religion and science

1. Myths about Creation
By Ionuț Constantin

2. • This power point presentation is for students who
study in the program of Religious Studies in the
University of Bucharest.
• In this power point I will present some stories
about creation and the evolution theory and I will
try to explain why from my perspective the
evolution theory can be another story.
• Another point will be about Genesis creation and
will see you need faith to believe in this and you
need faith to believe in evolution.
• All can be a myth and each of them can be truth.

3. • It is now widely recognized that the characteristic feature of religious thought is
essentially mythological. In the higher religions it is true the cruder types of myth
and ritual have been eliminated or transformed into symbolism, but the myth has
never been wholly excluded or distinguished very clearly from symbol. Throughout
the ages religious belief has been formulated in the terms of this manner of thought,
language and experience, though it is only in recent years that the function
significance of mythology, and of the sacred actions with which it has been so
closely associated, have become apparent as a result of the scientific study of the
phenomena.
• Even if many aspects of Creation can be associated with myths and it is not sure for
a scientific mind, at the final you have to choose if you believe story, science or
Bible.

5. Creation myths
• Also called cosmogonic myth, philosophical and
theological elaboration of the primal myth of
creation within a religious community. The term
myth here refers to the imaginative expression in
narrative form of what is experienced or
apprehended as basic reality. The term creation
refers to the beginning of things, whether by the
will and act of a transcendent being, by
emanation from some ultimate source, or in any
other way.

6. The Heliopolitan Ennead
These nine gods together make up the Great Ennead of Heliopolis,
and constitute the most important family of gods in the creation
story.

7. Ra
Ra was the firs Pharaon of Egypt and he was the God of Sun
and the creator of the world.

8. • For more information about Gods in Egypt
please search this:
http://slideplayer.com/slide/7460528/
• In my power point presentation I analyzed
only few things about this gods, but here you
can find some interesting informations.

9. • A 2004 Gallup Poll in the United States reported that
45% of the population believe that God created
humans in their present form within the last 10,000
years; 38% believe that humans evolved from other
life-forms over many millions of years but that God
directed the process; 13%are of the opinion that
humans evolved from other life-forms over millions of
years but that God played no role in the process; and
4%have no opinion. These percentages have remained
fairly stable over the last several decades. The most
prominent opinion continues to be in favor of
creationism and against evolution.

11. Enuma Elish
• In Mesopotamia the same general conception of
the creation of the universe from a primeval state
of chaos was maintained.
• The Enuma Elish is a Babylonian or
Mesopotamian myth of creation recounting the
struggle between cosmic order and chaos. It is
basically a myth of the cycle of seasons. It is
named after its opening words and was recited
on the fourth day of the ancient Babylonian New
Year's festival.

12. Tiamat

13. Kingu
• Kingu, in Babylonian mythology, the consort
of Tiamat. The creation epic Enuma elish tells
how Tiamat, determined to destroy the other
gods, created a mighty army and set Kingu at
its head. When Kingu saw Marduk coming
against him, however, he fled. After Tiamat’s
defeat, Kingu was taken captive and executed;

14. • Marduk mixed Kingu's blood with earth and
used the clay to mold the first human beings,
while Tiamat's body created the earth and the
skies. Kingu then went to live in the
underworld kingdom of Ereshkigal, along with
the other deities who had sided with Tiamat

15. • Myths of creation refer to the process through
which the world is centered and given a definite
form within the whole of reality.
• The cosmogonic myth is the myth par excellence.
In this sense, the myth is akin to philosophy, but,
unlike philosophy, it is constituted by a system of
symbols; and because it is the basis for any
subsequent cultural thought, it contains rational
and nonrational forms.

17. • In the Holy Bible we have another story for Creation.
God created all things and human beings from nothing.
• For High Criticisem the first chapter from Genesis are
only a story. Because Jewish people didn’t have an
explanation about creation they invented a story and
include this story in the beginning of Torah.
• In their view the first 3 chapters is very difficult to be
putted in time. For them is another myth in the way of
thinking of Jewish.
• All was created by His word.
• In creation myths stories we find sometimes strange
stories about this but all of this stories have something
supernatural.
• Not the same is with the evolutionist theory of
creation.

18. Evolution
• Even if the Evolution is not a myth, because we
have some empirical proofs, in the framework of
this presentation, it is another option of creation.
• The theory of evolution by natural selection, first
formulated in Darwin's book "On the Origin of
Species" in 1859, is the process by which
organisms change over time as a result of
changes in heritable physical or behavioral traits.
Changes that allow an organism to better adapt
to its environment will help it survive and have
more offspring.

19. • Darwin described a form of natural selection that
depends on an organism's success at attracting a
mate, a process known as sexual selection. The
colorful plumage of peacocks and the antlers of
male deer are both examples of traits that
evolved under this type of selection.
• But Darwin wasn't the first or only scientist to
develop a theory of evolution. The French
biologist Jean-Baptiste Lamarck came up with the
idea that an organism could pass on traits to its
offspring, though he was wrong about some of
the details. And around the same time as Darwin,
British biologist Alfred Russel Wallace
independently came up with the theory of
evolution by natural selection.

20. Modern understanding
• Darwin didn't know anything about genetics
• The incorporation of genetics and Darwin's
theory is known as "modern evolutionary
synthesis."

21. Mutation
• Mutations can be caused by random errors in
DNA replication or repair, or by chemical or
radiation damage. Most times, mutations are
either harmful or neutral, but in rare instances, a
mutation might prove beneficial to the
organism. If so, it will become more prevalent in
the next generation and spread throughout the
population.
• Mutation is not a creation myth because exist
some evidence, but is an option for a scientific
framework.

22. • Natural selection isn't the only mechanism by
which organisms evolve, she said. For
example, genes can be transferred from one
population to another when organisms
migrate or immigrate, a process known as
gene flow. And the frequency of certain genes
can also change at random, which is called
genetic drift.

23. Creation myths
• Stories, Genesis, Evolution theory – in a specific
context can be a story or a reality.
• Like other theories Evolution theory can change
and this transform this theory in something
uncertain.
• For example, in 2017 Bruce Bower propose a new
perspective about origin of humans and Oliver
Burkeman has a a much stricter perspective.
• In this way evolutionist theory can be another
story about creation.

24. • The discussion about creation can be very
wide. We have scientific proofs about
something which is opposed to the biblical
perspective and other things who approve
the biblical perspective.
• Many times science and scientist are very
useful in their works and help many people to
have a strong belief in some ideas.
• And when their thesis contradict some
theories we must be very careful about what
we believe.

25. • Science has her part in the process of
knowledge and we should to take it seriously
when we want to demonstrate something.
• Science is a reliable source of information but
is not the only source. When we search
something we have to think why other people
believed in their myths and what these myths
said.
• How science can help us to have a more clear
perspective about religious problem?

26. • Through a correct approach we can use
science in many domains even in Theology but
we must be very carefully about the
perspective and the methodology of
researching.
• In the end, after we saw some perspectives
about creation is time to think a lot after we
take a decision. Even some perspectives are
more logical and other are more fanciful any
person had to decided in what he/she believe.

27. Bibliography
• James, E. Myth and ritual in the Ancient Near East. New
York: Frederick Praeger, 1958.
• Radu, Hugo. Creation Story of Genesis. Chicago: The Open
Court Publishing Company, 1902.
• Morford, Mark. Clasical Mythology. Oxford: Oxford
University Press, 2003
• Stone, Linda. Evolution and Religious Creation Myths.
Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2007.
• Ken, Thar. What is Darwin’s Theory of Evolution. May 13,
2005 on https://www.livescience.com/474-controversy-
evolution-works.html
• Charles, Long. Creation myth in Encyclopedia Britannica