This weekend marks the 203^rd birthday of the man who will continue to transcend throughout the years—Charles Darwin.  Much like any young explorer, Darwin had a passion for learning and discovering the things that only existed in dreams.  As his revolutionary concepts continue to propel waves of new students and fellow explorers, the man, the myth the legend that is Charles Darwin lives on.

With that in mind, here are just a few tidbits on the gentleman:

Shared a Birthdate with Fellow Abolitionist, Abraham Lincoln

February 12, 1809 was a big day.  Within hours of each other and an ocean in between, two men were born that would go on to change the world in which they were introduced.  While Lincoln will forever be immortalized with his simpler log cabin upbringing, Darwin was born into a well-to-do family of artists and doctors who were nothing short of passionate against the issue of slavery that had been reverberating through their respective countries. 

For Darwin, who would go on spending his life closely inspecting practically everything, the idea that humans be fractured into higher and lesser beings was unfounded at best.  Out of his hatred of slavery, Darwin came to believe that all humans (regardless of race) were not made to be bound. 

The Phrase, “Survival of the Fittest”…Not Really His.

Nope, in fact the credit for this phrase should rightfully go to Herbert Spencer, a contemporary of Darwin’s.  While Darwin would go on to use the saying as a way to describe his idea of natural selection, Spencer initially intended the phrase to be used in reference or “guide for governmental policy.”

Spencer, whose views could now be seen as a modern day libertarian, believed that government was capable of interceding in more negative ways than positive. It was not until after reading Darwin’s opus, On the Origin of Species, that Spencer was able to get the words he needed to describe what he saw occurring in the world around him.

The Name Heard ‘Round the World

While aboard the HMS Beagle with the volatile Robert FitzRoy, Darwin was bestowed with perhaps one of the best birthday gifts a young man could ever hope to receive.  He was just twenty-five when the highest peak in Tierra del Fuego, in the southernmost part of the Andes Mountains Range of South America, was dubbed Mount Darwin. 

And for those of you who are afraid you may not get to see Darwin’s namesake, don’t worry, there are at least 120 species that have been named after the explorer living around the world.

Man of Science, Man of Faith

For someone who spent as much time as Darwin did around the creatures of the world, it is no wonder that Darwin’s religious leanings have been closely inspected. After studying theology during his college years, Darwin was a true believer in a greater power.  While roaming the planet and searching out new and unseen life, the idea of a “Creator” became even more implanted into his mind.

But like many who begin to question the presence of a God, Darwin’s beloved daughter Annie passed away from scarlet fever—leaving him a frayed and damaged man.  “We can allow satellites, planets, suns, universe, nay whole systems of universe, to be governed by laws, but the smallest insect, we wish to be created at once by special act,” Darwin said. For Darwin, whose faith was rocked to the utter core, simple answers were no longer going to be enough for a man who had seen so much and experienced such lows.

…and the Church?

In 2008, 126 years after Darwin passed away, and almost 150 years after their initial dismissal of his theories, the Church of England addressed the past and issued an apology.  Director of the Church of England’s missions and public affairs, Reverend Malcolm Brown began, “Charles Darwin: 200 years from your birth, the Church of England owes you an apology for misunderstanding you and, by getting our first reaction wrong, encouraging others to misunderstand you still,” further commenting in an essay entitled “Good Religion Needs Good Science.”

Aaah, see? Now that wasn’t so bad, was it?

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