The Descent of the Diocese

Charles Darwin, in his work 'The Origin of the Species' (unabridged version of 'The Origin of the Species' and 'The Descent of Man' published by Random House, page 148) said "If it could be proved that any part of the structure of any one species had been formed for the exclusive good of another species , it would annihilate my theory, for such could not have been produced through natural selection."

This is a perfectly reasonable analysis because the theory presented by Darwin requires a process of death and struggle with the fittest species surviving at the expense of the weakest.

The question to be asked is "Has a case been made to demonstrate the occurrence of a structure formed for the exclusive good of another species?"

In this posting I would like to show that a structure has been located. More than that - a complete species has been observed replete with structures all working for the exclusive good of other species.

The existence of this ..... how shall I call it? .... altruistic species, by Darwin's own test, falsifies and renders invalid his theory on the origin of life.

Some 2000 years ago there appeared, in what we today call the Middle East, a man, "if it be lawful to call him a man" who did such wondrous things as to reveal he represented, in the order of life, the emergence of a species so contrary to experience that a total reappraisal of life and its purpose is demanded. Of course, I speak of Jesus of Nazareth.

He was not of man as we know man for he had capacities no man has been known to have and yet he was fully man.

Consider his activity of instantaneously turning water into wine. Most reasoned arguments hold that the resultant wine was alcoholic. In an instant and seemingly by will alone Jesus of Nazareth did what natural processes aided by the intellect and physical efforts of man takes months or years to do. That the end product was of high quality to impress recipients suggests a lengthy period of time and process were collapsed into a momentary event. Surely, Jesus of Nazareth possessed the authority of one who, from the beginning, was able to determine or alter the physiological order of things in an instant. On display here is the capacity of one who could instantly make, from the dust of the earth, all manner of living things. This is the adding of information to 'raw' substance required for prevailing theories on the formation of life.

The incidents of feeding a multitude from a seemingly impossible supply of bread and fish speak of one able to produce material substance when, according to the laws of nature, there was insurmountable limit.

The calming of the wind and the waves coinciding with the utterance of a few words is an otherwise unheard of event. The utterance of the words must have been for the benefit of the hearers because the oral language of a Middle Eastern people surely have no meaning or bearing on natural elements. The timely utterance of the words helped the people know it was Jesus of Nazareth who was ordering this event. On display here was a will or thought capacity able to order and maintain natural elements otherwise out of the control of man but within the capacity of a Creator.

The healing of a paralytic at the pool of Bethesda is an intriguing event. The man had been paralyzed for 38 years yet just as Jesus of Nazareth tells him to get up, pick up his mat and walk, the man is able to do so. All observation of the natural order tells us that, aside from impediment causing paralysis, this man would not, up to this moment, have the leg muscles to enable him to stand and walk. Unused muscles waste away. Also lost, would have been functioning balance to stand upright and walk. Muscle is material substance whereas balance is non material information operating within material substance. Ordinarily, each is intrinsic to human life but only function with repeated application by the host. Jesus of Nazareth here instantaneously provides functioning material substance where there had previously been limitation but, more than that, he also provides functioning non material information where there previously had been none. Surely this is a demonstration of one who could instantly create living things fully functioning with material substance and non material information. On display here is the one who created fully functioning Adam and other land dwelling creatures on day 6 of creation week.

Consider Lazarus dead 4 days and instantaneously raised to life by Jesus of Nazareth. Immediately upon death, the corpse of Lazarus would have commenced decomposition and would have been in an advanced stage by the time Jesus of Nazareth arrived at the tomb. By the will of Jesus of Nazareth, the lump of decaying non life instantaneously became life with fully functioning material substance and non material information. The process of "ashes to ashes and dust to dust" had been ruptured, even reversed, for a time. This is again reminiscent of, as the Holy Bible instructs, the Creator creating life from "the dust of the earth" albeit, on this occasion, a somewhat advanced composition of the natural elements of the earth.

All these things he did for the good of others. There was nothing to compel him to do these things except the compulsion to be true to his very being. And his being? As I hope to show, it is nothing less than the highest order of altruism.

Finally, Jesus of Nazareth, in his resurrection from the dead did more than he did with Lazarus. He arose with a 'new' body. It had some features identifying with the old (eg marks of crucifixion) but it was an eternal body over which the process of "ashes to ashes and dust to dust" had no hold. There is much more the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth signifies but for brevity and direction it will suffice to say his resurrection body set him over and above the order of this life by transcending laws of nature, as exampled by the manner of his appearances in enclosed spaces after resurrection.

In his deeds, Jesus of Nazareth demonstrated capacities appropriate to the Creator of the universe and all thing in it. Yet he was born into the world as a man with a genealogy dating to the first man, Adam - our ancestor. His conception in the womb differed to us in that it involved Divine activity upon a woman but in all his physicality and emotions he was as much a man as the rest of us. Yet with all this similarity he bore no sin of his own. He was of a type the world had not known.

We can identify with his weeping at the scene of mourning for Lazarus (John 11:35), his anger in the temple court (John 2:15), his disappointment over Jerusalem's failings (Luke 13:34), his tiredness in the boat (Mark 4:38), his temptations and hungering (Matt. 4:1-2), his thirst (John 19:28) and his love for those close to him (John 13:23). These are the ways of man as we observe life but in all this he did not sin.

We can also observe the humanity of Jesus of Nazareth in his complete subjection to the law even though, in his Divine self, he was the full embodiment of the law; his subjection to baptism even though he had nothing to repent of and his sufferings and bearing of sins which were not his own in crucifixion. These are things which bear much contemplation for even the Angels look into these things with wonder. Yet, if nothing else, they are testimony to the humanity of Jesus of Nazareth.

What of the things he said of how a man was to live, a way he lived himself as man. He did not say blessed are the strong, aggressive, cunning, manipulative or adaptive. He said blessed are the poor in spirit, those who mourn, the meek, those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, the merciful, the peacemakers and those who are persecuted because of righteousness. He said and lived "do not resist an evil person", "give to the one who asks you", "love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you".

In the the things he said and lived, Jesus of Nazareth exemplified the mutual grace relationship existing within the Godhead before the creation of the world and maintained during Incarnation except when temporarily fractured on Golgotha.

Mutual grace relationship is 'other person centred.' It is displayed in the Godhead where the Son agreed before the creation of the world to give up his glory and position with the Father to come into the world as a "Lamb" to suffer indignity and separation from the Father and Holy Spirit so that God's love could be bestowed on the world. It is displayed in the Father giving to the Son "all authority in heaven and on earth." It is displayed in Holy Spirit coming at the behest of Father and Son to dwell in us and transform us to the glory of Jesus Christ. It is displayed in the Son giving all the glory of his triumph to Father that God may be all in all. All this other person centredness employed for our benefit that we, the unworthy, might enjoy God and his blessings forever.

Israel, upon agreeing to be the People of God were given the Ten Commandments to aid living as the People of God. Implicit in the Ten Commandments is 'other person centredness.'

Other person centredness (or mutual grace relationship) is diametrically opposed to Darwin's theory on the origin of species through natural selection. Natural selection occurs but it is a consequence of the Fall, not the means of original creation. It is a product of the Curse on all creation after sin. It has no root in God but in the fracturing of other person centredness by participants in the Garden.

Charles Darwin observed natural selection but he had no knowledge of the origin of it. If he had a thorough understanding of the things of God, Charles Darwin would have recognised, in Jesus of Nazareth, all the qualities and characteristics of God. That which Charles Darwin said would destroy his theory was available for him to see in the words and deeds of God in the Old and New Testament and most demonstrably exemplified in Jesus of Nazareth who is rightly called the Christ.

The highest order of altruism is found in the person of Jesus Christ. Had Charles Darwin seen this the world might have been saved from a soul destroying and most costly philosophy on the origin of life. Also, Satan would have been denied a tool for the weakening of Christian faith.

The Church must divest itself of anything of Charles Darwin's theory. It is so far removed from the Person of Jesus Christ as to be a heresy. It is a heresy widely held in the Anglican Diocese of Sydney and is to the ruin of the Diocese.

Neil Moore