A Delay in Origins

Proverbs 9:10a
The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.

Why did Charles Darwin take so long to publish his Origin of Species? His Beagle journal was published in 1839, but Origins was published 20 years later, in 1859. And why was Darwin in such a hurry in 1858 to get his book finished and published? A book by Roy Davies, entitled The Darwin Conspiracy, suggests that Darwin was guilty of plagiarism.

On June 18th 1858, Darwin received a letter from Alfred Russel Wallace, who was collecting specimens in what is now Indonesia. Wallace’s letter outlined his idea on the transmutation of species. It turned out to be the same as Darwin’s idea, which he had outlined in a letter to his friend Joseph Hooker on June 10th. But Davies claims that Wallace’s other letters to his family were received on June 3rd – seven days BEFORE Darwin wrote Hooker.

If Davies is correct, Darwin plagiarized Wallace’s theory. Although he was notionally a member of the Church of England, Darwin was, in fact, an atheist, like his father. Wallace was a spiritualist, who claimed he had received his theory in a trance, while suffering from delirium. Could it be that the Origin of Species was a demonically inspired concept, delivered through the medium of Wallace, then stolen by the atheist Darwin? Whether or not this version of events is correct, evolution has served anti-Christian forces well, in persuading them that the Bible is not to be believed. We, on the other hand, trust God’s Word over the words of men – especially those influenced by darker forces.

Prayer:
As the heavens are higher than the earth, so Your ways are higher than mine, Lord. Amen.

Notes: