S&C 2: Why is the theory of evolution a problem for some Christians?

To answer the question we need to consider (i) the nature of science and (ii) the nature of the Bible.

1. The nature of science

At its core science is measurement. Without measurement anything that sounds "scientific" is merely speculation. A theory is speculation until measurements are made of something it predicts. When the measurements show something other than what the theory predicted, then the theory is modified. Furthermore, in science measurements must be repeatable.
So, science is limited to that which can be measured. Not surprisingly, this means that it is limited to the physical universe, not the meta-physical or spiritual realm. In terms of God, science can not measure God (there is no ruler long enough) therefore it can say nothing about God's existence or otherwise.

Some scientists, though, have made statements about God that they argue follow from their science. That is, their theories of cosmology or evolution, so they say, prove God does or doesn't exist. When they make these statements they are inferring something and are moving from the realm of science to the realm of religion (or philosophy). Hence, statements to the effect that the theory of evolution proves God doesn't exist are NOT scientific statements, but religious one. I am very careful here to distinguish, therefore, between the scientific theory of evolution, and the philosophy of evolutionISM.

The mistake many Christian's make is not to make the distinction between the science and the philosophy. Too often they attack the science and not the philosophy. A whole industry of "Creation science" has sprung up based on the false premise that the theory of evolution does say God doesn't exist, therefore something must be wrong with the theory. To the contrary, the theory says nothing of the sought. It is just that some people infer that it does. My science background is mainly physics and so I'm not particularly competent to point out the scientific shortcomings of the theory of evolution (all theories have them) - that must be left to more competent scientists. But I can point out the error in inferring that God doesn't exist from the theory of evolution. There is a lot more to be said about Evolutionism and its detrimental effects on society - but that is for another time.

2. The nature of the Bible
Some Christians believe they must oppose the theory of evolution because the Bible teachers creation science. Unfortunately, this misunderstands what the Bible is. The Bible explains "who" created and "why" not "how." I can say this with utmost confidence because the first scientific writings that concentrated on "how" in a science sense were written some 1500 years or more after the last of the Biblical books were written. In other words, the scientific genre of writing is a relatively modern one - we must not think that the writers of the Bible engaged in it.

To give you an idea of why there are creation stories (there are two) in the Bible it would be a good idea for people to compare Biblical creation stories with others that were around in the Middle East 3000 years ago. In the Genesis the common words for Sun and Moon are not used - why? Because the words for Sun and Moon were words for Gods according to the religions of the people surrounding the Hebrews. The Bible very carefully points out the the "light of the day" and "light of the night" are but "mere" creations of the one creator God. This is not science - it is religion.

When we read the Bible we often have to distinguish the genre we are reading - is it narrating a story, is it intended to be historical, is it commands (if so, who to(, is it poetry. One thing we can be sure of and that is it is not science. For example Job 9:6 "He shakes the earth from its place and makes its pillars tremble" and Psalm 75:3 "When the earth and all its people quake, it is I who hold its pillars firm" suggest the earth has pillars holding it up - at least they should suggest that to the person who reads the Bible as literal scientific fact. Obviously, we all read these as poetic analogies, even though it may have been that the people who first heard these words believed them literally.

The Bible is a wonderful book that teaches me about my faith and my God - it contains many mysteries for me, but one thing I am sure of, and that is that the Bible is not a scientific text book.