are welcome.
Friday,
November 17, 2006, 3:30 p.m. in
Speaker: Edward B. Davis,
Professor of the History of Science,
Title: Intelligent Design on Trial
Dr. Davis, who attended the
Friday, September
28, 2007, 3:30 p.m. in
Speaker: John Cooper,
Professor of Philosophical Theology, Calvin Theological Seminary.
Title: A Classical Christian
Emergent Anthropology
I'll argue that biblical
anthropology presents a holistic or integral view of soul and body, but one in
which persons can exist temporarily without earthly bodies. I'll then present a version of this
anthropology – the generically Thomist view that that soul is the subsistent
form (organizing, empowering principle) of the material body that constitutes
humans as one spiritual-physical substance (not two-substance dualism) – a
living organism with human capacities.
But by God’s supernatural power, the soul can exist apart from the body
between death and resurrection. (It is
not naturally immortal.) I modify
Thomism by opting for a traducian rather than a creationist view of the soul:
the union of sperm and egg is not merely biological but produces a new spiritual-physical
individual. The soul does not “emerge”
and develop from mere physical stuff by metaphysical magic (as in physicalism),
but because the person-spiritual capacities are potentially present from
conception.
Friday,
October 12, 2007, 3:30 p.m. in
Speaker: Deborah Haarsma and
Loren Haarsma, Physics and Astronomy Department, Calvin College.
Title: Origins: A Reformed Look at Creation, Design, and Evolution
FaithAlive Resources, the
publishing ministry of the Christian Reformed Church, asked us to write a book
“for the person in the pew” on issues of origins. In this short seminar, we’ll give an overview
of the contents of the book and our writing approach, as well as answer
audience questions. The book begins with
chapters on God’s governance of natural processes, doing science as part of a
Christian worldview, and interpretation of scripture. Other chapters review the scientific,
theological, and worldview issues around the age of the Earth, the Big Bang,
biological evolution, and intelligent design. The book ends with two chapters
on several scientific and theological issues around human origins. A book reception will follow at 4:15 p.m. in
DeVries Hall Atrium. (Read Calvin
College’s press release.)
Friday, May 1, 2009, 3:30 p.m.
in
Speaker: Steve Matheson,
Biology Department, Calvin College
Title: Why is there no controversy surrounding theistic embryology? Dissecting critical responses to theistic
evolution.
Those who simultaneously
express Christian belief and affirm evolutionary theory are said to espouse a
position called "theistic evolution."
The view holds the peculiar distinction of being reviled by both
hard-line creationists (who call it "appeasement") and prominent
atheist commentators (who deride it as fallacious). I argue that these critics typically fail to
articulate objections that are specific to the view. Most creationist critics of theistic
evolution object to one or both of these characteristics of the view: 1) its
reliance on naturalistic explanation, a feature common to all scientific
theorizing; or 2) its embrace of "random" causal events, a feature
common to myriad scientific explanations.
Most atheist critics of theistic evolution object to its openness to
supernatural explanation, a feature of religious belief in general. Such criticisms, valid or not, fail to address
anything specific to theistic evolution.
In other words, attacks on theistic evolution are usually attacks on
theism or attacks on evolution, but rarely represent specific criticisms of the
theistic evolution position. To better
understand the controversy surrounding theistic evolution, I propose that
critiques of the position be considered in light of a lesser-known position we
may (with tongue in cheek) call "theistic embryology." Theistic embryology describes the thinking of
those who simultaneously express Christian belief and affirm basic theories in
human developmental biology. Although
the logic is indistinguishable from that of theistic evolution, the view is
uncontroversial and the term "theistic embryology" is practically
non-existent. I suggest that critiques
of theistic evolution be subjected to the "theistic embryology
test." Most critiques that claim to
identify weaknesses in theistic evolution make arguments that are equally
damaging to "theistic embryology" and so fail the test. Critiques that fail this whimsical test are
likely to be arguments against belief, or against naturalistic explanation, and
should be considered as such.
Friday, March 12, 2010, 3:30 p.m. in
Speaker: Brian Madison,
Religion Department, Calvin College
Title: What scientists should know about doctrine of creation
The contemporary dialogue
between theology and the natural sciences tends to proceed uni-directionally:
that is to say theologians look to the sciences as providing descriptions of
reality which either serve as challenges to traditional theological formulations
or as sources for creative theological exploration. This seminar seeks to press the dialogue in
the reverse direction by exploring the rich resources of Christian theology
regarding the nature of reality, the nature of causation, and the significance
of understanding the world as existing in relation to God through the divine
activity of creation. Scientists may
find such resources helpful and challenging regarding their scientific
exploration of a world Christian theology claims is, and describes as,
created. Metaphysical, Christological
and pneumatological aspects of a doctrine of creation will be addressed in
relation to contemporary scientific endeavors.
Friday, April 9, 2010, 3:30 p.m. in
Speaker: Jim Bradley, emeritus
Mathematics and Statistics Department, Calvin College
Title: A Discussion of the Divine Action Project
During the 1990's, a series
of five conferences on faith and science were co-sponsored by the Vatican
Observatory and the Center for Theology and the Natural Sciences in
Berkeley. They took God's action in the
physical universe as their unifying theme; hence the undertaking came to be
known as the Divine Action Project.
Participants were scientists and theologians from Protestant and Roman
Catholic backgrounds, most of whom held a more or less orthodox view of
Christian belief. Each conference
produced a significant collection of scholarly papers covering the topics
quantum cosmology and the laws of nature, chaos and complexity, evolutionary
and molecular biology, neuroscience and the person, and quantum mechanics. This talk will provide a brief sketch of the
project illustrated with examples from the chaos and complexity study. Its primary purpose is to initiate a
conversation on the subject of God's action in the physical universe.
Friday, April 16, 2010, 3:30 p.m. in
Speaker: Loren Haarsma,
Physics and Astronomy Department, Calvin College
Title: Philosophical materialism and moral nihilism
The natural sciences are often
used to support worldviews of philosophical materialism. Some Christians respond by claiming that
philosophical materialism logically implies moral nihilism. Often these claims are coupled to arguments
that the theory of evolution promotes selfishness and eugenics as "natural
goods." This seminar will briefly
discuss the oversimplifications of biological evolution behind these claims and
ways to disentangle the science of evolution from philosophical materialism,
then move on to discuss the broader claim that philosophical materialism
implies moral nihilism. Some moral
theorists look for a non-theistic basis for objective moral authority in
self-evident principles, reason, community, nature, or some combination of
those. We'll consider distinctions
between reductionist materialisms and emergentist materialisms, and end with a
discussion about whether some versions of the argument that philosophical
materialism imply moral nihilism rely on such a low view of creation and common
grace as to make them problematic for Calvinists. If so, does a high view of creation and
common grace suggest a better response to philosophical naturalism?
Friday, April 30, 2010, 3:30 p.m. in
Speaker: Stephen Matheson, Biology
Department, Calvin College
Title: Convergence and chance in the construction of the tree of life
To what extent has
"chance" influenced the outcomes of biological evolution? To some,
the unfolding of the tree of life was so strongly contingent on early and
seemingly random events that its current forms (which include H. sapiens) could
just as likely have been utterly different. To others, the unfolding of the
tree of life is characterized by recurrent themes that are so pervasive that
its current forms were well-nigh inevitable. We will examine the ideas of the
two prominent scientists who have advocated these two divergent views of the
nature of evolution. The late Stephen Jay Gould made famous the "rewind
the tape" metaphor: according to Gould, if we repeatedly replayed the
history of life on earth, it would turn out differently – very differently –
each time. Simon Conway Morris has famously emphasized evolutionary
convergence, wherein similar designs arise independently during evolution,
suggesting a predictable pattern. Two brilliant and accomplished
paleontologists and evolutionary biologists, examining the same data, reached
apparently opposite conclusions. We will discuss the fossils that formed the
focus of Gould's case, look at some examples of convergent evolution that are
the basis of Conway Morris's position, and consider the relevance of both sets
of ideas in Christian conceptions of an unfolding creation.
Friday, October 8, 2010; 3:30 p.m. in
Speaker: Loren Haarsma,
Physics and Astronomy Department, Calvin College
Title: Scientific and Theological Issues on Human Origins
This is the first of what we
hope will be a series of seminars this year by various speakers on the topic of
human origins. We will first summarize
discoveries made in the last few decades in genetics and paleontology, and
discuss what we can learn from these discoveries about how God created
humans. Then we'll survey main points of
Christian tradition on a number of important theological topics: humans as
God's image-bearers, the human soul, original sin, and natural evil. We'll describe several proposed scenarios for
human origins which seek to bring together what we learn both from scripture
and from nature, and we'll analyze some of the pros and cons of those scenarios. The goal of this seminar is to map out the
important issues, the areas of agreement, and the range of disagreements. Audience questions and suggestions will
influence which particular issues we explore in greater depth in later
seminars.
Wednesday, October 20, 2010; 7:00 p.m. in
Speaker: Steve Matheson,
Biology Department, Calvin College
Title: Evolution and
Explanation
Is evolution true? Most
scientists consider this question settled. In this lecture we’ll address a
somewhat different question, and a better one: How does evolution make sense
of the living world? In other words, how does evolution explain the
ways in which living things came to be the way they are? We will look at the
many kinds of evidence and data that are explained by common ancestry so
that we can understand why evolutionary theory has been so successful. We
will look at points of concern for Christians and briefly discuss the ways in
which Christians can respond to those worries. And there will be plenty of time
for questions and answers. Come learn why evolutionary theory is such an
excellent explanation.
Friday, November 5, 2010; 3:30 p.m. in
Speaker: Daniel Harlow,
Religion Department, Calvin College
Title: Reading Genesis 2-3
in an Age of Evolutionary Science
This presentation will
summarize the main points of an article recently published in the journal Perspectives on Science and Christian Faith
(vol. 62, no. 3 [September 2010]: 179–95) and then lead a discussion of it
and of issues it raises. The article is framed by recent research in molecular
biology, primatology, sociobiology, and phylogenetics––research which indicates
that our species, Homo sapiens, did
not descend from a single pair of individuals, and that early Homo sapiens
did not start in paradisal physical or moral conditions. The body of
the article is a study of Genesis 2–3 in its literary and cultural context,
examining Adam and Eve as strictly literary figures, with attention both to the
biblical text and ancient Near Eastern parallels. Along the way, it explains
why most biblical scholars do not find the doctrines of the Fall and original
sin in Genesis 2–3 itself but only in later Christian readings of these
chapters. The article also examines briefly Paul’s appeal to Adam as a type of
Christ. It concludes that the doctrines of the Fall and original sin may be reaffirmed
with Adam and Eve as literary rather than historical figures, but invite
reformulation given the evidence for an evolving creation.
Wednesday, February 9, 2011; 7:00 p.m. in
Speaker: Ralph Stearley,
Geology, Geography and Environmental Studies Department, Calvin College.
Title: Those Scary
Fossils: History of Paleoanthropological
Discoveries
Biologists and anatomists
have been intrigued by natural comparisons between apes and humans since the
1600's. In the middle 1700's, Carolus
Linnaeus included humans, apes and monkeys in his mammalian order,
Primates. These biological
investigations set the stage for the fossil discoveries to come. Starting in the middle 1800's, strange and
scary remains of human-like creatures began to be discovered, first in Europe,
then Asia, then Africa. The oldest of
these fossil hominids now date to 6 million years before the present; all of
the earliest forms are African. Some
remains are associated with tools of bone or stone or with body
ornamentation. Many skeletal elements
demonstrate malnutrition, bone breakage, or other signs of a hard life. The earliest of these fossil hominids have
cranial capacities slightly larger than those of present-day great apes. Clear trends can be seen over time in stature
& locomotion, dentition, and cranial capacity during the past 4 million
years, with conditions resembling more and more those of modern humans through
time. This amplifying record has seemed
ominous to some—are there skeletons in our human family closet? Or, are these individuals no more
embarrassing than the other horse thieves in all our lineages? This talk will narrate the history of these
discoveries and hopefully explain something of their significance. Lots of photos, including many scary ones.
Friday, February 11, 2011; 3:30 p.m. in room To Be
Announced.
Speaker: David N. Livingstone,
Professor of Geography & Intellectual History, Queen's University Belfast.
Title: ADAM’S BLOODLINE : Genesis, Race and Human Origins
The idea that the human race can be traced back to a single ancestor
has been both deep and lasting. In our own day it surfaces in very different
arenas, both religious and secular. Contemporary geneticists and
palaeo-anthropologists, for example, using DNA research, have variously
christened humanity’s common ancestor Mitochondrial Eve and Y-chromosome
Adam. Representing a very different
politics, religiously-motivated racial supremacists in the United States have
been no less busy working out an Adamic chronology for particular racial groups
with particularly pernicious propaganda.
In this lecture I explore something of these recent obsessions before
turning to an historical analysis of the role of the biblical Adam in theories
about human origins over the past five centuries. In particular I focus on a
wide range of thinkers who argued for the existence of human beings before the
Adam of the Genesis narrative. During the seventeenth century, the idea was
largely abominated as heretical, but in years to come attracted increasing
support as it enabled a range of exegetical and empirical problems to be
resolved. It presented solutions to the question of the settlement of the New
World, eased problems posed by the so-called pagan chronologies, and offered a
biological solution to issues about acclimatization, hybridity, and racial
divergence. Its use as a political
resource was no less conspicuous as it was variously mobilised for both
egalitarian and racist purposes. For
these and other reasons, the idea of pre-adamic humanity attracted a growing
range of committed defenders – often those with a conservative Christian
heritage. In the aftermath of the
Darwinian revolution, the idea was often adopted by evangelical scientists and
theologians who found in the idea of
pre-Adamic hominids, nearly but not quite human, a means of making peace
with evolutionary anthropology. Over its
remarkable history since the mid-seventeenth century, the idea of non-Adamic
humanity has run the gamut from humanitarianism to racism, from heresy to
orthodoxy. The passion to track Adam’s
bloodline, one way or another, continues to fascinate the human race. If Paul
Ricoeur is correct to say that Adam’s fall from grace is “the anthropological
myth par excellence”, the mission to track Adam’s bloodline must surely rank as
the archetypal quest of Western culture.
Thursday, February 17, 2011; 3:30 p.m. in CFAC-107
(Recital Hall).
Speaker: James K.A. Smith,
Philosophy Department, Calvin College.
Title: Evolution and the
Fall: Clarifying the Issues, Imagining the Possibilities
This presentation aims to do
three things. The first task is somewhat
polemical, but the second and third goals are meant to be constructive (and
maybe even irenic!). (1) What's not at issue: I will suggest a clarification of
what's at stake in the current discussion by noting what this debate is not
about. It is not about evolution vs.
creationism. There isn't a simple
dichotomy of pro-science versus anti-science views. As we jointly examine and critique the
various proposed scenarios for human origins, those who resist the more "symbolic"
interpretations of the Fall do take the scientific data seriously. This may be stating the obvious, but some
articulations of the issues seem to require that these clarifications be made.
(2) Going "meta": Drawing on Alasdair MacIntyre's account of
tradition, I want to sketch an understanding of confessional theological
reflection which emphasizes that wrestling with what is essential to a
tradition is a defining feature of a tradition.
In other words, I want to paint a picture of "tradition" and
"orthodoxy" which makes room for genuine development and reform
within a tradition. So defending
"orthodoxy" cannot and should not be equated with mere
repristination. However, it does entail
that theological development and reform still discerns parameters and
boundaries for what constitutes a faithful extension of the tradition. (3) Imagining the Fall: constructively, I
want to loosen up our theological imagination by proposing a model that takes
seriously evolutionary and genetic evidence for common ancestry, predation,
etc. while also retaining a doctrine of a "historical" Fall. My goal in this section is to point out that
proposals that take seriously evolutionary and genetic evidence need not entail
rejecting a historical understanding of the Fall, though this will also require
some reconfiguration of how the doctrines of the Fall and original sin are
articulated. My only goal in this
respect is to suggest that, with some faithful theological imagination, we
could imagine some models that are not yet on the table.
Friday, February 18, 2011; 3:30 p.m. in Science Building
basement room 010.
Speaker: Paul Moes, Psychology
Department, Calvin College.
Title: What can Evolutionary
Psychology Tell Us about Sin?
Evolutionary Psychology (EP)
has had a significant impact on psychological theories and has a good deal to
say about human nature and the reasons for our actions – both good and
bad. But can EP shed light on biblical
concepts of sin or righteousness? This
presentation will review the basic ideas of EP, its implications for psychology
and how it may – or may not – help us understand our basic sinful nature. The basic thesis for the presentation is that
EP, while providing some valuable insights, fails to capture the full extent of
our human nature, including our sinful tendencies.
Thursday, March 2, 2011; 3:30 p.m.
in CFAC-107 (Recital Hall).
Speaker: Kelly Clark,
Philosophy Department, Calvin College.
Title: God, Chance, and
Purpose
Before God and creation via
evolution get too cozy, we need to remember that evolution is a chancy process.
While natural selection itself is not a method of chance, what it selects from
is a matter of chance—random mutations. Random mutations supply the fuel that
operates the evolutionary machinery. Without mutations, individuals within a
species would have exactly the same characteristics; none would be any better
than another in terms of avoiding predators or coaxing mates. It’s only when
mutations occur—making some individuals slightly faster or able to smell better
or more attractive—that natural selection kicks in, lending its endorsement to
the favorable trait. Without mutations, natural selection is empty. But, and
here’s the God and creation problem, mutations are random. How can a random
process be compatible with God’s intentions to create plants and animals, and
then humans (in His image)? If the process was random, how could God have known
what he was going to get? How could God have guided a process that is fueled by
random events? I'll consider five models for how God might use random processes
to accomplish God's purposes.
Friday, March 4, 2011; 3:30 p.m. in Science Building
basement room 010.
Speaker: Bert deVries, History Department, Calvin College.
Title: A Historian's
Approach to Ancient Stories of Human Origin and Cosmic Structure
In antiquity the intent of
stories of human origin was not objective explanation of a process over time,
but narrative portrayal of archetypical events that help the audience make
sense out of their own existential human predicament. The truth of such
narratives lay not in their pinpoint accuracy in the realms of biology or
geology, but in their liturgical power enabling an audience to come face to
face with the life forces threatening to overwhelm them. The presenter will
examine ancient stories of origin and order as historical documents, both as
sources for ancient socio-religious history and for their role in ancient
history. First, various types of stories from ancient cultures, such as the
Vedic Myth of Perusha, The Babylonian Descent of Ishtar into the Underworld,
and The Canaanite Conflict between Baal and Yam, will be used to demonstrate
the role of literary narrative in the representation of meaning for humans
face-to-face with cosmic forces. Second, while the Genesis creation stories
served a similar socio-religious purpose, they were adapted for that late in
ancient history, at a point in the mid-first millennium BC when there was a
broad cultural shift away from cosmo-theism to transcendental theism, not only
in exilic/post-exilic proto-Judaism, but also among neighboring societies (in
India, Persia and Greece, for example).
The purpose of this presentation is to bring out the meaning of
human-origin texts in their original historic context in order to make clear
these do not lend themselves to the commonly held “concordist” presupposition
that the ancient creation narratives contain scientifically verifiable
information.
Friday, March 11, 2011; 3:30 p.m. in Science Building
basement room 010.
Speaker: Frans vanLiere, History Department, Calvin College.
Title: "Tell me: How
long did Adam dwell in Paradise?"
Traditions of reading sacred texts in the light of modern biblical
criticism.
This presentation will be a
follow-up to Bert deVries's presentation last week. It will outline how Genesis
1-3 was interpreted after it became to be regarded as sacred history.
Ultimately, the problem with the current debate over human origins has less to
do with the problem of human origins than with the question: How do we read
these ancient texts? For centuries, the meaning of Genesis 1-3 was determined
not so much by what these texts actually said, as by what they were supposed to
say; they were thought to contain some hidden truth that was especially relevant
for the religious community that held them as sacred, but this truth could only
be uncovered through mystical and spiritual reading. For centuries this is just
how these texts were read: against a religious framework that assigned a
deeper, mystical or theological meaning to these texts. These are the biblical
hermeneutics underlying Paul's letter to the Corinthians, as well as the
Reformed Confessions. However, modern biblical criticism has challenged this
hermeneutical model. While a modern critical reading may solve many of the
apparent contradictions between these sacred texts and science, it does raise
the question: Can we still regard these texts as authoritative and sacred, if
we read them in this way? Or do they become "just" stories, no longer
the Word of God?
Thursday, March 17, 2011; 3:30 p.m. in North Hall room
161.
Speaker: Ralph Stearley,
Geology, Geography and Environmental Studies Department, Calvin College.
Title: A discussion on the
article, " Assessing Evidences for the
Evolution of a Human Cognitive Platform for 'Soulish Behaviors'"
During the past one hundred
fifty years, a great number of fossil hominid specimens have been unearthed,
providing an outline of hominid history extending back five million years.
Associated with these hominid fossils are artifacts. Christians and others who
have attempted to assess the humanity of these long-dead individuals have
focused on evidences of cognition such as cave art, evidences of care given to
injured or ill individuals, or burial. However, many more types of evidences as
to cognitive abilities in these creatures are available. Warren Brown has proposed that a cluster of
interlinked cognitive capacities were elaborated over the past few million
years of hominid history during an "evolutionary trajectory" which,
in turn, undergird human "soulish behaviors." These include language,
a theory of mind, episodic memory, top-down agency, future orientation, and
emotional modulation. This article is an attempt to put traction on Brown's
proposal, through detailed examination of the paleoanthropological record. The
ability to teach, and thus symbolically and rapidly transmit culture, is
suggested as an additional capacity which is part of this cognitive platform.
Primary data (anatomy, artifacts) and reliable inferences (based on comparative
studies) support a notion of a stage-wise erection of a cognitive platform for
soulish behaviors. A few significant, less-understood gaps remain in the
cognitive trajectory.
Wednesday, March 30, 2011; 7:30 p.m. in Commons Annex
Lecture Hall.
Speaker: Laura Smit, Religion
Department, Calvin College.
Title: What Augustine Still
Has to Teach Us about Human Origins and God's Creating Work
In conversations about
origins, Augustine is sometimes painted as a fundamentalist in the way he read
Scripture (he wasn’t), as someone who corrupted the Hebrew worldview of the
Bible with Hellenism (he didn’t), and as the source of a distorted
understanding of sin and salvation that needs to be overcome (it needn’t). Given how central Augustine has been to the
development of Christian thought in the west, especially (though by no means
exclusively) to the development of the Reformed tradition, we should dig a
little deeper and get a fuller understanding of what he actually says about
human origins, about human freedom and responsibility, about the nature of sin,
about the goodness of creation and the goodness of God.
Wednesday, April 6, 2011; 7:00 p.m. in Science Building
basement room 010
Speaker: David Crump, Religion
Department, Calvin College.
Title: What's Original about
Original Sin? Reading Genesis 1-3 within
the Christian Canon
This lecture will attempt to
do two things. First, it will raise
questions about the methods being used in our current discussion over how to
read the story of Adam and Eve. For
instance, does the accumulation of 'parallels' or 'similarities' between
different pieces of literature necessarily lead to solid conclusions about
either the historicity or the intentions of the stories themselves? Second, we will briefly take another look at
Genesis 1-3. The story of Adam and Eve
has been interpreted in many ways over the centuries and in modern times. I
believe we can find territory in our interpretations which avoids, on the one
hand, reading in ways which simply reinforce traditional theological
preconceptions, and on the other hand, reading in ways which presuppose some
unacceptable rationalistic assumptions.
Wednesday, April 13, 2011; 3:30 p.m. in Science Building
basement room 010
Speaker: Brian Madison, Religion
Department, Calvin College.
Title: What Social and
Natural Scientists Need to Know about Evil
"Evil" is a term
which, in the Christian tradition at least, is properly a
"theological" term. That is to
say, "evil" names that which is not consonant with the nature and
action of God and therefore must be understood in relation to how Christians
understand and speak about God.
Christian theology has traditionally made a distinction between the
moral evil perpetrated by personal agents (i.e. "sin") and natural
evil which occurs apart from personal agency and intention. In this presentation I will outline what is
meant by "goodness," "supreme goodness, " "evil"
and "sin" as theological categories.
Augustine's wrestling with "the problem of evil" will provide
some traction as I explore the content of these terms. Regarding our current discussion on human
origins, I will sketch a description of human origins which may entail a closer
linkage of moral and natural evil than is often given.
Thursday, April 28, 2011; 7:00 p.m. in CFAC-107 (Recital
Hall)
Speaker: Suzanne McDonald, Religion
Department, Calvin College.
Title: What about the cross?
One of the questions that has
been raised in discussions about human origins concerns the implications of
various views on origins for the way that we understand Christ's atoning work on
the cross. This lecture aims to help us think about these issues in two ways.
First, it will point us to the variety of themes and images found in the New
Testament to speak about what is happening on the cross. Along the way, we will
see how our confessional documents reflect this range of themes - and we will
also see that theology can sometimes get
unhelpfully carried away with one or two of them. Second, while the New
Testament gives us a constellation of ways to help us to plumb the depths of
the cross, all the various themes and images share some central assumptions
about God’s relationship with us and ours with him. These shared assumptions
will provide a touchstone for discerning how approaches to the issue of human
origins relate to the atonement.
Friday, April 29, 2011; 3:30 p.m. in Science Building
basement room 010.
Speaker: John Cooper,
Professor of Philosophical Theology, Calvin Theological Seminary.
Title: The CRC and Human
Origins Since Synod 2010
This presentation explains
the position of the CRC on human origins as modified by the Synod of 2010. (I
was an advisor to Synod and advocated for its decision.) Synod 2010 removed the
declaration of Synod 1991 that "the uniqueness of humans as image bearers
of God rules out the espousal of all theorizing that posits the reality of
evolutionary forebears of the human race." But it reaffirmed the other five
declarations of 1991, including permissible approaches to Genesis and doctrinal
conclusions that are required. Consequently, the CRC position is now open to
espousal of evolutionary theories of human ancestors that are consistent with
these hermeneutical and doctrinal positions. The presentation outlines some
limits and possibilities of the CRC position in relation to current scientific,
philosophical, theological, and exegetical views. There will be time for
discussion.
Last updated April 29, 2011