The Future of Acceptance of Evolution in the Muslim World

Biological evolution is still a relatively new concept for the majority of Muslims and a serious debate over its religious compatibility has not yet taken place. At the same time, a complex interaction between evolution, culture and religion is already underway. For example, biomedical and biotechnology departments are sprouting at universities all across the Islamic world. Evolution is also included the high school curricula of many Muslim countries, though human evolution is often excluded. However, low education standards, in combination with widespread misinformation about evolutionary ideas, are also allowing creationist movements to gain a foothold in some Muslim countries. This reaction to evolutionary biology often varies according to the political and cultural landscape of individual countries, and for effective educational measures, it is vital to map-out and understand these variations. For this purpose, we have been conducting an interview-survey of Muslim physicians and medical students and in a few Muslim countries as well as in Muslim Diasporas in the West, including the US. Our preliminary results indicate a broad range of responses to biological evolution (both in acceptance and rejection), and highlight a complex set of ways by which these educated Muslims are negotiating the interaction between modern science and religion.