Evolution as History: Phylogenetics of Genomes and Manuscripts

Abstract

The lines of biological evolution are documented in the genomic “texts” of species. Phylogenies of texts, both genetic and literary, can be studied by the same methodologies. In each case, scholars use the presence of variants to elucidate the history of their chosen text—whether it be genetic (the four chemical letters inscribed in DNA) or alphabetic (the letters of biblical languages such as Hebrew and Greek). Several conclusions arise. First, genetic and textual variants constitute the data from which phylogenetic trees of organisms and manuscripts (respectively) may be constructed. Second, such analyses assume the existence of (now extinct) ancestral genomes and ancestral texts, providing evidence that such urtexts existed and enable their reconstruction. Third, biological evolution belongs to the category of history, and like all histories, can be understood as development within the created order. Fourth, biological evolution raises questions about divine providence that are similar to questions that arise from any other history. Fifth, theologians need to develop a theology of evolutionary history in the same way as they seek to understand God’s action in biblical history (allowing that only the latter involves personal creatures).