History has taught us that when it comes to burying the hatchet, the church subscribes to one policy in particular — better late than never.

Yesterday, the Church of England issued an informal apology to Charles Darwin for rejecting his theory of evolution, 126 years after his death.

In the statement by the Rev. Malcolm Brown, director of mission and public affairs for the Church of England, he writes that the church owes Darwin an apology for “misunderstanding” his theory and encouraging others to misunderstand it.

“For the sake of human integrity — and thus for the sake of good Christian living — some rapprochement between Darwin and Christian faith is essential,” he writes. “Good religion needs to work constructively with good science — and I dare to suggest that the opposite may be true as well.”

Brown is not abandoning Christian teaching, he simply admits that scientific method, including that used by Darwin, does nothing to contradict it.

While it may draw the ire of a certain vice presidential pick from Alaska who supports teaching creationism in schools, we find it refreshing that a religious body is finally embracing what the scientific community has known for years and years.

But is it really necessary to address Darwin personally? We don’t think so. We appreciate the clarification, but to bring Darwin himself into it is simply a public relations stunt meant to save face and make the church feel better.

And this isn’t the first time the church has been a bit tardy on its apologies, either. Only two years ago, the Church of England apologized for the church’s involvement in the transatlantic slave trade.

Pope John Paul II declared in 1992 that the Roman Catholic Church was wrong to refute Galileo’s claim that the Earth was not, in fact, the center of the universe. How long was Galileo waiting for those words? Only about 359 years.

He also apologized for the cowardice of Christians and displays of anti-Semitism during the Holocaust in 1998 and 2000, respectively.

So what else can we expect the church to apologize for? Surely there are other black spots in history that have evaded the church’s penitent gaze. Here’s what we’d like to see:

— Witch hunts. Somewhere between 40,000 and 60,000 people are estimated to have been burned for being a witch throughout history. And to compensate, women still aren’t allowed to be ordained in the church.

— Abstinence-only education. Not only does this not work — it turns out people like having sex — but the Catholic Church bans the use of contraception, even for married couples.

— Jerry Falwell. We know, too soon, right? Well, as much as the late evangelical leader was devoted to his faith, he was also characterized by intolerant statements made against minorities and gays that could have set the civil rights movement back years.

— Sarah Palin. History could prove us wrong on this one. But we don’t think so.