Charles Darwin’s theory of evolution is a religious theory in the sense that it is based on powerful theological claims. Over the past four centuries these beliefs have influenced and even dominated science, and if anything have grown even stronger since Darwin. They form the foundation and ultimate justification for today’s theory of evolution. As evolutionist Ken Miller rhetorically asked, would God “really want to take credit for the mosquito?” Evolution, in one form or another, must be true. But theists are not the only ones using religion to mandate this rigid form of naturalism. Ironically, religious skeptics are just as capable of making God-wouldn’t-create-the-species type arguments. David Hume is a well known historical example, though many of his ideas Read More ›

Over at Culture Watch, American born, Melbourne living, blogger Bill Muehlenberg provides yet another good review of John West’s Darwin Day in America. ‘Social Darwinism’ is a term which refers to the social and political ramifications of biological Darwinism and the materialism which it is imbedded in. Darwin regarded humans as basically higher animals, and as the social sciences became more and more tinged by the Darwinian outlook, humans increasingly began to be treated as mere animals, or machines. This volume looks at how the materialistic worldview of Darwinism has impacted on a wide range of fields. As academics, scientists and politicians apply the Darwinian view of man to various social sciences, some very negative outcomes have ensued. We have Read More ›

“Theodore Dalrymple” not only has one of the most droll pen names I have seen (the man is a doctor who enjoys his privacy), but he also is one of England’s best writers on social issues–and its finest contrarian. One of his favorite targets is scientism and the ways it ravages the poor and ignorant. In this review in The New York Sun he is singing a song whose tune I know well and whose lyrics I never tire of: “Marx is Dead, Freud is Dead, and by the way, so is Darwin.”