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Who is This Conference For?

This conference is by and for Latter-day Saints. Others are welcome, but topics specific to the Latter-day Saints will be addressed.

Lecturers at this conference are all active members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

While this conference is not an official function of the Church, the speakers will draw upon teachings of the church to convey a message about the divine origin of man in the context of science.

Material presented by the speakers will refer to many highly acclaimed scientific findings, and many teachings of the prophets.

The speakers have backgrounds in teaching science, writing books on science, making scientific discoveries, and are long time members of the church who have specialized in developing an understanding of centuries of church teachings on the subject.

Speakers at this conference aren’t General Authorities of the Church, nor are they credentialed scientists and professors, but in America we believe in freedom of speech, and that people are able to make choices based on the information available to them without the wholesale need of reliance on experts.

This conference hopes to make the conversation about science and religion more balanced by providing alternative views to the origin of man which are not based in evolution theory.

The science-religion controversy has been on the minds of many of the latter-day saints lately. In 2023 Deseret Book published a pro-evolution book by several BYU professors titled “Let’s Talk about Science and Religion.”

Does this publication give a balanced view of church teachings and scientific findings? We will present many teachings and findings which negate the premise of evolutionary origins of man, and challenge various claims made in the Let’s Talk book.

While many believe mankind originated from shared ancestors with animals, we reject this premise, and provide doctrinal and scientific evidence to support man as a divine direct specialized creation of God. To put it simply, we are the same species as God.

At this conference you’ll learn about teachings from church history all the way back to Joseph Smith and recent leaders who have taught about the origin of man, including specific prophetic warnings against evolution theory.

At this conference you’ll learn about scientific discoveries which point to the divine origin of man and which discredit popular notions of evolution theory.

If you’ve ever questioned evolution’s monopoly on science, come and get some refreshing perspectives with us at this conference which can help us navigate these troubled times!

Some essays which have recently appeared on church web pages which take an open approach to evolution include:

Surely multiple opinions among church members are allowed. While the above pages represent some of these views, they do not carry the same doctrinal weight as scripture or First Presidency statements.

Several signed First Presidency statements have been given to the saints::

The preface on this page describes the importance of this statement: “In the early 1900s, questions concerning the Creation of the earth and the theories of evolution became the subject of much public discussion. In the midst of these controversies, the First Presidency issued the following in 1909, which expresses the Church’s doctrinal position on these matters.”

When Elder Boyd K. Packer heard the claim that the church has no position on evolution, he responded:

“Twice the First Presidency has declared the position of the Church on organic evolution. The first, a statement published in 1909 entitled The Origin of Man was signed by Presidents Joseph F. Smith, John R. Winder, and Anthon H. Lund. The other, entitled Mormon View of Evolution, signed by Presidents Heber J. Grant, Anthony W. Ivins, and Charles W. Nibley, was published in 1925. It follows very closely the first statement, indeed quotes directly from it.” (Boyd K. Packer, The Law and the Light, Book of Mormon Symposium, BYU, 30 October 1988)

Note that a certain 1910 statement exists which calls for openness to the possibility of human evolution, but this statement merely appeared in a church publication, and the author of it is unknown. This statement has been erroneously hailed by some as a First Presidency statement, when no evidence exists to support this claim.

Note that a certain 1931 statement exists about simply leaving questions of science to the scientists, but this statement has never been published by the church to the saints.

We can say with confidence that the most authoritative statements from leaders of the restored church have been against evolution theory, even though taking this view is not essential for church membership.

Scriptures and prophets of the restoration from Joseph Smith to the present have consistently taught messages about the creation which do not align with modern science claims.

Some themes in these teachings include:

  • No birth death before the fall of Adam & death entering the world as a consequence of sin.(Nephi 2:22; Romans 5:12-14; 8:21-22; 1 Cor. 15:21-22, 45)
  • Adam is the physical, not just spiritual, offspring of God. (Luke 3:38)
  • Adam as a real person, & Eden as a real place on this Earth.
  • The Fall of Adam impacting the whole world, including plants and animals. (Gen. 3:17-20)
  • God’s direct involvement in the creation.
  • Earth has a temporal lifespan of 7000 years (not billions). (D&C 77:6-7, 12)
  • A creation of a shorter duration than is commonly advocated. Each day of creation probably as 1000-year periods because a day to God is 1000 years to man. (JST 2 Peter 3:8; Facs. 2 Fig. 1; Abr. 3:6-11)
  • Adam was the first man and the first flesh on Earth. (D&C 84:16)
  • Temporal and spiritual things should not be separated. (D&C 29:34)
  • Nature proves the existence of God. (Ps. 19:1)
  • Animals only reproduce after their kind. (Gen. 1; 6; 7; Moses 2)
  • The flood of Noah was worldwide. (JST 2 Peter 3:5-7; Gen. 1:1-10; Abe. 1:24; Moses 8:3; Ether 2:1-3; 6:4)
  • Adam and the patriarchs lived long lifespans, hundreds of years.
  • The First Presidency statements of 1909 and 1925 declare man to be the “direct and lineal offspring of Deity” and that “It is held by some that Adam was not the first man upon this earth, and that the original human being was a development from lower orders of the animal creation. These, however, are the theories of men.” (https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/2002/02/the-origin-of-man?lang=eng)

It is no wonder that President Benson taught, “the Book of Mormon exposes the enemies of Christ [and] confounds false doctrines.” (Teachings of Presidents of the Church: Ezra Taft Benson [2014], 132).

If you’d like to explore the 100s of teachings of Latter-day prophets expounding on science-related doctrines and surrounding controversies, visit these quote collections compiled by the Joseph Smith Foundation: https://josephsmithfoundation.org/faqs/category/science/.

These points will be explored further at the conference!

It’s true that we want the rising generation to be taught about everything that’s going on in the world. The role of a university is to expose students to various ideas.

BYU is teaching students that all animal and human life came from a single common ancestor, and is pressuring students not just to understand, but to accept evolution theory. BYU is involved in teaching other Christian schools how to promote evolution to Christians.

We believe that advocacy of evolution acceptance is not in keeping with the vision of BYU or the restored gospel.

Many Christian colleges today have wisely chosen to expose students to evolution, but to also point out the flaws in the theory and the doctrinal/philosophical issues that arise. We suggest a similar approach be taken at BYU.

Perhaps our schools could promote alternative views about the creation via bringing in credentialled guest lecturers who specialize in this subject, or even teaching courses about problems with evolution theory.

We suggest that a more coherent and complete understanding of the doctrine of man as a child of God can be found in the scriptures and teachings of the prophets.

Evolution theory’s claim that all animal and human life evolved from a single common ancestor gives a very different view of the divinity of man than what we hear from in consistent teachings of the Lord’s servants.

The First Presidency statements of 1909 and 1925 declare man to be the “direct and lineal offspring of Deity” and that “It is held by some that Adam was not the first man upon this earth, and that the original human being was a development from lower orders of the animal creation. These, however, are the theories of men.” (https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/2002/02/the-origin-of-man?lang=eng)

There are many possibilities for how God carried out the creation. However, teachings of the restoration, and many voices in the science community have given us a more clear message on how the creation works.

We suggest a plain interpretation of scripture, that God created various life forms, and that God created man in His own image. As the 1909 and 1925 First Presidency statements say, man is the “direct” “lineal” “offspring” of God.

With God as creator, the mechanisms of evolution become redundant, and perhaps even cruel and wasteful. There are more inspired studies and doctrines on man’s origin!

Sometimes popular theories are wrong, and trying to combine them with gospel teachings to help others can result in only short-term solutions.

  • Many questions can be raised about the plausibility of God using evolution. For example:
  • Does God need that long to create? Jesus did many instantaneous miracles.
  • Isn’t evolution cruel? Did man’s creation come from millions of years of death?
  • Wasn’t evolution made by atheists to avoid God?
  • Doesn’t evolution violate known laws of science like entropy and genetic limits?
  • Why do we need evolution to explain man’s origin if we know he was the “direct lineal offspring of God” (1909 First Presidency) and that Adam was a son of God (Luke 3:38)?
  • How would man be a child of God if Adam’s dad was a hominid?
  • Doesn’t evolution’s old earth deny catastrophic / rapid / miraculous events like the flood of Noah?
  • Evolution requires many scriptures to not be taken literally, including the order of creation described in multiple locations. Would God confuse us?
  • Haven’t prophets of the restoration taught against evolution for 200 years?

When we try to mesh worldly theories with divine revelations from God, we often get a confusing mess. The truth is much simpler when we place God at the center, and take his word seriously.

Many scientists and serious thinkers reject the premise of Darwinian evolution, that mankind’s origins can be explained by the evolution of a single common ancestor through millions of years of natural changes.

One example is https://dissentfromdarwin.org/, where many scientists have come together saying, “We are skeptical of claims for the ability of random mutation and natural selection to account for the complexity of life. Careful examination of the evidence for Darwinian theory should be encouraged.”

We believe there are perfectly good explanations for scientific findings which support man’s divine creation, and which negate claims of evolution theory.

Some evolutionary science topics we will address include:

  • Similar (homologous) bone structures.
  • Similar human and animal embryos (embryology).
  • Human-like ancestor (hominid) claims.
  • Small changes (microevolution) vs species change (macroevolution)
  • Evidence for the flood of Noah.
  • DNA & Genetics.
  • Radiometric dating & the age of the Earth.
  • Transitional fossils & dinosaurs.
  • Dangerous social implications of evolution theory.
  • And more!

When we accept claims of evolution unquestioningly, our science becomes dogma. As one credentialled science professor said, “Darwin’s theory needs to be questioned, challenged, and examined in order to maintain its scientific integrity and to protect it from becoming dogma.” (Dr. Rebecca Keller, Biophysical Chemistry, https://dissentfromdarwin.org/)

A collection of science-related quotations from leaders of the church over the past 200 years has been collected by the Joseph Smith Foundation. Consider these 40 FAQ articles which feature hundreds of quotations from the prophets:

Church members have authored the following publications providing tremendous resources on science and religion:

Man: His Origin & Destiny by President Joseph Fielding Smith. Features many teachings against Darwinian evolution.

Dinosaurs in Scripture by Jeremy Michel.

This Eternal Earth: A Scriptural and Prophetic Biography by Rodney Turner

Who Needs Evolution When You’ve Got the Restoration? An Inspired Approach to Science & Religion by R. Nathan Richardson. Features doctrinal & scientific rebuttals to the 2023 “Let’s Talk About Science and Religion” pro-evolution book published by Deseret Book.

Evolution Challengers: Highlights & Commentary on Great Creation Science Teachers by R. Nathan Richardson.

Universal Model: A New Millennial Science by Dean Sessions. A textbook series featuring thousands of academic citations, hundreds of experiments and discoveries, and many other scientific evidences against evolution the old Earth, and related topics.

Water: Another Testament of Christ by Russ Barlow

Science & Religion: Resolving the Conflict by David Barker.

Doctrinal Foundations of the Creation of Life by Lee H. Pearson, who has a PhD in physics.

A Worldwide Flood: A Brief Review of the Evidence and Support for a Global Deluge in the Days of Noah by Darren Andrews