Fr. Theodore Hesburgh on Evolution

30 September 08 | Posted in Arts and Letters, U.S. Catholic

Father Theodore Hesburgh, 91, the president of Notre Dame  from 1952-1987, was known for his work on many of the biggest social issues of the day: equal rights, the ethical application of scientific advances, justice and academic freedom. thesburgh.jpg

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, Fr. Hesburgh answered a question on evolution:

WSJ: You wrote that you and the popes you represented at the IAEA had deep appreciation of the sciences. Now, a m0vement, supported by some Catholics, is fighting the teaching of evolution.

Fr. Hesburgh: I have no problem at all with evolution. I think God can create in any way he wants. If he wants to create through an evolutionary process, it wouldn’t happen without him, because he has to put beings there in the first place. But it could be a very simple kind of life, and it could evolve, as I think it did, through various, different, more-complicated organisms until eventually you get to a point where there is a human being. That requires at least one act of God, to create an immortal soul. Evolution can’t create a spiritual and immortal moral soul.

I’m not afraid of science, because the more I learn from science, the more I know about God and his creation.

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