Episode 139. To begin our exploration of Charles Darwin, let me offer a brief history of his life. Charles Darwin was born in 1809 on the 12th of February at Shrewsbury, England. He was raised in a family with a wide variety of beliefs. His grandfather, Erasmus, was a famous theistic evolutionist. Darwin's father, Robert, and brother, Erasmus, were religious skeptics. His mother, Suzannah, who dies when Charles was only eight years old, was a Unitarian. Unitarians do not believe that Jesus was God, but only a man. Darwin's sisters were religious. And after the death of their mother, they brought Charles to an Anglican church where he was taught conservative Christianity. Darwin was also educated in an Anglican day school. In 1826, Darwin studies medicine at Edinburgh University but he drops out. Between 1828 and 1831, Darwin studies theology at Christ College in Cambridge University. But upon completion of his degree, he decides not to be ordained as an Anglican minister. On December 27, 1831, Darwin begins a five-year voyage around the world on HMS Beagle. It's during this trip that he collects scientific evidence that will eventually lead him to formulate the theory of evolution. Darwin returns to England on October 2,1836. During 1837 and 1838, Charles Darwin has his first period of religious reflection. He rejects Christianity but not God. It's also during this time that he outlines his theory of evolution in his notebooks on transmutation or evolution of species. In 1838, Darwin's health begins to break down, and he can only work four to five hours a day for the rest of his life. In 1839, Darwin marries his cousin Emma Wedgwood. They have ten children and regrettably, three children die. In November 1859, Charles Darwin's most famous book 'On the Origin of Species' is published. It presents the theory of evolution by the mechanism of natural selection. Following the publication of his book, Darwin enters a second period of religious reflection in 1860 and 1861. During this time, he struggles intensely with the notion of intelligent design. In 1871, Darwin's book 'Descent of Man' is released and it offers his first public presentation of human evolution. The autobiography of Charles Darwin is published in 1876. And in it, Darwin reveals his mature views on religion in a section entitled 'religious beliefs'. In 1882, Charles Darwin dies on the 19th of April at Downe, England. He is buried in Westminster Abbey. End of episode.