Have you heard the story of Charles Darwin’s deathbed conversion?
In his final months, he was visited at home by a Lady Hope, who later described the encounter. One summer afternoon at his home, restricted to his bedroom by ill health, he declared his faith in Jesus and confessed of his theory: ‘I was a young man with unformed ideas. I threw out queries, suggestions … People made a religion of them’. Therefore, preachers will tell us, we should share Darwin’s mature opinion of his unformed ideas, reject evolution and embrace Christ.
Urban legend
It’s a great story, if only it were true. It has become one of many Christian ‘urban legends’ that do the rounds in popular sermons and books. It has been retold so many times that it has passed into Christian folklore. It reminds me of the often told explanation of the ‘eye of the needle’. We are assured that Jesus never intended this to refer to a literal needle, but rather to a smaller entrance in a larger city gate allowing the passage of unburdened camels late at night. These stories are not true, but are so appealing and told so often that they almost sound like Scripture!
