Evolution and Creationism in the world today seem to have two completely different and contradicting themes. Conversations on these topics usually start with some uneasy variation of the question, "Do you believe in evolution?" Evolution and Creationism elicit such a wide spectrum of responses in people that the discussants are rarely able to focus on a common concern long enough to achieve understanding, let alone appreciation, of one another's positions. Few people, especially members of the LDS church, are emotionally neutral on the subject. This generates in many a real uneasiness, if not fear. Many members of the church are uncomfortable discussing this topic and tend to avoid it or tune it out. While the concept of a creation is a true doctrine, many members of the LDS church narrowly perceive the concept of creationism to be in contradiction to the scientific theory of evolution. However, it has been established 1) that evolution is a supporting appendage to the belief in a creation and 2) that the theory of evolution is not a stumbling block to faith.
BACKGROUND
Creationists believe in the biblical account of the creation of the world depicted in Genesis. For Latter-Day Saints (LDS) this includes accounts found in additional scripture as well. Creationism is a theory that biological structures such as plants, animals and especially humans show evidence of having been designed by an intelligence. Biological structures as these have such complex components and functions that they could not have been developed through the process of evolution, and therefore must have been created or somehow guided in their development. The theory readily rejects science's reliance on explaining the natural wo ...