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Catholic Responses to Evolution, 1859–2009: Local Influences and Mid‐Scale Patterns
Author(s) -
Blancke Stefaan
Publication year - 2013
Publication title -
journal of religious history
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.117
H-Index - 13
eISSN - 1467-9809
pISSN - 0022-4227
DOI - 10.1111/1467-9809.12054
Subject(s) - negotiation , encyclical , position (finance) , scale (ratio) , period (music) , history , political science , demography , sociology , philosophy , law , geography , economics , aesthetics , cartography , finance
This article discusses C atholic responses to evolution between 1859, the year of publication of C harles D arwin's O n the O rigin of S pecies , and 2009, the year in which the scientific world celebrated its 150th anniversary. Firstly, I will discuss how the V atican initially responded to evolution in the period between 1859 and 1907, the year in which P ope P ius X issued the encyclical P ascendi dominici gregis . Secondly, I will explore the responses of C atholic authorities and intellectuals and identify the local factors that influenced their responses. Also, I will demonstrate that, gradually, C atholics have shifted towards a more lenient position concerning evolution. Thirdly, I will demonstrate that, in the end, the V atican has complied with this pattern. In general, this article shows that not only P rotestants, but C atholics too have struggled to come to terms with evolution and evolutionary theory and that local factors had an impact on these negotiations.