TY - JOUR AU - Dawes, Gregory W. PY - 2012/06/12 Y2 - 2024/03/29 TI - Evolution and the Bible: The Hermeneutical Question JF - Relegere: Studies in Religion and Reception JA - Relegere VL - 2 IS - 1 SE - Articles DO - 10.11157/rsrr2-1-439 UR - https://relegere.org/relegere/article/view/439 SP - 37-63 AB - Theistic evolutionists suggest that evolutionary theory is not necessarily in conflict with biblical teaching. But in fact conflict is avoided only by reinterpreting Genesis 1&ndash;3. Is such a reinterpretation justified? There exists a hermeneutical tradition that dates back to St Augustine which offers guidelines regarding apparent conflicts between biblical teaching and natural philosophy (or &lsquo;science&rsquo;). These state that the literal meaning of the text may be abandoned only if the natural-philosophical conclusions are established beyond doubt. But no large-scale scientific theory, such as Darwin&rsquo;s, can claim this degree of certainty. It follows that to justify their reinterpretation of Genesis 1&ndash;3, Christians must <em>either</em> argue that the literal sense of the biblical text can be maintained <em>or</em>&nbsp;accept that this view of biblical authority is untenable. Three alternative views are discussed: a first that limits the scope of biblical authority, a second that distinguishes between the Bible and the Word of God, and a third that abandons the idea that religious faith offers certain knowledge. While the third view seems the most defensible, it comes at a cost: the recognition that, as John Locke put it, &ldquo;reason must be our last judge and guide in everything.&rdquo; ER -