An Argument that Goes Back to Ancient Times

Now that we have looked at why the topic of the origin of life and the universe matters today, we will fly back in time (figuratively, of course, because we have yet to invent that lovely time machine) in order to discover where the current ideas for the origin of the universe and life originated.   

Two basic ideas about how the world came into existence have been circulating for centuries (since the time of the ancient Greeks)¹.  These two ideas are materialism and idealism.  

Materialism says that the source of everything that is seen today is matter and/or energy¹.  Simply put, elementary particles form molecules which then form simple life which then goes on to form complex life that we see today.

The other idea, idealism, states that a preexisting mind created matter¹.  Theism is a version of this idea which states that God is the mind that created this matter.

Both of these ideas are very similar to the models that I are presented in today's times.  Materialism is most like the evolution model and Theism is most like the creation model that we have today.  

Although these ideas have been around since the time of the ancient Greeks, science was not presented to support either of these ideas until the 1860’s¹.  This decade is where we will begin our discussion on Monday.

References:

1.       Meyer, S. (2009). The Evolution of a Mystery and Why It Matters. Signature in the cell [Kindle version]. HarperCollins Publishers.