Rare letter in which Charles Darwin confesses to being an atheist is set to sell for $90,000

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Charles Darwin was discreet about views to save family embarrassment
But famed naturalist penned letter to a fan two years before his death
Fan asked for assurance that evolutionist Darwin believed in the Bible
Theory of Evolution author writes back: 'I'm sorry to inform you I do not'
It is 'the ultimate' for collectors, set to sell for $90k in New York on Monday

Published: 16:09 EST, 21 September 2015 | Updated: 17:50 EST, 21 September 2015

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A letter in which Charles Darwin admits to being an atheist is set to sell for around $90,000 in New York on Monday night.

The handwritten note, penned 21 years after publishing The Theory Of Evolution, is believed to be the only concrete evidence in which he discussed his views on religion or God.

It was in response to a fan, who wrote to Darwin for assurance that he still believed in the Bible despite writing one of the most damning challenges to Christian creationism to this day.

This letter is set to sell for $90,000. It reads: 'I am sorry to have to inform you that I do not believe in the Bible as a divine revelation & therefore not in Jesus Christ as the son of God. Yours faithfully, Ch. Darwin'

'If I am to have the pleasure of reading your books,' wrote Francis McDermott, a barrister and committed Christian, in November 23, 1880, 'I must feel that at the end I shall not have lost my faith in the New Testament.

'My reason in writing to you therefore is to ask you to give me a Yes or No to the question Do you believe in the New Testament.'

The famed naturalist, who died in 1882, responded curtly: 'Dear Sir,

'I am sorry to have to inform you that I do not believe in the Bible as a divine revelation & therefore not in Jesus Christ as the son of God.

'Yours faithfully

'Ch. Darwin'

It is thought Darwin was discreet about his views in order to save his family embarrassment.

But now, 135 years later, collectors are clamoring to snap up the fading parchment, at Bonham's History of Science and Technology auction.

Rumors Darwin converted to Christianity on his deathbed were, and continue to be, denied by his family

It is expected to reach, at the lower limit, $70,000 as historians brand the item 'the one'.

'If you’re a Darwin collector, it is the ultimate piece. It’s at the crux of the whole debate,' Cassandra Hatton, a book specialist at Bonhams, told the Guardian.

Rumors Darwin converted to Christianity on his deathbed were, and continue to be, denied by his family and descendants.

The letter will be sold alongside two other Darwin letters and a signed photograph of him.