Justin Taylor documents the abiding reciprocal respect that unites Waltke and RTS. Waltke and RTS perceive the Biologos video to be an improperly vetted public relations disaster in need of careful qualification, which Waltke offers. Waltke stands by his argument that “the church should accept creation by the process of evolution.” No backing down there. Lots of interesting tidbits in the correspondence Justin posts for the general public. For further background, go here. For a roundup of comment, go here.


thanks John--very helpful indeed. not sure if you have this link posted somewhere but I thought this too was a fair treatment:
http://theaquilareport.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=1855:ot-professor-bruce-waltke-resigns-from-rts-orlando-faculty-amid-historical-adam-and-eve-controversy&catid=51:ministries&Itemid=134
Posted by: dave b | April 13, 2010 at 06:59 AM
That's a helpful link; I incorporated it into the body of the post. Thanks, Dave.
Posted by: JohnFH | April 13, 2010 at 08:14 AM
With all respect for Waltke - and I have a lot, how can you hold these views together?
How can you believe in evolution and that Adam and Eve are historical figures created in the image of god “not in continuum with animals?"
I received this question from another OT scholar and I do not know how to answer. Can anyone/Waltke explain this?
Posted by: Cristian | April 13, 2010 at 10:23 AM
Very good question, Cristian. I would be happy to have Bruce Waltke guess-post on that very question. Unfortunately, I've corresponded with him in the past via his RTS email address, which I assume is no longer valid.
Here is a quotation from his OT Theology:
"The best harmonious synthesis of the special revelation of the Bible, of the general revelation of human nature that distinguishes between right and wrong and consciously or unconsciously craves God, and of science is the theory of theistic evolution. By "theory," I mean here "a coherent group of general propositions used as principles of explanation for the origins of species, especially adam, not "a proposed explanation whose status is still conjectural." By "theistic evolution" I mean that the God of Israel, to bring glory to himself, (1) created all the things that are out of nothing and sustains them; (2) incredibly, against the laws of probability, finely turned the essential properties of the universe to produce adam, who is capable of reflecting upon their origins; (3) within his providence allowed the process of natural selection and of cataclysmic interventions - such as the meteor that extinguished the dinosaurs, enabling mammals to dominate the earth - to produce awe-inspiring creatures, especially adam; (4) by direct creation made adam a spiritual being, an image of divine beings, for fellowship with himself by faith; (5) allowed adam to freely choose to follow their primitive animal nature and to usurp the rule of God instead of living by faith in God, losing fellowship with their physical and spiritual Creator; (6) and in his mercy chose from fallen adam the Israel of God, whom he regenerated by the Holy Spirit, in connection with their faith in Jesus Chrsit, the Second Adam, for fellowship with himself."
Is that helpful?
Posted by: JohnFH | April 13, 2010 at 11:53 AM
I feel the tension as well, as a Reformed inerrentist who has theistic evolution leanings, there are a few difficulties that remain. The Eden account seems entrenched in ANE trappings (geography, etc.), however evolutionary theory places human origins in Africa. The Eden account seems to communicate sudden and direct creation, however the movement from ape to humanoid was a gradual process. At what point in the process did human consciousness arise? What of other humanoid species?
I am not sure how you preserve the integrity of both histories without plausible reconstructions. Do you know of any out there?
Posted by: Jed Paschall | April 14, 2010 at 01:21 AM
Jed,
I think you would find some help both in reading the chapters "Gift of Cosmos" and "Gift of Adam" in Waltke's OT Theology, also from reading John Walton's The Lost World of Genesis One. If you move from the Puritan Reformed world to the Dutch Reformed world for a few suggestions, you will find a ton of stuff. I would suggest Deborah and Loren Haarsma's book "Origins" for further insights. Both are professors in the hard sciences at Calvin College and discuss the major options for Christians (while coming down on a position of evolutionary creationism (TE)).
Posted by: G. Kyle Essary | April 14, 2010 at 02:53 AM
Thanks for the attempts to explain and the suggested readings. I hope to take a look at these issues soon!
Posted by: Cristian | April 15, 2010 at 08:56 PM
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