You won’t have to look far in 2009 before you bump into the world-wide celebrations of Charles Darwin’s legacy which extends beyond the natural and social sciences to all corners of our lives. The Bicentennial of Darwin’s birth and 150th anniversary of his seminal work, On The Origin of Species provides rich opportunities for questioning the views presented within evolutionary theory, and examining the beliefs that underpin it.
You could use some of these slides from the Natural History Museum’s Darwin – BiG Idea Exhibition to trigger discussion.
Check out the new Questioning Origins interactive DVD from The Wonder Project, which has an entire lesson given over to looking at Charles Darwin’s religious beliefs and seeing how they interact with his life, work and the events he encountered.
Darwin and his theory of Evolution are often portrayed as a refutation of God. Yet Charles Darwin never argued directly against God. He had started out intending to enter the Anglican ministry. What his experiences on the his 5 year voyage of the Beagle did however, was lead him to argue against a particular view of creation, and arguments for God based on that view. It was a fight that threatened more than the biological order. It challenged the accepted foundations of society.
Hear more about these ideas from Tom Frame (former bishop to the Australian Defence Forces and current Director of St Mark’s National Theological Centre and Head of the School of Theology at Charles Sturt University), who has just authored Evolution in the Antipodes : Charles Darwin and Australia
Two hundred years after Darwin’s birth, at a time when evolutionary theory is facing challenges from those who believe in intelligent design, Tom Frame explores Darwin’s life and times, and asks whether it is possible for us to believe in God and Darwin at the same time. Drawing on years of exhaustive inquiry and a unique point of view, Evolution in the Antipodes is a fascinating and thoughtful account of Charles Darwin’s significant and enduring influence on Australian life.
Check out a range of programmes and transcripts on the ABC Radio National Charles Darwin Site including All in the Mind, a one hour special with leading evolutionary scientists and philosophers considering how Darwin radically influenced the life of the mind.
Bookmark Darwin200 Special (hosted by Nature News), Darwin200 (hosted by the Natural History Museum) and Happy 200th Birthday Charles Darwin! (hosted by Charles Sturt University) for a growing collection of updated news, research and analysis.
Watch a 5 minute interview with natural history broadcaster David Attenborough discussing his views on Darwin, Natural Selection and the Bible (courtesy of Nature Video).
Mockingbirds from the Galapagos Islands, not finches, gave Charles Darwin his ideas about evolution. Watch Darwin’s Mockingbirds Video (6 minutes)
Ever visited Second Life? Second Nature, Nature Publishing Group’s cleverly named space in Second Life, has not only rebuilt a scale replica of HMS Beagle in Second Life, but they’ve placed her at the heart of an exciting new game called Notes from the Voyage (launched on 25 February 2009). Read more…
Have you discovered a great Darwin resource?
Let the DAN EO know so we can add to this site…
