Dubious Pierre Teilhard De Chardin

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (1881–1955) entered the Society of Jesus (Jesuit) order in 1899 at 18. World War One broke out just as he started geology studies in Paris. He enlisted as a stretcher-bearer and served during the entire war.

Ordained to the priesthood in 1911, Teilhard then received a doctorate in paleontology in 1922. He lectured at the Institut Catholique in Paris from 1920-23. He visited China in 1923-24 and returned to France to teach, but in 1926 his superiors forced him to abandon the academic field. He returned to China because of his controversial attempts to reconcile the traditional view of original sin with his concept of evolution. His superiors also decided to limit his publications to purely scientific material, a limitation that continued throughout his lifetime.

Shortly after his return to China, Teilhard became an adviser to the National Geological Survey. In this capacity, he collaborated on research that resulted in the 1929 discovery of “Peking Man” (Homo erectus). He remained in China until 1946; during this period, he completed the manuscript of The Phenomenon of Man. This work outlined his concept of “cosmic evolution.” He believed that evolution involved all matter (the cosmos) undergoing more complex changes that would lead to the “Omega Point.”

Trapped in China due to World War II, Teilhard returned to France after the war ended. However, he lived in New York from 1951 until he died in 1955.

Teilhard’s evolutionism earned him the distrust of his religious superiors. Even the scientific community was suspicious of his religious mysticism, but many cherished Teilhard’s work. Sir Julian Huxley posthumously published Teilhard’s works, including Letters from a Traveler, The Divine Milieu, The Future of Man, Human Energy, Activation of Energy, and Hymn of the Universe. Teilhard’s overarching philosophy (or theology) was his mantra that claimed humanity followed a path to unification up to perfection, the “Omega Point.” That is just another utopian mind scheme.

Teilhard lives on today in the writings of many new-age thinkers. For example, Marilyn Ferguson, in her best-selling 1980 new age book The Aquarian Conspiracy (I have a copy of this weird book), points to the spiritual evolution taught by Teilhard, who “prophesied the phenomenon central to this book: a conspiracy of men and women whose new perspective would trigger a critical contagion of change.”¹  Former Vice President Albert Gore also points to a vision of Teilhard in his 1992 book, Earth in the Balance: “The religious ethic of stewardship is indeed harder to accept if one believes the world is in danger of being destroyed -- by either God or humankind. Teilhard previously wrote a similar screed: ‘The fate of mankind, as well as of religion, depends upon the emergence of a new faith in the future.’ Armed with such a faith, we might find it possible to re-sanctify the earth.” ²

Some people believe that Teilhard foresaw the Internet based on this quote from his 1947 book The Formation of the Noosphere:

“No one can deny that a network (a world network) of economic and psychic affiliations is being woven at ever-increasing speed which envelops and constantly penetrates more deeply within each of us. With every day that passes it becomes a little more impossible for us to act or think otherwise than collectively.”

In addition to the above dubious axioms, Teilhard was a champion of “Liberation Theology,” which embraces the egalitarian precepts of Marxism. More specifically, he believed that economics evolve like creatures, and society will change to supply the necessities for everyone equally. It sounds nice, but as discerning readers know, the reality is different. After World War II, the Jesuit and Dominican orders allowed some of their members to become “priest-workers” in the manner preached by Teilhard. The church leaders encouraged these “priests” to mingle with the world’s workers, even riot or take up arms in conflicts such as the Nicaraguan civil war. Nevertheless, we do not hear those enamored with the non-existent “wall of separation” ever complain about clergy who get involved with egalitarian politics. A priest fighting with communist rebels is incredible; after all, the result is “all that matters.” 

Teilhard and his fellow travelers despised the hierarchy of the Church. Some think this concept is grand, as “communist societies assure that everybody is equal.” Again, it is important to say not so: never has and never will be. The leaders of communist regimes were anything but equal to the rest of society, but sadly this fact still eludes those with egalitarian worldviews. That was the same trait that Teilhard exhibited. Unfortunately, people like Teilhard and like-minded individuals today believe such notions are the only way to fix society’s ills.

Most who subscribe to this thinking believe they are doing a good deed for society. Along these lines, our friends with this worldview will point out the fantasy of universal health because they do not know about the virtual lack of it in Canada and other nations with socialized medicine.

This author does not entirely fault most people enamored with collectivism because the media and education system are virtually silent about the horrors of Communism. It is too bad that the masses are not as educated about Communism as they are about the horrors of Nazism. We all know of the copious movies about the horrors of the Nazi regime. However, Hollywood produced virtually no film about the horrors of Communism. The Back Book of Communism is a profound reality check.

All of the above notwithstanding, what is so sad is that Communism was (is) as bad as Nazism. That brings on the Pavlovian call of “Holocaust Deniers” or McCarthyism.

After digressing a bit, it’s prudent to note that the Teilhard story is one small glimpse of just one chapter in a long story about the Jesuits, some of which can be a source of much discussion and controversy. Nevertheless, there are indeed many good things that the Jesuits have performed for humanity.

Fast forward to recent history. Teilhard’s philosophy has a special place in the influencing spirit used by the preachers and leaders of today. Nowadays, the Supreme Pontiff is a shining example. The “wall of separation” only applies to orthodox teachings, but the Teilhard-like new age mind mush gets a pass. Now for a puff piece.

The primary printed source for this essay is The Jesuits: The Society of Jesus and the Betrayal of the Roman Catholic Church by Malachi Martin, 1987.

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Cogent Author and publisher, Frederick R. Smith
Cogent Editor, Sean Tinney

1. The Aquarian Conspiracy by Maryland Ferguson, 1980 (page 25)

2. Earth in the Balance: Ecology and the Human Spirit by Al Gore, Albert, Jr. Gore, 1993 (page 63)