Creationism: Design Errors and Cross-Purposes

A resurgence of fundamentalist religious thinking on both sides of the Atlantic is creating demands for the anti-evolutionist, Bible-based doctrine of Creationism and the less doctrinaire but equally unprovable concept of ‘Intelligent Design’ (ID) to be taught in the school science curriculum as genuine alternatives to the theory of evolution. The two sides seem to be intractable: Creationists are impervious to scientific reasoning, and scientists rely on attacking them in sterile, materialist terms. While presenting the scientific case against Creationism and ID, Graham Richards argues that these beliefs contain a number of deep conceptual contradictions which their scientific critics have failed to discern. He also finds the physical-science camp guilty of an arrogant and patronizing contempt for religion in general. This book aspires to widen the debate, encouraging both sides to re-appraise their own positions.