Majority of Canadians see God in creation process, evolution not so much
Pastor Dale Morgan
Tuesday, July 3, 2007
*
Majority of Canadians see God in creation process, evolution not so much*
OTTAWA (CP) - Canadians may not be as religious as Americans, but a new
poll suggests they are not prepared to rule out God's essential role in
creation.
The Canadian Press-Decima Research survey suggests that 60 per cent of
Canadians believe God had either a direct or indirect role in creating
mankind, shattering the myth that Canadians had long ago put their faith
strictly behind the scientific explanation for creation.
The poll suggests Canadians divide in essentially three groups on the
issue of creation: 34 per cent of those polled said humans developed
over millions of years under a process guided by God; 26 per cent said
God created humans alone within the last 10,000 years or so; and 29 per
cent said they believe evolution occurred with no help from God.
"These results reflect an essential Canadian tendency," said pollster
Bruce Anderson. "We are pretty secular, but pretty hesitant to embrace
atheism."
The belief that God had a direct or indirect role in creation was
widespread among the 1,000 respondents questioned between June 21 and
24. A majority of those polled held this view in every region of the
country, in rural and urban areas, and regardless of education.
And there were a few surprises: Conservatives were more likely than
Liberals to say that God had no part in the process, and Alberta,
regarded as the birthplace of social conservatism, had one of the lowest
levels of beliefs for strict creationism at 22 per cent.
But in this controversial area, the devil is in the breakdown of the
numbers.
For instance, while Liberal party voters were more likely than
Conservatives to credit God with some contribution to creation,
Conservative voters were less likely to write God out altogether. Only
22 per cent of Tory respondents said God had no role, as opposed to 31
per cent of Liberals.
Liberal respondents were far more likely to be what could be termed
"soft evolutionists" or "soft creationists," with 41 per cent saying God
guided the process of human development, as opposed to 34 per cent of
Conservatives seeing creation in those terms.
Regionally, Quebec respondents were by far the most likely to say God's
role in creation was a delusion, with 40 per cent saying the
evolutionary process had no interference from an intelligent designer.
British Columbia respondents were the next sub-group who could be termed
strict evolutionists, with 31 per cent saying God was not involved.
Least likely to hold this view were respondents in the Prairie provinces
- 21 per cent.
The findings suggest the least educated were most likely to be
creationists, as were respondents living in rural Canada.
Among respondents without a high-school diploma, 37 per cent said they
believed God alone created humans less than 10,000 years ago, whereas
only 15 per cent of university-educated respondents were strict
creationists.
Rural respondents also had a plurality who believed in strict
creationism at 34 per cent, whereas only 22 per cent of urban dwellers
said they believed God alone created humans.
Anderson said the findings suggest Canadians lack consensus on creation,
but also don't view the issue as polarizing.
"It's more as though for many, these feelings are unresolved," he said.
"We believe in a higher being, we know what we don't know, are
comfortable not knowing, and choose not to press our views upon one
another."
That is not the case in the United States, where similar polls have
suggested Americans are more polarized on the subject. In a recent U.S.
poll, 45 per cent said God created humans, and 40 per cent said
evolution was God guided. Only 15 per cent said God played no part in
creation.
The Canadian Press-Decima Research survey is considered accurate within
3.1 percentage points, 19 times in 20.
© The Canadian Press, 2007