Darwins Destruction of Faith

S. Maschmann

History 1124

28 November 2012

The Social Impact of Scientific Breakthroughs during the Nineteenth Century:

The Negative Social Impact of Darwinism

The Nineteenth Century was an era of scientific discovery that changed how many individuals viewed the world around them, also changing their beliefs and social systems. Darwin, who wrote Origin of Species, put forth the theory of evolution from a scientific point of view. This has raised questions in the Christian faith whether the Bible was accurate, and did God even exist. Darwin never intended to make a spiritual or social statement; he was only reporting on what he observed scientifically. Darwin’s theory of evolution did make a social impact against his desires. Darwin’s theory of evolution was a negative scientific discovery because it was applied to human social behavior; taking away the religious faith of many, making it acceptable to exploit the poor working classes without guilt, argued against altruism in society and made war a healthy part of social evolution.

Darwin’s theory of evolution was a contradiction to what was written in the Bible which was believed literally by most of its Christian followers. In 1850 Romanticism gave way to a more materialistic world view. Materialism was a philosophical idea that the world, and the universe, is composed entirely of matter. The Materialism theory was that there is no such thing as spirit, mind, or God as they cannot exist in a material world. This view was a direct result of scientific discoveries such as the birth of Geology. Most members of Victorian society began to believe that the planet might be older than 6000 years old. Charles Lyell published many articles and books, one in particular, The Principles of Geology, after studying particles and layers of the earth. Lyell postulated that the earth is over seven million years old. This discovery directly contradicts the Bible and religious thought. In 1856 the discovery of...