Story: Life sciences

The debate on Darwinism and religion, 1876

The debate on Darwinism and religion, 1876

This letter from zoologist and geologist Frederick Wollaston Hutton supported Darwinism during the 1876 evolutionary debate in Otago. Thinkers such as the Presbyterian theologian William Salmond argued that Darwinian evolution should be rejected as incompatible with Christianity. Hutton maintained that it was possible to accept Darwin's evolutionary theories without rejecting religion. Salmond later declared himself converted to this view after hearing Hutton's lecture on the subject. By the end of the 19th century most New Zealand scientific thinkers had accepted evolutionary theory.

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National Library of New Zealand, Papers Past
Reference: Otago Daily Times, 15 May 1876, p. 3

Permission of the National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page:

Peter Clayworth, 'Life sciences - Beginnings, 1769–1900', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/document/44090/the-debate-on-darwinism-and-religion-1876 (accessed 29 March 2024)

Story by Peter Clayworth, published 22 Oct 2014