We have all heard of the phrase “mother nature.” “Mother nature just has a way of doing things.” “That’s mother nature causing the hurricane and getting back at us for treating the world poorly.” In these phrases, you know what we did? We give mother nature a human quality. A mother, as if it is alive and has consciousness. And often, but not always, it implies care.

We also hear it when we talk about the history of life on this Earth:

• Q: “Why do these bears have thick fur and these don’t?”
• A: “Because nature, over thousands and thousands of years of evolution, guided those in cold weather to have thick fur.”
• Q: “Why do these birds have exceptionally advanced eyes while others don’t?”
• A: “Because otherwise they would be extinct. Their harsh environments, with all its predators, needed them to have such eyes.”

You see a big issue with all these answers? How did mother nature get consciousness? And how is it making decisions? And if it’s not mother nature, surely it’s not the animals or plants making decisions, right? Did they get to decide in the belly of their mothers what new traits to have? Or that in 10,000 years, one of their descendants will get special furs or eyes to increase their chances of survival?

Or was it just by chance that certain species got lucky with the right mutations? Did one or two animals from each species just get lucky and survive? But more questions! Let’s say it’s not just about survival. We’re going to say some animals just got longer necks because it made it easier for them to reach the trees for food? And then who decided that trait would carry on?

We may be able to give some responses to each of these questions, but at the end of the day, don’t all these theories sound like fairy tales? Why work so hard to make these convoluted stories full of logical flaws, rather than consider the simple possibility that a Higher Being is behind it all? Instead of mother nature, maybe, just maybe, it’s God?

When you think about atheism, you may automatically associate it with the theory of evolution and vice versa. Sadly, that is something a lot of us have been taught to think. But is there a direct correlation? Doesn’t seem like it. 

Let’s say the theory is true. Does it mean there can’t be a Higher Being controlling it? Absolutely the Being can. Yes, a lot of theists in the past century or two, for various reasons, have had a reflex reaction when hearing about the theory and said that the theory is completely false. Without truly studying it and seeing if every aspect of the theory contradicts their beliefs, they made blanket statements against it. As a result, we have seen some black and white mindsets. These sadly give religions a bad look, especially to those searching for the truth. But what a religion says and what its followers say, of course, can have discrepancies.

Let’s look at Islam. The only thing the Qur’an and Sunnah are explicitly clear about regarding the Homo sapiens species is that Allah created the first one and that is Prophet Adam (عَلَيْهِ ٱلسَّلَامُ). From him, all human beings descended. Nowhere do they mention other species in an evolutionary or non-evolutionary standpoint. Perhaps every animal is part of the evolution tree and are related. Perhaps they are not. But in Islam, the EXCEPTIONS for sure are human beings.

But are humans really different? Well, there’s plenty of proof suggesting they are. See the following article explaining this very concept – Reason #12: The difference between humans and animals.

Fun fact – Darwin believed in God!