Truth-Telling in the Evolution Debates

Rob Barrett Director of Forums and Scholarship The Colossian Forum

Much is at stake in our struggle to understand the origins of our world and of humanity. Origins accounts tell us much more than what happened “in the beginning.” They tell us who we are, where we are going, and how we relate to our creator, one another, and the rest of creation as we go there. Evolutionary accounts of our origins impinge on all of these questions and, further, affect our understanding of the Bible and the role and reliability of science. When much is at stake, our passion for getting things right grows more intense. We are also tempted, if we are honest enough to admit it, to shade the truth in order to get to the right answer, as we see it. In this presentation, I will share some of The Colossian Forum’s story in engaging the evolution debates as an opportunity to practice our faith and be more fully formed in it. In particular, I will discuss the importance of the many faceted practice of truth-telling as a critical piece of faithfulness in these debates.