Discover
/
Article

John McCain on teaching evolution

JAN 11, 2008

From his 2005 book “Character is Destiny":

“Darwin helped explain nature’s laws. He did not speculate, in his published theories at least, on the origin of life. He did not exclude God, for Whom the immensity of time is but a moment, from our presence. The only undeniable challenge the theory of evolution poses to Christian beliefs is its obvious contradiction of the idea that God created the world as it is in less than a week. But our faith is certainly not so weak that it can be shaken to learn that a biblical metaphor is not literal history. Nature doesn’t threaten our faith. On the contrary, when we contemplate its beauty and mysteries we cannot quiet in our heart an insistent impulse of belief that for all its variations and inevitable change, before its creation, in a time before time, God let it be so, and, thus, its many splendors and purposes abide in His purpose.”

More from CBN News .

CNN : “I believe in evolution,” Sen. John McCain said. “But I also believe, when I hike the Grand Canyon and see it at sunset, that the hand of God is there also.”

More about the authors

Paul Guinnessy, pguinnes@aip.org

Related content
/
Article
/
Article
The availability of free translation software clinched the decision for the new policy. To some researchers, it’s anathema.
/
Article
The Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope will survey the sky for vestiges of the universe’s expansion.
/
Article
An ultracold atomic gas can sync into a single quantum state. Researchers uncovered a speed limit for the process that has implications for quantum computing and the evolution of the early universe.

Get PT in your inbox

pt_newsletter_card_blue.png
PT The Week in Physics

A collection of PT's content from the previous week delivered every Monday.

pt_newsletter_card_darkblue.png
PT New Issue Alert

Be notified about the new issue with links to highlights and the full TOC.

pt_newsletter_card_pink.png
PT Webinars & White Papers

The latest webinars, white papers and other informational resources.

By signing up you agree to allow AIP to send you email newsletters. You further agree to our privacy policy and terms of service.