The Daily Cardinal ran a letter by Geoff Price on Nov. 16 saying that, while some religions, like Hinduism, may be compatible with evolution, Christianity is not. This is an odd claim to make. I am no expert on Hindu myth, but I would be surprised if every word of it could be squared with modern knowledge. I believe I once heard a Hindu story involving giants; where do these fit on the evolutionary tree?
On the other hand, evolution can be accepted by people of every faith who do not insist on literal reading of all their religions' stories. Evolution was accepted by no less a Christian than C. S. Lewis. The Catholic Church, in spite of some vague statements that seem designed to placate intelligent design supporters, has yet to reverse its long-standing acceptance of evolutionary theory.
I do not deny that evolution undercuts some arguments for the existence of God, mainly the design argument. However, it does no harm to and of the many other reasons people have for believing. Spreading the myth that people can't believe in both evolution and Christianity will only drive people away from science and into the arms of fundamentalism.
Chris Hallquist
UW-Madison Freshman Biochemistry
