Theorist and Author Challenges Viability of Evolution
by Jim Brown
January 6, 2005
(AgapePress) - A mathematician and philosopher says a growing number of intellectuals are questioning the viability of Darwinian evolution.Dr. William Dembski is a well-known intelligent design theorist who will soon have a joint appointment with Southern Baptist Theological Seminary and Boyce College, both located in in Louisville, Kentucky. In his new book Uncommon Dissent: Intellectuals Who Find Darwinism Unconvincing, Dembski presents the works of 14 leading philosophers and scientists who challenge the notion that purposeless natural forces are responsible for biological complexity and diversity.
Dembski argues the materialistic approach to evolution and biology is inadequate. "I think there's a sense in the public consciousness that all the smart people are atheists -- that is, the more educated you get, the more you accept this atheistic, materialistic line and accept the Darwinian view of evolution," he explains.
According to Dembski, that is not necessarily the case. "What I found, in fact, is that as people inform themselves and [remain] open-minded, many of them find that this Darwinian perspective is unpersuasive."
Dembski says if one accepts a blind evolutionary point of view, it is hard to square with any coherent form of theism.
"People who believe in God usually think that humanity is the crown of God's creation -- and if you accept a Darwinian, evolutionary point of view, our place in the universe is in no way special or privileged," he says. "[You believe that] we are really accidents of natural history. Even our intelligence, even our mental faculties that we use to try to understand our place in the greater scheme of things -- it's all really an illusion."
The theorist says public school children who, for example, are taught Darwinian evolution as a proven fact are likely to lose their faith in God.
Dembski, who is an associate research professor in the conceptual foundations of science at Baylor University, estimates that only one or two percent of biological scientists believe in God.
