If one thinks that people who lived in the middle of 18th century were conservative and that our society has grown much more liberal, one is certainly wrong.

Celebrations for British naturalist Charles Darwin’s 200th birthday triggered mixed reactions both from the scientific and theistic communities worldwide. It is quite a surprise to see that, even now, people are still arguing whether Darwin’s natural selection theory is true, or whether God exists.

Many people know that, when Darwin published his book On the Origin of Species, the British society acutely criticized him for his fairly “extravagant” view over how mankind appeared on the planet. Still, even now, there is controversy between different organizations.

For instance, the Freedom From Religion Foundation raised funds in order to put billboards and ads on buses that praise Darwin’s achievements. Annie Laurie Gaylor, co-president at the foundation, pointed out that the British naturalist’s main accomplishment is that he was the first to answer to the question of humankind’s origin in a scientific and pragmatic way.

Still, not everyone agrees about Darwin’s evolution theory as being true. There are many people who still believe in the creationist theory. According to them, God created the world a few thousands year ago, in the same manner as it is illustrated in the Bible.

Supporters of the intelligent design theory have a less radical view, as they agree with every law of nature that science has discovered in time. Still, they believe that the laws of physics and the evolution-based origin of humankind is part of God’s work.

However, it is worth noting that most of the current theories accept Darwin’s natural selection theory. Even though not everyone sees natural selection as an undirected process, it is a fact that Darwin’s explanation was a huge gain for science.