Timeline of teachings on evolution in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
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Evolution has been publicly discussed since the late 1800s by top leaders in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS church)—Mormonism's largest denomination. The church currently takes no official position on whether or not biological evolution has occurred, nor on the validity of the modern evolutionary synthesis as a scientific theory. In the twentieth century, the church's highest governing body, the First Presidency, published doctrinal statements on the origin of man and creation (in 1909, 1910, and 1925).[1][2][3] In addition, top leaders of the church have expressed a variety of views on evolution, many of which have affected the beliefs and perceptions of Latter-day Saints.
Since the 1859 release of On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin there have been a variety of LDS Church publications that address evolution, often with neutral or opposing viewpoints. A 2018 study found that over time, the views of Latter-day Saint university students towards evolution had changed from antagonistic to accepting, which was attributed in part to a reduction in the number of anti-evolution statements from top leaders.[4] Below is a timeline of speeches and publications from LDS church officials on the topic of biological evolution.