Misapplication of Evolutionary Theory

What are the moral implications of evolutionary theory? None, nada, zilch. There is no real way to predicate any moral reasoning on evolutionary propositions about the origins or development of life. Evolutionary science rightly ignores any supernatural or moral premise and cannot legitimately make moral arguments. All evolutionary science can do is to make propositions about what is or has been, not what ought to be or why the world is as it is.

You are free, of course, in your moral judgment, to adopt the scientific stance as your moral stance and to declare that the universe is devoid of any objective morality and anything supernatural (leaving aside that science is simply agnostic as to these issues). Keep in mind, however, that once you have done this, you cannot then lay claim to the weight of science as authority for your position. You have merely coopted the underlying metaphysical assumptions of science. You cannot prove that your assumptions are correct in the moral sphere any more than anyone else can.

Likewise, you may believe in the supernatural and an absolute morality, but this has no bearing on the validity of evolutionary theory as a scientific theory. Moreover, evolutionary theory should not have any implications for your moral system. It may, however, have implications on the subjective believability for you of your religion and morality if it is predicated on an uncritical acceptance of the literal truth of some ancient creation myth. Your moral system is revealed by your deity in your holy book, and if any part of the holy book is factually or historically suspect or metaphorical, your faith may be shaken. This is a personal problem and not a reflection on the consistency of evolutionary theory and the supernatural premise. You cannot prove that your deity exists or that your holy book is really holy or correct or that your revealed moral system is correct. You take these propositions on faith, and you cannot call upon the authority of science or pseudoscience to validate them.

For my part, I have never viewed the Bible as a biology textbook. The creation myths in Genesis do not have to be factual or historically true to be true mythically. The stories still have meaning, worth and validity even if they relate to events that never really happened. It is mythically and symbolically irrelevant whether a single word of Genesis is historically true. If your faith rests on premises that are falsifiable, you take your chances that they will be falsified, and you either lose your faith, deny the evidence or adapt. My faith is not shaken by evolutionary science, and I find a universe where evolution occurs over eons wondrous and awe inspiring. That any among us is smart enough to grasp it is wondrous to me as well.