IS MAN A PRODUCT OF THE COSMOS?

                                         

In the text THE HUMAN CONDITION, recently posted on this blog, when reflecting on man, I emphasized his aspect of being "created" and therefore subject to the will of his Creator. However, it is the opinion of many that the human being does not come from a creation, but from an evolution of matter, in time. If so, man as a being originated from inert matter, which by means of spontaneous and random chemical reactions originated an initial cell from which all living beings derive, should not satisfy anyone, and as a changing being, is free to build its own existence.

Such positioning is supported by the theory about the origin of the universe, the "Big Bang." According to this research, 13.9 billion years ago, all existing matter was concentrated in a microscopic initial particle, which exploded at one point and spread it into space, forming the world we see today. After the explosion, a process of expansion and cooling of the universe began. Around four billion years ago, physical interactions and the chemical reactions of the transformation of matter that had been taking place unleashed the mechanisms of life on Earth.

With respect to living beings, there exists, in alignment with the Big Bang, the theory of Modern Evolutionary Synthesis. According to this study, the fact that all organisms have morphological, biochemical and genetic similarities suggests that all known species descend from a common ancestor. The current species would be a stage in this process of evolution, in which the human race is found. Man, then, would not look like primates, but rather a kind of evolving primate.

If these theories are correct, man is more a product of these cosmic transformations. However, without passions and in search of truth, the facts need to be analyzed as such. The "Big Bang", although it presents an interesting proposal about the origin of the universe, explains in a satisfactory way only the current behavior of the cosmos: its expansion. Numerous scientists recognize that this theory provides no explanation for the initial conditions of the universe. There is still not enough science to explain the uniqueness of the initial microparticle, as well as what existed before it, what its origin, much less what caused its explosion.

With regard to the possibility of the origin of life from inert matter, from an initial cell resulting from spontaneous and random chemical reactions (abiogenesis), the scientific community has not yet found the evidence. There is only the hypothesis. Someone has already said that this would require a miracle as great as the one signing the biblical text. It is relevant to note that Science has never observed abiogenesis happening in nature, and has not yet been able to create a way of life through controlled experiments.

Regarding the fact that living beings have morphological, biochemical and genetic similarities, this does not imply that they come from a common ancestor. This would involve the evolution from one species to another, a purely theoretical process and never directly observed. It would be, for example, something like a monkey evolve into a human being. This hypothesis is studied only through the analysis of fossils and research on similarities and morphological differences of organisms, which are incipient, fragile, and with little specific conclusions.

It must be acknowledged that research into the origin of the universe and man has produced a store of respectable knowledge. However, these questions remain unanswered. To assert that the universe originates from an initial explosion without proving the circumstances that involved it, as well as declaring the emergence of man from an evolutionary process without evidence would be a purely religious act, an act of pure faith and not a declaration scientific basis. Science works with experimental proof. Thus, it is reasonable to assert that such propositions constitute only theories and that the biblical thesis on the origin of the universe and man remains uncontested.

Antônio Maia – M.Div.

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