While not -technically- part of Evolutionary Theory, abiogenesis is the area of evolution that I struggle with most. I’ve been reading Hugh Ross & Fazale Rana’s book “Origins of Life”, which provides a very technical treatment of the complex challenges implicit in the transition between chemical non-life and DNA-based life as we know it.
I found the first three parts of the series-within-a-series “At the Frontiers of Evolution” from BioLogos to be a much easier read, while still not oversimplifying the concepts or telling me what I should believe just because the author says so.
Basically, it positions abiogenesis at the “frontier” of evolutionary studies, acknowledging many of the unknowns that Ross & Rana call out in their book. Venema’s only real departure, and one that I can certainly respect, is that the jury is still out. Rather than seeking a “God of the gaps” solution to the current lack of knowledge, he prefers to continue studying and see if one day science may indeed produce a naturalistic explanation, as it has for many other phenomena once considered “supernatural”. Definitely worth checking out Parts 1, 2 & 3, at minimum!
Seekers Anonymous 