Nearly a century and a half have passed since Charles Darwin published The Origin of Species in 1859, setting forth his theory of how life evolved through a process called natural selection. Darwin would eventually come to be regarded, along with Sigmund Freud and Karl Marx, as one of the three most influential men in the shaping of twentieth century Western civilization. Today, at the dawn of the twenty-first century, Darwin's self-confessed theory is a "fact" that much of the scientific community is dedicated to supporting, much of the educational establishment assumes, and much of public is confused about. The non-evolutionist is usually dismissed by the scientific establishment with the ad hominem attack that they are touting "religion" in opposition to "science." In this paper I will define some key terminology, survey the debate, examine why evolution is to be regarded primarily as a philosophy, briefly address four main arguments offered in support of evolution, present arguments for a non-evolutionist position, and offer some personal conclusions regarding the issue.
Terminology surrounding the debate over life's
origin often contains loaded words that tend to cause confusion
if left undefined. For instance, I have often heard my college
professors demonstrate their contention that "evolution is
scientific fact" by offering some irrefutable example. Yet every
specific example I have heard is a case of adaptation within a
species - finch beaks, longhorn cattle, swimming iguanas, and so
forth. After the example is given, one that no one in their right
mind would disagree with, the professor concludes their case by
restating their initial claim for "evolution."
Looking around a classroom where this has occurred will
immediately reveal that hardly anyone catches what just took
place. Perhaps even the instructor does not realize what has
happened. When "evolution" is first mentioned, it is clear that
what is meant is a process that takes place on a macro level.
When the example is cited, "evolution" is shifted to the micro
level. Then, in the concluding statement, "evolution" reverts
back to its original meaning. This is an example of a fallacy in
reasoning known as equivocation. What is going on here is a kind
of logical "bait and switch."
This is the case simply because adaptation of species to their
environment in no way demonstrates the broader idea that we are
being asked to accept. Namely, that one kind of animal (say, a
dinosaur) has evolved into an entirely different kind of animal
(say, a bird). Further, implicit in such reasoning is the idea
that non-evolutionists reject adaptations within species. This of
course paints the non-evolutionist into a ridiculous corner, as
such adaptations are part and parcel of what is continually
observed in nature. Problematic is the fact that even the most
rigid creationists do not, as a rule, deny evolution within a
particular kind of animal. To imply that they do is an example of
the straw man fallacy.
Due to this and similar situations, it is necessary to define
some terms before going further. For the purposes of this paper,
evolution refers to change on the macro level unless otherwise
noted. The term creationist is used here in its restricted sense,
denoting those who align themselves exclusively with that
specific movement. However, when I use creationism I am referring
to any theory that has as its components intelligent design and
the abrupt appearance of life. The term non-evolutionist, though
including the creationists, should be understood as also
including progressive (old earth) creationists and those
participating in the Intelligent Design movement. In addition,
while the term Darwinism is mentioned, it is understood that
there is a difference among evolutionists regarding the exact
mechanism of change. I make no distinction in most cases simply
because the theorized mechanisms make no difference as far as my
argumentation is concerned. References to naturalism are to be
understood as referring to "the philosophical belief that what is
studied by the non-human and human sciences is all there is, and
the denial of the need for any explanation going beyond or
outside the Universe" (Flew 240).
Early scientific views rested largely on the idea
that design in nature is evident. In other words, that the
creation we observe around us actually had a Creator. This idea
was immediately challenged by Darwin's theory, and creationists
today still contend with substantially the same theory as that
which he promoted. The fact that creationists are not taken
seriously by the scientific (evolutionist) establishment often
leads to the false notion that no real debate exists.
Unfortunately, there is very little independent investigation by
the lay person in our culture. The evolutionist waves his/her
hand and says something like "Evolution is a fact, pure and
simple."
Claims like this are easy to make for a couple of reasons. First,
the stereotype promoted by Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee's
Inherit the Wind (ITW) has a vice grip on our culture that is
perpetuated by the educational and scientific establishments. In
effect, any and all creationists are painted as ignorant
Bible-thumping fundamentalists. Second, the creationists have
made some serious strategic errors. These errors include being
too quick to pounce on anything that looks like it may be in
their favor (e.g., the Paluxy riverbed "man tracks" of Carl
Baugh), insistence on flaunting their Biblical presuppositions,
and failing to distinguish the main issue of evolution from
various secondary issues (e.g., the age of the universe, the
Biblical flood) that detract from the main issues in the
debate.
Creationists have fought an uphill battle for approximately
thirty-five years now. Although making some headway among
individuals, little has happened within the established
scientific community. Leading creationists are ridiculed and
denied publication in scientific journals, in spite of the fact
that nearly all of them hold doctorates earned in major secular
universities. Due to the deeply ingrained ITW stereotype, the
creationists' viewpoint is dismissed as "religion" before one
argumentative syllable is uttered. The evolutionists have
successfully cast the debate within a "Bible vs. Science"
context.
However, the scales are beginning to tip in the non-evolutionist
direction. The twentieth century witnessed the effective demise
of the influence of both Freud and Marx. Some are predicting that
the twenty-first century will witness the fall of Darwinism, the
last of the "big three." This turn of events is largely due to an
interdisciplinary revolution termed the Intelligent Design (ID)
movement.
Beginning in 1985 with the publication by Michael Denton of
Evolution: A Theory in Crisis, the ID movement has been
gaining ground ever since and shows no signs of abating. Denton
created a stir by presenting his intense criticism of Darwin's
theory entirely outside the circle that evolutionists have drawn
around the creationists. He left no doubt as to his conclusions,
calling evolution "a highly speculative hypothesis entirely
without direct factual support"(Denton 77). A molecular
biologist, no one could say he was not qualified. A non-Christian
and self-professed agnostic, his arguments were immune to the ITW
stereotype. Criticism came, but some in the scientific community
began to seriously consider what Denton had to say.
Organization of this movement came with the involvement of
Berkley law Professor Philip Johnson, a Harvard graduate who
recognized the potential among those being affected by Denton and
others abandoning Darwin's ship. Johnson put his expertise in
logical analysis to work and challenged evolution in 1991 with
his book, Darwin on Trial. Other books have followed, and
so have more scientists and other academics.
Among those in the ID movement are researchers like biochemist
Michael Behe (Darwin's Black Box), mathematician and philosopher
William Dembski (The Design Inference), biologist Jonathan Wells
(Icons of Evolution), chemist and molecular biologist Dr. Charles
Thaxton (The Mystery of Life's Origin), UT zoologist Martin
Poenie, philosopher Paul Nelson (On Common Descent), Cambridge
science historian Stephen Meyer (Intelligent Design in Public
School Science Curricula), and Princeton mathematician David
Berlinski (A Tour of the Calculus). Unlike the creationists
before them, those in the ID movement are speaking at prestigious
universities, holding major conferences, getting published in
journals previously reserved for evolutionists, and actually
attracting some positive media attention.
What the ID movement has done is rather simple. They changed the
rules while the evolutionists were busy ridiculing the
creationists. They are getting a hearing precisely because they
have strategically exchanged the stereotypical "Bible vs.
Science" context for a new one: naturalism vs. the empirical
data. This new interpretive framework is built on the conviction
that evolution is currently resting on a foundation of bad
philosophy while the empirical evidence is going in the opposite
direction. Further, the ID scientists are not content simply to
attack the philosophy of naturalism. Books like Behe's are taking
the offensive with the empirical data as well. Despite cries of
"backdoor creationism" and the like, the steady trickle of
evolutionists defecting to ID is growing.
Scientists like Stephen Jay Gould and Richard Dawkins are no
longer laughing; now they are angry. This in and of itself is
interesting. Why would scientists become angry when presented
with empirical evidence? Could this be an indication that what
prominent evolutionists are in fact committed to is not some
iron-clad scientific theory, but rather a philosophical agenda?
Could it be dawning on them that some of their peers actually
have solid reasons to question evolution, entirely apart from
what anyone may think about the Bible?
Both sides in this debate have philosophical
presuppositions. In the West, the non-evolutionist is typically a
Christian theist (though this is not always the case; e.g.,
Michael Denton). But the evolutionists also have an underlying
philosophy. As mentioned above, they are naturalists.
Unfortunately, those who continually make statements like
"Evolution is science; creation is religion/faith" do not seem to
realize this. This is an odd situation. Especially so in light of
the fact that prominent evolutionists have had honest moments
when they have stated their unwavering commitment to naturalism
in no uncertain terms. It is all there in their own writings for
any who care enough to look.
Strictly speaking, neither evolution nor creation are empirical
science, nor can they be. This is evident in that they both seek
to address the question of life's origin, something that cannot
be repeated nor put into a test tube. Neither theory is subject
to repeatable experimentation or observable processes. However,
both can be described as forensic science, in that they seek to
reconstruct a theory about a past event based on empirical data
presently observed. Origin science, whether evolutionism or
creationism, is analogous to what forensic specialists do at a
crime scene and what archaeologists do on a dig. Most
importantly, both theories are first and foremost a philosophical
framework for interpreting the data.
One of the primary flaws with evolutionists is their stubborn
propensity to confuse the data itself with data-interpretation.
The very same data is viewed by both evolutionists and
non-evolutionists, but because each is working within a different
paradigm the interpretive conclusions are very different. Yet
evolutionists call their own (naturalist) interpretation
"science" and the non-evolutionist interpretation "faith."
What kind of data do evolutionists interpret as
proof of their position? While this paper cannot be exhaustive,
four major areas will be examined: common ancestry, the fossil
record, embryology, and vestigial organs.
Common ancestry rests on the presupposition that
similarity in life forms (homology) is to be equated with
descent. Here again we are dealing not with the empirical data,
but with a philosophical presupposition. The evolutionists
interpret the data in accordance with their theory, committing
with great regularity the fallacy of begging the question. Such
similarities can just as easily be attributed to intelligent
design, and in fact were prior to Darwin.
Furthermore, even the evolutionist is forced to concede that
there are similarities that cannot be attributed to common
ancestry. This is called convergence, a term which denotes
similarity among unrelated life forms. Examples of this would
include the biological sonar system possessed by both whales and
bats or the striking similarities to several distinct lines
present in the platypus. Columbia zoologist Thomas Hunt Morgan,
an evolutionist, has commented on this:
If, then, it can be established beyond dispute that similarity or
even identity of the same character in different species is not
always to be interpreted to mean that both have arisen from a
common ancestor, the whole argument from comparative anatomy
seems to tumble in ruins (Bird 194).
The fact is that the evolutionists' philosophy assumes the
absence of a Designer. Empirical evidence put forth to
demonstrate common ancestry, some of which is discussed below, is
selectively chosen and interpreted within the bounds of this
assumption. It is only by the fallacy of exclusion that the
evolutionist is able to present the public with convincing
evidence.
Perhaps one of the most popular claims for common ancestry today
rests on the similarities in the DNA between chimpanzees and
humans. The claim that chimp DNA is 96-99% identical with human
DNA was popularized by Gribbin and Cherfas' The Monkey Puzzle
(Pantheon Books) in 1982, and again by Ann Gibbons in 1998
(Science 281:1432-1434). Again, here we have the assumption that
similarity is to be equated with descent. Nevertheless, the claim
does sound compelling. In fact, some activist groups have carried
this to its logical conclusion by actually lobbying for equality
on behalf of chimpanzees and other primates. Ironically,
consistent suggestions like this make even the evolutionists
uncomfortable.
However, there are some details that should be known by anyone
impressed by the 96-99% claim. First, the basis for this
percentage is not nearly as simplistic and straight forward as it
sounds. The conclusion does not rest on a detailed sequencing of
DNA, but on a more imprecise method. Berkeley Professor of
Anthropology Jonathan Marks, an evolutionist, explains:
Because DNA is a linear array of those four bases - A, G, C, and
T - only four possibilities exist at any specific point in a DNA
sequence. The laws of chance tell us that two random sequences
from species that have no ancestry in common will match at about
one in every four sites. Thus even two unrelated DNA sequences
will be 25 percent identical, not 0 percent identical….
The most different two DNA sequences can be, then, is 75 percent
different (Marks).
Marks goes on to explain that, even given the evolutionary model,
our DNA "is over one-third the same as a banana's" (Marks).
Second, this "genetic comparison is misleading because it ignores
qualitative differences among genomes" (Marks). Third, and
perhaps most importantly, there is once again an overriding
philosophical interpretive element:
The fact that our DNA is 98 percent identical to that of a chimp
is not a transcendent statement about our natures, but merely a
decontextualized and culturally interpreted datum…. In
spite of the shock the figure of 98 percent may give us, humans
are obviously identifiably different from, as well as very
similar to, chimpanzees. The apparent paradox is simply a result
of how mundane the apes have become, and how exotic DNA still is
(Marks).
Fossil evidence, as Darwin realistically
predicted, should make or break the theory of evolution. In our
day, the fossil record has been largely uncovered. Yet very
little of the plethora of transitional forms that Darwin
predicted have been revealed. But evolutionists do point to some.
The most significant of these include alleged transitional forms
between dinosaur and bird, and various "missing links" between
ape and man.
Are birds the evolutionary ancestors of the dinosaurs? According
to many modern evolutionists, the answer is yes. This is an old
theory of Thomas Huxley's, revived and developed in its present
form by paleontologist Robert Bakker in his book The Dinosaur
Heresies. Bakker's theory is very familiar to the public, being
popularized in the Jurassic Park films. Three examples often
used, but with little agreement among paleontologists, are
Archaeopteryx, Protoarchaeopteryx, and Caudipteryx. Bakker and
others have pointed to the presence of both bird and dinosaur
features in these fossils.
However, again we have some similar features that are easily
accounted for as instances of convergence among two unrelated
bipedal life forms (Rana). Furthermore, all of these features can
be observed either in bona fide ancient birds or in birds today
(Sunderland 71-75). Finally, the dating of these fossils puts
them after the fact, not before it (Ross 2). Based on a
presupposed theory, today's paleontologists are on the lookout
for "feathered dinosaurs."
Certainly most everyone has seen the "ascent of man" chart which
shows the successive stages from ape to man. This chart, in spite
of assertions to the contrary, does represent the conclusions of
many prominent evolutionists (Bird 233). What many do not realize
is that the history of this chart is fraught with significant
blunders, like the misinterpreted extinct pig's tooth that became
"Nebraska Man" (Bird 227) and the dolphin's rib thought to be a
"hominid collarbone" in 1983 (Bird 286). Then there is the
infamous "Piltdown Man," an alleged hominid discovered in 1913 by
Charles Dawson and exposed as a hoax in 1953 by a group of
English scientists (Walsh).
Neither are the remaining "missing links" nearly as solid as is
often claimed. More than a few physical anthropologists consider
the various Australopithecines and Ramapithecus to be extinct
apes. No less an authority than Mary Leakey admits that homo
erectus coexisted with the Australopithecines (Bird 229). E.
Dubois, who discovered homo erectus ("Java" or "Peking" man),
eventually concluded that these fossils were an extinct form of
gibbon rather than human (Bird 231).
Likewise, many authorities also consider the much celebrated
Neanderthal and Cro-Magnon Men to be nothing more or less than
ancient homo sapiens. Princeton anthropologist A. Montagu
concluded that "Neanderthal man walked as erect as any modern man
[and] was every bit as intelligent as we are today" (Bird 231).
Even "Lucy," the hominid everybody loves, has not fared so well.
"Lucy's" legs have been analyzed as being more ape than human and
reputable anthropologists have seriously questioned her supposed
upright posture (Bird 230).
By now, the philosophical pattern should be expected. Berkely
anthropologist T. White, another evolutionist, has written, "The
problem with a lot of anthropologists is that they want so much
to find a hominid that any scrap of bone becomes a hominid bone"
(Bird 228). Consider the damning words of Harvard anthropologist
A. Hill, also an evolutionist:
Compared to other sciences, the mythic element is greatest in
paleoanthropology. Hypotheses and stories of human evolution
frequently arise unprompted by data and contain a large measure
of general preconceptions, and the data which do exist are often
insufficient to falsify or even substantiate them. Many
interpretations are possible (Bird 233).
Evolutionist embryologists have long promoted the
idea of biogenesis. This is the concept that animal embryos are
virtually identical, thus demonstrating their theory of a common
ancestor. Going even further, many early evolutionists believed
the embryonic stages to be a sort of "instant reply" of the
evolutionary process. This idea was set forth in the phrase
ontogeny recapitulates phylogeny. This latter idea is largely
discredited today even among evolutionists, but the former
continues to be used to demonstrate that all life is virtually
identical in its early stages.
Biologist Ernst Haeckel first set forth these ideas in great
detail in 1891, basing his research on a theoretical statement
made by Darwin in The Origin of Species. Haeckel produced the
famous set of drawings depicting these ideas that showed up in
biology textbooks for years. Yet the 1999 edition of Biology, a
popular college-level textbook written by Neil Campbell, omits
the illustrations entirely. The same year, a pro-evolutionist
biology journal published an article refuting Haeckel's ideas
written by molecular biologist Jonathan Wells. Wells is very
forthright in his comments:
Haeckel's drawings misrepresent the embryos they purport to show
and Haeckel entirely omitted the earliest stages of development
in which the various classes of vertebrates are morphologically
very different. Biology teachers should be aware that Haeckel's
drawings do not fit the facts (Wells, "Haeckel's Embryos").
Now it is true that Wells aligns himself with the Intelligent
Design movement, but ardent evolutionist Stephen Jay Gould writes
of this as well:
We do, I think, have the right to be both astonished and ashamed
by the century of mindless recycling that has led to the
persistence of these drawings in a large number, if not a
majority, of modern textbooks (Wells, "Lerner Report").
Vestigial organs are organs that are of limited
or no use to the organism. These organs are said by evolutionists
to be "leftovers" from previous stages in the evolutionary
process. This argument is normally used as a component of the
embryological arguments discussed above. R. Wiedersheim composed
a list of about one hundred vestigial organs in humans alone. Yet
S. Scadding, a zoologist and himself an evolutionist, has
concluded Wiedersheim in error and dismisses this entire line of
evidence:
I would suggest that the entire argument that vestigial organs
provide evidence for evolution is invalid on two grounds …
The practical problem is that of unambiguously identifying
vestigial organs … As our knowledge has increased the list
of vestigial structures has decreased. Wiedersheim could list
about one hundred in humans; recent authors usually list four or
five. Even the current short list of vestigial structures in
humans is questionable…. The other major objection
… is a more theoretical one based on the nature of the
argument. The "vestigial organ" argument uses as a premise the
assertion that the organ in question has no function. There is no
way, however, in which this negative assertion can be arrived at
scientifically…. Since it is not possible to unambiguously
identify useless structures, and since the structure of the
argument used is not scientifically valid, I conclude that
"vestigial organs" provide no special evidence for the theory of
evolution (Bird 197-198).
Immediately evident is the fact that none of evolution's most
promoted "evidence" really demonstrates the theory. This is
especially true when we view the overwhelming evidence against
evolution, evidence that tends to support several tenants of
creationism.
Overall, the fossil record reveals not the
process of evolution, but rather the abrupt appearance of life
forms. One of the most stunning examples of this is what is
called "the Cambrian explosion." All major phyla appear in the
geologic age designated Cambrian. They all appear together and
they appear abruptly. Darwin himself wrote of this: "The case at
present must remain inexplicable, and may be truly urged as a
valid argument against the views here entertained [i.e.,
evolution as explained in On the Origin of Species]" (Bird
53).
Evolutionists have another general problem with the fossil
record. The most plentiful fossil group should yield the greatest
number of transitional forms. Yet the greatest number of fossils
by far are those of marine life, a group that has yielded no
transitional forms. Marine biologists are continually referencing
alleged transitional forms among the non-marine species to
support evolution (Johnson 59-61). But it seems that this is a
common problem. Consider what Niles Eldridge, evolutionist expert
on invertebrate fossils, writes:
No wonder paleontologists shied away from evolution for so long.
It never seems to happen…. Evolution cannot forever be
going on somewhere else. Yet that's how the fossil record has
struck many a forlorn paleontologist looking to learn something
about evolution (Johnson 60-61).
All modern paleontologists can do with these realities is to
engage in a bit of wishful thinking, hoping that there are still
"gaps" remaining in the fossil record that will eventually be
filled (Bird 52-54).
Nature in general supports the idea of Intelligent Design. It is
significant that virtually all popular analogies used by
evolutionists are actually indications of design: Tim Berra's
"corvette assembly," Crick's "dog breeding," Williams' "book and
author," and even Dawkins' "random computer generation" (Johnson
62-64, 72-74). Dawkins himself, as staunch an evolutionist as
there is, concedes that the world certainly does "appear" to be a
product of design (Dawkins 1).
Less than ten percent of the American population embraces
evolution as taught by most scientists, while the rest of the
nation is evenly divided between creationism and theistic
evolution (Johnson 10). Is it simply religious sentiment or a
lack of education that causes this overwhelming feeling that our
universe was designed? Personally, I think there is more to it
than that. The story of evolution, when heard by those not
indoctrinated by the minority of "experts," simply sounds
ludicrous. There are reasons for this that go beyond mere
ignorant intuition.
Mathematicians have stated that the probability that life came
about by chance is "highly implausible" and "not conceivable"
(Bird 78-83). In normal statistical terminology, evolution sets
forth a process that is an impossibility. The number representing
the probability is so high that we do not even have a name for
it. Things with that kind of probability just do not
happen.
Complexity of life forms is providing empirical evidence for
Intelligent Design, as well as further indications that evolution
is impossible. This has come about with the revolution in
microbiology. We now know things that Darwin could never have
imagined in his wildest dreams. The significance of this is found
in Darwin's own words: "If it could be demonstrated that any
complex organ existed which could not possibly have been formed
by numerous, successive, slight modifications, my theory would
absolutely break down" (Behe 39).
Michael Behe, Associate Professor of Biochemistry at Lehigh
University, has stirred up the scientific establishment with his
concept of irreducible complexity. This concept, by Darwin's own
falsification standards, effectively dismantles evolution. Behe
defines what he means by an "irreducibly complex system":
… a single system composed of several well-matched,
interacting parts that contribute to the basic function, wherein
the removal of any one of the parts causes the system to
effectively cease functioning. An irreducibly complex system
cannot be produced directly (that is, by continuously improving
the initial function, which continues to work by the same
mechanism) by slight, successive modifications of a precursor
system, because any precursor to an irreducibly complex system
that is missing a part is by definition nonfunctional (Behe
39).
Behe spends the remainder of his landmark book, Darwin's Black
Box, offering example after example of just such systems. Many
scientists, including evolutionists, have taken notice. Richard
Dawkins has even conceded that if Behe is correct, then so is
Intelligent Design. Dawkins has further admitted that, being a
zoologist, he is not qualified to debate Behe's concept (Johnson
78-79).
With the uncovering of the DNA code, genetics has become another
area for evolutionists to contend with. The principal problem for
evolutionists concerns the dichotomy of matter and information.
Evolution can explain the genes, but not the genetic code. That
is, they can explain the matter, but not the information. There
is not a mechanism demonstrated by any evolutionist that can
explain how information gets into the DNA. Johnson writes
concerning this: … information is an entirely different
kind of stuff from the physical medium in which it may
temporarily be recorded…. the information written in DNA
is not the product of DNA. Where did the information come from?
Who or what is the author? (72-73).
Having reached several conclusions through
extensive research of both sides, I am a convinced
non-evolutionist and embrace creationism as the only viable
alternative. The theory of evolution rests entirely upon
naturalistic presuppositions. Hard data brought forth in support
of evolution is of a forensic nature and is interpreted in
accordance with those presuppositions. It is my own opinion that
evolution is no longer a credible theory in our age of scientific
enlightenment. Rather, our culture has been intellectually
enslaved by an outdated nineteenth century philosophy. There are
solid reasons for rejecting the theory that exist entirely apart
from anyone's consideration of the Biblical book of
Genesis.
Someone only need scan any book authored by Richard Dawkins or
Stephen Jay Gould, today's leading spokesmen for evolution, to
see immediately that the philosophy of naturalism pervades their
work. In fact, both of these philosophers insist that evolution
absolutely excludes theism altogether. The late astronomer Carl
Sagan embraced the same philosophy and reached similar
conclusions. I actually tend to agree with this idea of
incompatibility. But then I am not an evolutionist.
Evolution? Creation? The real question is a philosophical one, as
evolutionary biologist Richard Lewontin candidly admits:
It is not that the methods and institutions of science somehow
compel us to accept a material explanation of the phenomenal
world, but, on the contrary, that we are forced by our a priori
adherence to material causes to create an apparatus of
investigation and a set of concepts that produce material
explanations, no matter how counter-intuitive, no matter how
mystifying to the uninitiated. Moreover, that materialism is
absolute, for we cannot allow a Divine Foot in the door (Johnson
81).
Is naturalism the correct view of things? This is the crucial
question. If naturalism is assumed, then any notion of
Intelligent Design is automatically excluded by very definition.
But if evolution is actually bad philosophy, we are left with a
nagging question. If science excludes Design, and yet there is in
fact a Designer, then how will anyone ever know? If our idea of
science excludes God outright, and He in fact exists, then our
"science" is forever damned to be riddled with error. This is a
simple logical conclusion, and I am amazed that it is so rarely
considered.
Currently, the situation with the debate is rather ironic. We
have come full circle, back to Inherit the Wind. Yet the
characterization of the creationists as closed-minded with a
"don't confuse me with the facts" attitude is now the position
occupied by the evolutionists. The situation has entirely
reversed. Furthermore, the evolutionists are every bit as
interested in maintaining the popular philosophy of materialistic
naturalism as the early creationists were in defending the
Bible.
In conclusion, I propose that both sides in the debate begin
contrasting the philosophical elements with the philosophical
elements, comparing empirical data with empirical data, and
weighing theory against theory. If we are ever to get anywhere on
the questions surrounding life's origin, it will only be by
adopting a methodology that addresses the issues realistically.
The ID movement has done this very thing, and the evolutionists
had better work quickly to catch up. Their house is being eroded
at its very foundation.
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