Charles Darwin was born on February 12th 1809 – 206 years ago today.
The ideas that Charles Darwin put into print have enabled us to break out of the claustrophobic shackles of theocratic tyranny. No longer will any person be able to say with impunity that we ‘have’ to believe in God. Charles Darwin gave us the gift of a choice.
I am able to say I am an ape and proud to be one because of the evidence he put forth.
What Charles did was to show us that we have descended from organisms that went before; that humans descended from an ape-like creature who lived millions of years ago; that all life descended from the same organism billions of years ago; that evolution works by the process of natural selection over millions of years and requires no divine hand.
Once that idea is loose there can never be an excuse for burning a person to death because they do not believe the same religious text as yourself. Darwin gave us our free-will back and liberated us from the evil of indoctrination.
We have the right to question and find fault in the myths told by religion.
That genie will never go back in the bottle.
Charles Darwin changed the world and men’s minds. It is a slow process but has an inevitability about it. It will inexorably continue apace until we grow out of the darkness and into the light of truth.
I ask you to celebrate the resolute determination of a man who stood up to ridicule and threat from the powerful to tell the truth,
Happy Birthday Charles – You are a true hero of mankind!
Thx for this, Opher. We should also celebrate Thomas Huxley, aka ‘Darwin’s bulldog’. Huxley was very instrumental in promoting and defending Darwin’s ideas. Roy Harper’s song ‘These Fifty Years’ is based on an imaginary conversation between, Roy, Huxley and God.
Too right!! Without Huxley we might not have got Darwin’s work at all! But we’ll have to wait until May 4th for that celebration!
Nice to hear from you Ian!