John Farrell - Were Adam and Eve real?

Belief in a literal six-day creation, including a literal Adam and Eve, is more associated with evangelical Christianity than with Catholicism. Most Catholic schools teach evolutionary theory as the best and most reliable account of the origin of life and see no conflict between this and orthodox Catholic faith. At the same time, some Catholics still promote a creationist view on the origins of humanity.

What does the Catholic Church have to say about this? Are Catholics obliged to believe that Adam and Eve were real people who talked to God, were tempted by a snake, and got cast out of a garden because they ate a forbidden fruit? If so, how does this fit with everything science has to tell us about evolution? And if the church accepts evolution, how does this affect other core Catholic teachings, especially on original sin?  

On this episode of the podcast, science writer John Farrell talks about how the Catholic Church has grappled with the challenges posed by evolution over the years, as well as what science has to say on the question of whether Adam and Eve were real. 

John Farrell is the author of The Day Without Yesterday: Lemaître, Einstein and the Birth of Modern Cosmology (Basic Books, 2005) and The Clock and the Camshaft: And Other Medieval Inventions We Still Can’t Live Without (Prometheus Books, 2020). He has contributed to U.S Catholic and many other publications, including Commonweal, Cosmos Magazine, New Scientist, the Wall Street Journal, the Guardian, the Boston Globe, Salon, Forbes and the Tablet of London. 

You can learn more about this topic, and read some of Farrell’s writing, in these links. 

“Do Catholics believe in evolution?” by John Switzer

“What is original sin?” by Joel Schorn

“Benedict's thinking on creation and evolution,” by John L. Allen Jr.

“Middle ways on evolution,” by John Farrell

“What would an updated natural law ethic look like?” by John Farrell 

“The Bible is far more than history. It is legendary.” by Alice Camille

“Evolution is our fundamental reality,” by Ilia Delio

Original Sin: Origins, Developments, Contemporary Meanings, by Tatha Wiley

Original Selfishness: Original Sin and Evil in the Light of Evolution by Daryl P. Domning and Monika K. Hellwig

Lone Survivors: How We Came to Be the Only Humans on Earth, by Chris Stringer

Glad You Asked is sponsored by the Claretian Missionaries.