Intelligent Design Has Answers
Who Done It?
Written Proofs
Who Wrote Genesis?
Moses’s Claim
But was Moses Writing History or Recording Cultural Legends?
The Final Choice: Evolution or Genesis
Evolution or Intelligent Design: Which Is Correct? Part 4
We come at last to our discussion of Intelligent Design. Will it fare better than evolution?
Intelligent Design Has Answers
If you admit that the amazing variety of species with complex and purposeful characteristics must point to a creator, most of these theoretical problems disappear.
- The origin of all life is from a consciousness, that is, a mind.
- Man did not ascend from apes. There are varieties within species, but no evolution between species. Humans have always been humans.
- Complex features were created purposefully for each plant or animal.
- Without the concept of evolution, why wouldn’t simpler life forms continue to exist?
- Since humans have not ascended from animals, Intelligent Design is in harmony with other sciences.
- A detailed description of man is not needed. He is little different today from at first.
Who Done It?
That’s all very well, but who is the creator? How and when did he create, and why?
Are we NPCs in a computer game or some Matrix-like situation? Dr. Behe explains that
these are radical positions from mathematical algorithms and other procedures. There is no proof.
These hypotheses fail the Rule: The simplest answer is usually true.
Also, logic says that a supernatural world (from our point of view) cannot be measured, described, or hypothesized by those within the “natural” world. In other words, if there is a “supernatural” world, someone from that world would have to tell us about it.
One or more god from a pantheon as the creator is supported by cultural legends. We have already discussed those.
Written Proofs
We haven’t looked at these. Written proofs are valued because we know when the thoughts were expressed and that these reports have not changed over time. Four religions have written texts about the creation of man.
- First century B.C.Tripitaka Buddhism: a variety of writers
- 610 A.D.Koran Islam: received by Muhammed
- 1500-1200 B.C.Vedras Hinduism: a variety of writers
- Debated Genesis Christianity: Moses, Joshua, or scribes
Do you remember this? Rule: The reporter who lived closest in time to the event is
Probably the most accurate.
That rules out the Tripitaka and the Koran. It also rules out Genesis if it was written by scribes during the fifth or sixth century B.C. I cannot find which Vedra contains the creation story, and therefore when it was written.
Who Wrote Genesis?
The contestants are (drum roll, please!)…
- Moses probably wrote it sometime after 1531 B.C.
- Joshua wrote it while leading the people, sometime after the Moses’s death: 1451
- Jewish priestly scribes in the fifth or sixth century B.C.
Moses’s Claim
- The Holy Bible is a library with books arranged by genre. The 39 books of the Old Testament is believed by Jews and Christians to be authoritative. Many other books were written during the Old Testament period and the Intertestamental Period that are not authoritative, including the books of the scribes.
- Within the Holy Bible, there are many references to the Books of Moses or the Books of the Law (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy).
- This authority has never been questioned by Jews or Christians.
- While written in ancient Hebrew, there are many touches of a top-level Egyptian education. Moses was adopted by “Pharaoh’s daughter” and would have had the premier education available. Here are some examples:
- Knowledge of the geography, military strength/tactics, and products of the whole civilized world.
- The repeated use of the number ten, as in the ten plagues and the Ten Commandments. Egypt was the only civilization that used Base Ten like we do. All other civilizations, including the homeland of the Hebrews, used Base Sixty.
- It is written in an ultra-minimalist style unique to Moses, which is similar to the writing a military report. Just the facts, Ma’am!
Was Moses Writing History or Recording Cultural Legends?
Dr. Stephen Boyd, a specialist in Ancient Hebrew, determined that there is a clear delineation between narrative literature (fact) and poetic literature.
This determination is made by analyzing the verb form overwhelmingly used in the passage.
The creation story including the creation of man was written as historical fact.
The Final Choice: Evolution or Genesis?
You can’t choose both. We’ll see why next time.
Suggested readings:
DeYoung, Don. Thousands…not Billions (a RATE report) This book contains Dr. Boyd’s study.
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