Darwin's Proof: The Triumph of Religion Over Science/Doubts About Darwin: A History of Intelligent Design

Journal of the Evangelical Theological Society, Jun 2004 by Anderson, Owen

Darwin's Proof: The Triumph of Religion Over Science/Doubts About Darwin: A History of Intelligent Design Darwin's Proof: The Triumph of Religion Over Science. By Cornelius G. Hunter. Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2003, 168 pp., $17.99. Doubts About Darwin: A History of Intelligent Design. By Thomas Woodward. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2003, 303 pp., $19.99.

The religious nature of Darwinian cosmology is of growing interest today. This theory about the origin of life has always been debated, but increasingly the focus is on the religious presuppositions behind its claims. While previous criticisms of Darwinism were usually side-stepped by its adherents as mistaken literal readings of Genesis, these new criticisms are more devastating. They call into question the very method used by Darwinists to arrive at conclusions while presenting more coherent interpretations of the empirical evidence. One author who is calling into question the presuppositions of Darwinism is Cornelius Hunter. As a post-doc in molecular biophysics, he is not a newcomer to the area of scientific research. His books Darwin's God: Evolution and the Problem of Evil and the current Darwin's Proof focus on the assumptions about God behind Darwin's theory and what a possible alternative theory would look like. Thomas Woodward has provided a history of the intelligent design movement that focuses not only on the major persons and ideas but also on how scientific persuasion takes place. The importance of this for evangelical theology is that it is the evangelist's duty to be a witness to the clarity of God's existence. As Paul states: "God's invisible qualities-his eternal power and divine nature-have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse" (Romans 1:20). A review of these two books reveals some main issues in the debate. The ongoing controversy between Darwinism and alternative creation accounts has gone on for some time without resolution, indicating that presuppositions are not being addressed. Among these are the non-empirical nature of questions about origins, the clarity of God's existence, and the need for an answer to the problem of evil. It is the goal of this review to look at these issues and the contributions to this subject made by these two books.

Hunter's book is another thoughtful look at the religious presuppositions behind Darwinian cosmology. His aim in this book is to argue that Darwinism is wrong and to offer an alternative position. His argument includes a look at the design in cells and at the specious reasoning behind much of the proof used to support Darwinism. As a molecular biologist, Hunter contributes fascinating and accessible information about the detailed workings of cells. He joins the many contemporary voices that are exposing the manner in which non-empirical interpretive frameworks are used, in the name of science, to support Darwinism. He also calls attention to the religious presuppositions behind Darwinism, summed up in the claim that "God would not have made the world this way." Hunter's contribution is to show how most of the arguments used by Darwinists assume this. This is a theological assertion, not an empirically-derived truth. It assumes a great deal about the nature of God, how God works in the creation, and the nature of good and evil. Darwinism is not neutral, but is itself one worldview among others.

While attacks on Darwinism abound, the perception is that there is no viable alternative and therefore it is better to stay on the sinking ship. This is the fallacy of "appeal to ignorance" that states that a position is true until it has been proven false. Hunter takes away this excuse by providing an alternative. While his alternative has similarities with intelligent design theory, it also includes reference to the fall of mankind. That is, the world as it is seen today is not the way it was created. While the world was created very good, natural evil was imposed by God after the fall; therefore, any interpretive method that assumes things have always been as we see them today is faulty. Darwinism assumes that there has always been natural evil in the world and then argues that God would not have a made a world like this. This is begging the question, however. Notice that neither interpretive method (creation/fall/redemption; naturalism) is empirical. This means that this is not a scientific question (where science is construed as the pursuit of empirical data). Hunter's book makes an important contribution in pointing this out.

Woodward's book, as the subtitle specifies, is a history of the intelligent design movement. His focus is more than history, however; it is the assertion that the narrative of the intelligent design movement serves as an integrating and motivating factor in the rhetorical pursuits of the movement. The book focuses on the originating figures in the movement, such as Michael Denton, Phillip Johnson, Michael Behe, and William Dembski. However, the theme that is followed throughout is a look at how rhetoric played a key role in the advancement of this movement. Woodward especially looks at the ethos of the main characters, the need for scientific credibility, and a certain amount of distancing from creationism. What this contributes is an analysis of how the credentials of Darwinism were questioned and how the intelligent design movement grew in acceptability. There is something to be learned from these methods. However, there is not as much focus on the actual arguments as in Hunter's books. While Woodward does provide a detailed look at how a paradigm shift is occurring, not as much time is spent on whether the shift is from a false paradigm to a true paradigm. In theory, one could switch a false worldview for another false worldview and still have failed to know the clear truth about God. What is of special interest, therefore, is how we move from falsehood to truth. Even so, Woodward's book does make an important contribution as a historical look at the intelligent design movement and how rhetoric played a part in its advancement.