Evolution as science and as spirituality was explained Wednesday at the “Sacred Depths of Nature” lecture.

The speaker, Ursula Goodenough, professor of biology at Washington University, was brought to campus by Phi Beta Kappa.

The lecture was in part a celebration of the 15 years Phi Beta Kappa has existed on Eastern’s campus.

Using a slide projector, music and poetry, Goodenough tried to give a sense of the religious potential of evolution.

“I do not want to persuade anyone’s views but invite you to develop your own interpretations,” Goodenough said.

The purpose of the lecture was to address religion as an ultimacy, a matter of spirituality and as an impulse for communion, passion and service, Goodenough said.

Goodenough designed her story first using scientific facts and pictures and then giving her spiritual response to the information.

Goodenough explained cell mutations and duplications in a scientific form.

These occurrences happen randomly or through natural selection. Because of the mutations and duplications, some human genes can also be found in yeast and worms, she said.

Her spiritual response to this information was we live in an enormous world of commonality. We seek to connect with a higher power and with one another, Goodenough said.

“Organisms are everywhere, seen and unseen. I open my senses to them and see them as they are,” Goodenough said.

Goodenough ended the lecture with the message that the biological story is one of emergence, and humans needing understand the facets of our feelings toward evolution.