Was Charles Darwin a botanist

Answer 1

Although Darwin originally trained in theology and had studied the work of William Paley, he at some point rejected the Christian faith, if in fact, he ever had it. Some have attributed this to bitterness after the early death of his young daughter Annie, although there were undoubtedly other factors. It has even been suggested that Darwin wrote 'The Origin..' as a specific rebuttal of Paley's work. The idea which has circulated that Darwin 'repented on his death bed' apparently has no basis in fact.

So, to put it briefly, Darwin was not a Christian.

Another interesting perspective on this is that some of the scientists of Darwin's day, many of whom at that stage still believed the Bible to be literally true, also taught the unbiblical and unscientific idea of fixity of species. Many also taught that each species was created in-situ, even though animals were known even then, to migrate and move. Darwin may also have reacted quite rightly to this unscientific idea, and interestingly, no creation scientist promotes this today.

The fact that some have felt it necessary to promote the rumour that Darwin 'repented on his death bed' clearly indicates that although Darwin himself may have referred to a form of Christian belief in 'The Origin' it is commonly recognized both from that work itself and much other material that he wrote and his own statements that Darwin was not a Christian. He was clearly thus not just reacting to unscientific ideas promoted by others who claimed to be Christian, but rejecting the Christian faith itself.

This fact Darwin documented quite clearly himself, as well as in statements he made to a number of people on the subject. For example, he wrote In his Autobiography, 'I had gradually come by this time, (i.e. 1836 to 1839) to see that the Old Testament was no more to be trusted than the sacred books of the Hindoos or the beliefs of any barbarian'. Life and Letters of Charles Darwin, D. Appleton and Co., New York, 1911, Vol. 1, p. 277

Further to this Darwin rejected a number of key Christian doctrines including the idea of eternal judgment, which he evidently saw as possibly applying to himself as well as some others he knew. 'I can hardly see how anyone ought to wish Christianity to be true; for if so, the plain language of the text seems to show that the men who do not believe, and this would include my Father, Brother, and almost all my best friends, will be everlastingly punished. And this is a damnable doctrine'.

Gertrude Himmelfarb, Darwin and the Darwinian Revolution,Chatto and Windus, London, 1959, p. 10, 318.

Darwin referred to his earlier religious nature as well as to his changed thinking when he said in his 1876 Autobiography, 'Formerly I was led … to the firm conviction of the existence of God and the immortality of the soul. In my Journal I wrote that whilst standing in the midst of the grandeur of a Brazilian forest, "it is not possible to give an adequate idea of the higher feelings of wonder, admiration, and devotion, which fill and elevate the mind". I well remember my conviction that there is more in man than the mere breath of his body. 5But now the grandest scenes would not cause any such convictions and feelings to rise in my mind'. (emphasis mine)

Life and Letters of Charles Darwin, D. Appleton and Co., New York, 1911, Vol. 1, p. 281

Towards the end of his life in 1880, in reply to a correspondent, Charles wrote, 'I am sorry to have to inform you that I do not believe in the Bible as a divine revelation, & therefore not in Jesus Christ as the Son of God'.

Life and Letters of Charles Darwin, D. Appleton and Co., New York, 1911, Vol. 1, p. 634-5

Any person who would make such a statement is clearly not a Christian in any sense. It must also be understood that this is not a statement which relates particularly to the character of Charles Darwin but to his beliefs.

Answer 2

Yes, he was an English naturalist, his function aboard the Beagle was ships naturalist as well as a companion to the ships captain. The captain did not really socialize with the common crewmen, Darwin and Captain Fitroy kept each other from going mad on the five year journey.

Answer 3

It appears that Darwin's religious beliefs evolved over the course of his lifetime. In Origin of Species, published in 1859, Charles Darwin identified himself as a believer in Christianity. However, by the time he had written his Autobiography, Darwin had become a professed agnostic, possibly even an atheist.
In his autobiography:

• "Whilst on board the Beagle I was quite orthodox, and I remember being heartily laughed at by several of the officers (though themselves orthodox) for quoting The Bible as an unanswerable authority on some point of morality."
  
• "... Another source of conviction in the existance [sic] of God ... follows from the extreme difficulty or rather impossibility of conceiving this immense and wonderful universe, including man with his capability of looking far backwards and far into futurity, as the result of blind chance or necessity. When thus reflecting I feel compelled to look at a first cause having an intelligent mind in some degree analogous to that of man; and I deserve to be called a theist. This conclusion was strong in my mind about the time, as far I can remember, when I wrote the Origin of species; and it is since that time that it has very gradually with many fluctuations become weaker."
  

Evidence of Darwin's diminishing belief in Christianity:

• "Formerly I was led by feelings such as those just referred to, (although I do not think that the religious sentiment was ever strongly developed in me), to the firm conviction of the existence of God, and of the immortality of the soul."
  
• "I gradually came to disbelieve in Christianity as a divine revelation." "But I was very unwilling to give up my belief ... Thus disbelief crept over me at very slow rate, but was at last complete."
  
• "The mystery of the beginning of all things is insoluble to us; and I for one must be content to remain an Agnostic."
  

Darwin also displayed a strong respect for the "Hindoos", "Mahomadans" and "Buddists", showing himself to be a man of moral integrity.

Having read The Origin of Species, I can attest that there is nothing in this book to support the scuttlebutt that has arisen in recent years in an apparent attempt to suggest that he wrote the book out of spite or bitterness. Even Michael J Behe, a creationist critic of Darwin's theory, calls Charles Darwin an intellectual giant (Darwin's Black Box, 1996) and makes no attempt to impugn Darwin's character. It is clear that the book was the culmination of decades of careful research, commencing with the voyage of the Beagle, when its captain took Darwin on board in the hope that the young naturalist would find evidence to refute the growing scientific belief in evolution.

It is clear that Darwin was a Christian until late in life, but gradually lost his faith and became, in his own words, an agnostic. And so he remained. Darwin's daughter Henrietta wrote in the Christian for February 23, 1922, "I was present at his deathbed. . . He never recanted any of his scientific views, either then or earlier. We think the story of his conversion was fabricated in the U.S.A. . . . The whole story has no foundation whatever."

Answer 4

.Darwin is the father of evolution. He was a scientist, more specifically a naturalist. He was also a writer. He popularized the idea of natural selection.

Answer 5

Darwin is the father of evolution. He was a scientist, more specifically a naturalist. He was also a writer.

Answer 6

No, everyone gets this wrong. Charles Darwin was a naturalist.

Answer 7

Darwin was a naturalist.

Answer 8

Charles Darwin was a Naturalist.

Answer 9

yes he did

Answer 10

No