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William Paley Institute
for
Intelligent Design™ |
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William Paley
(1743-1805)
Design must have had a Designer
"If we received a single intelligent signal containing information
from
space then we would conclude that there is intelligent life out
there.
Each cell in the human body contains more information than in all
thirty
volumes of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. It's certainly reasonable
to
make the inference that this isn't the random product of unguided
nature, but it's the unmistakable sign of an Intelligent Designer."
Walter Bradley, quoted in The Case for Faith by Lee Strobel, p110
(The human genome, has 80,000 genes arranged in 3 billion DNA
molecule
pairs.)
Another modern version of Paley's watch is the 'Anthropic
Principle',
the fact that the physical constants of the universe are 'just
right' to
support life - the universe 'appears' designed to support life. In
other
words the universe is not just the result of chance.
Another example is the "irreducible complexity" of structures at a
molecular level demonstrated by Michael Behe.
"We distinguish between intelligent and natural causes every
day--every
time a detective investigates a possible homicide, every time an
archaeologist picks out an arrowhead from a pile of rocks, every
time
radio astronomers at the Search for Extra-Terrestrial Intelligence
listen for patterns in the noise coming from outer space. In these
cases, modern science doesn’t have a problem assuming some
intelligent
being is responsible for the evidence--a human, even an alien. But
if
you try to distinguish between intelligent and natural causes in
basic
biological systems, things get a little messier. If you find
intelligence in biology, then who or what was the intelligent
designer?
It’s a question science doesn’t want to pose, let alone answer."
Lauren
Kern Houston Press December 14, 2000
Intelligent Design begins with the observation that intelligent
causes
can do things which undirected natural causes cannot. Undirected
natural
causes can place scrabble pieces on a board, but cannot arrange the
pieces as meaningful words or sentences. To obtain a meaningful
arrangement requires an intelligent cause. This intuition, that
there is
a fundamental distinction between undirected natural causes on the
one
hand and intelligent causes on the other, has underlain the design
arguments of past centuries. William Dembski
Biography
Born in July 1743, in Peterborough, England, William Paley trained
for the
Anglican priesthood, graduating from Christ's College, Cambridge in
1763.
He was appointed a fellow and tutor of his college in 1766, and rose
through the ranks of the Anglican Church. He died on May 25, 1805.
Paley wrote several books on philosophy and Christianity, which
proved
extremely influential. His 1794 book A View of the Evidence of
Christianity was required reading at Cambridge University until the
20th
century. His most influential contribution to biological thought,
however,
was his book Natural Theology: or, Evidences of the Existence and
Attributes of the Deity, Collected from the Appearances of Nature,
first
published in 1802. In this book, Paley laid out a full exposition of
natural theology, the belief that the nature of God could be
understood by
reference to His creation, the natural world. He introduced one of
the
most famous metaphors in the philosophy of science, the image of the
watchmaker: . . .
when we come to inspect the watch, we perceive. . . that its several
parts are framed and put together for a purpose, e.g. that they are
so
formed and adjusted as to produce motion, and that motion so
regulated
as to point out the hour of the day; that if the different parts had
been differently shaped from what they are, or placed after any
other
manner or in any other order than that in which they are placed,
either
no motion at all would have been carried on in the machine, or none
which would have answered the use that is now served by it. . . .
the
inference we think is inevitable, that the watch must have had a
maker
-- that there must have existed, at some time and at some place or
other, an artificer or artificers who formed it for the purpose
which we
find it actually to answer, who comprehended its construction and
designed its use.
Living organisms, Paley argued, are even more complicated than
watches,
"in a degree which exceeds all computation." How else to account for
the
often amazing adaptations of aniamls and plants? Only an intelligent
Designer could have created them, just as only an intelligent
watchmaker
can make a watch:
The marks of design are too strong to be got over. Design must have
had
a designer. That designer must have been a person. That person is
GOD.
Quoted from William Paley (1743-1805)
Teleology.
teleology (from Greek telos, "end"; logos, "reason"), explanation by
reference to some purpose or end; also described as final causality,
in
contrast with explanation by efficient causes only. Human conduct,
insofar
as it is rational, is generally explained with reference to ends
pursued
or alleged to be pursued; and human thought tends to explain the
behaviour
of other things in nature on this analogy, either as of themselves
pursuing ends, or as designed to fulfill a purpose devised by a mind
transcending nature. The most celebrated account of teleology was
that
given by Aristotle when he declared that a full explanation of
anything
must consider not only the material, the formal, and the efficient
causes,
but also the final cause--the purpose for which the thing exists or
was
produced.
Teleology is based on the proposition that the universe has design
and
purpose. In Aristotelian philosophy, the explanation of, or
justification
for, a phenomenon or process is to be found not only in the
immediate
purpose or cause, but also in the "final cause"—the reason for which
the
phenomenon exists or was created. In Christian theology, teleology
represents a basic argument for the existence of God, in that the
order
and efficiency of the natural world seem not to be accidental. If
the
world's design is intelligent, an ultimate Designer must exist.
source
With the rise of modern science in the 16th and 17th centuries,
interest
was directed to mechanistic explanations of natural phenomena, which
appeal only to efficient causes; if teleological explanations were
used,
they took the form not of saying (as in Aristotelian teleology) that
things develop toward the realization of ends internal to their own
natures but of viewing even biological organisms as machines
ingeniously
devised by an intelligent being. In the 18th century, William Paley,
a
Protestant apologist, gave classic expression to this kind of
teleology.
Immanuel Kant's Kritik der Urtheilskraft (1790; Critique of
Judgment)
dealt at length with teleology. While acknowledging--and indeed
exulting
in--the wondrous appointments of nature, Kant cautioned that
teleology can
be, for man's knowledge, only a regulative and not a constitutive
principle; i.e., a guide to the conduct of inquiry rather than to
the
nature of reality.
In the late 19th century, controversy centred on whether the
phenomena of
growth, regeneration, and reproduction characteristic of living
organisms
could be explained in purely mechanistic terms. The vitalism of Hans
Driesch, a German biologist and philosopher, according to which an
Aristotelian entelechy, or immanent agency, must be postulated in
every
organism, found little support after his death. There remains,
however,
the question of whether biological processes can be explained in
purely
physicochemical terms, or whether the problems of structure,
function, and
organization necessitate some kind of teleology. Organismic
conceptions,
such as those espoused in the mid-20th century by Ludwig von
Bertalanffy,
an Austrian-Canadian theoretical biologist, have thrown these issues
into
a new perspective. britannica.com
Paley, William
b. July 1743, Peterborough, Northamptonshire [now in
Cambridgeshire], Eng.
d. May 25, 1805, Lincoln, Lincolnshire
English Anglican priest, Utilitarian philosopher, and author of
influential works on Christianity, ethics, and science, among them
the
standard exposition in English theology of the teleological argument
for
the existence of God.
Educated at Giggleswick School and Christ's College, Cambridge,
Paley
graduated in 1763 as senior wrangler and was appointed fellow and
tutor of
his college in 1766. After becoming rector of Musgrave (1775),
Dalston
(1776), and Appleby (1777), he was made archdeacon of Carlisle
(1782) and
later a canon of St. Paul's (1794), subdean of Lincoln (1795), and
rector
of Bishop-Wearmouth (1795).
Paley's most important works were The Principles of Moral and
Political
Philosophy (1785), the subject of lectures at the University of
Cambridge;
A View of the Evidence of Christianity (1794), which was required
reading
for entrance to Cambridge until the 20th century; and Natural
Theology
(1802), based on John Ray's Wisdom of God Manifested in the Works of
the
Creation (1691). In Natural Theology, Paley used the analogy of the
watch:
both the world and the watch presuppose a maker. The book strongly
influenced Charles Darwin. britannica.com
Darwin on Paley:
In order to pass the B.A. examination, it was, also, necessary to
get up
Paley's Evidences of Christianity, and his Moral Philosophy. . . The
logic of this book and as I may add of his Natural Theology gave me
as
much delight as did Euclid. The careful study of these works,
without
attempting to learn any part by rote, was the only part of the
Academical Course which, as I then felt and as I still believe, was
of
the least use to me in the education of my mind. I did not at that
time
trouble myself about Paley's premises; and taking these on trust I
was
charmed and convinced of the long line of argumentation. Charles
Darwin.
Autobiography
William Paley (1743-1805) Intelligent Design Movement (1991 - )
For more on Intelligent Design see Behe (irreducible complexity of
structure at molecular level), Phillip E Johnson is the de facto
leader of
the Intelligent Design movement, Anthropic Principle (design in the
universe), Intelligent Design (articles) Intelligent Design (Books).
..... The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the
work
of his hands. (Psa 19:1)
For since the creation of the world 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.
(Rom
1:20 NIV)
(Psa 8:3-9 NIV) When I consider your heavens, the work of your
fingers,
the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, {4} what is man
that you are mindful of him, the son of man that you care for him?
{5}
You made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him
with glory and honor. {6} You made him ruler over the works of your
hands; you put everything under his feet: {7} all flocks and herds,
and
the beasts of the field, {8} the birds of the air, and the fish of
the
sea, all that swim the paths of the seas. {9} O LORD, our Lord, how
majestic is your name in all the earth!
(Psa 94:8-11 NIV) Take heed, you senseless ones among the people;
you
fools, when will you become wise? {9} Does he who implanted the ear
not
hear? Does he who formed the eye not see? {10} Does he who
disciplines
nations not punish? Does he who teaches man lack knowledge? {11} The
LORD knows the thoughts of man; he knows that they are futile.
Books:
Natural Theology ; Evidences of the Existence and Attributes of the
Deity. Collected from the Appearances of Nature. by William Paley
Intelligent Design Books: Darwin's Black Box is the modern
equivalent to Paley.
Darwin's Black Box : The Biochemical Challenge to Evolution by
Michael J. Behe. Within the biochemistry of living cells, he argues,
life is "irreducibly complex." This is the last black box to be
opened, the end of the road for science. Faced with complexity at
this level, Behe suggests that it can only be the product of
"intelligent design."
The Biotic Message - Walter ReMine - The book focuses on the
biological issues. It is not about age, geology, cosmology, floods,
or catastrophes. It contains no theology or religious discussion. I
highly recommend this book. It reveals the illusions that
evolutionists use to propagate their dogma. This should be read by
creationists as will as evolutionists.
Mere Creation: Science, Faith & Intelligent DesignWilliam A.
Dembski, editor InterVarsity Press (Sept., 1998), 448 pp., $24.99 .
Nineteen experts trained in mathematics, mechanical engineering,
philosophy, astrophysics, ecology, evolutionary biology, and other
disciplines challenge the reigning ideology of materialistic
naturalism on both scientific and philosophical grounds, as they
press their case for a radical thinking of established evolutionary
assumptions.
The Creation Hypothesis: Scientific Evidence for an Intelligent
Designer, J P Moreland, editor (March 94, 335 pages, $13.99) P.J.
Moreland and a panel of scholars examine arguments and evidence from
astronomy, physics, bio-chemistry, paleontology, and linguistics as
they evaluate the creation hypothesis. Review Amazon
Intelligent Design : The Bridge Between Science and Theology by
William A. Dembski, Michael J. Behe. Hardcover - 302 pages (November
1999) Amazon
The Design Inference : Eliminating Chance Through Small
Probabilities (Cambridge Studies in Probability, Induction and
Decision Theory) by William A. Dembski How can we identify events
due to intelligent causes and distinguish them from events due to
undirected natural causes? If we lack a causal theory, how can we
determine whether an intelligent cause acted? This book presents a
reliable method for detecting intelligent causes: the design
inference. The design inference uncovers intelligent causes by
isolating the key trademark of intelligent causes: specified events
of small probability. Just about anything that happens is highly
improbable, but when a highly improbable event is also specified
(i.e., conforms to an independently given pattern) undirected
natural causes lose their explanatory power.
Darwinism Defeated? by Phillip E. Johnson, Michael Behe, Denis O.
Lamoureux Paperback - 180 pages (September 1, 1999)
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Promoting an
Understanding of the Intelligent Design of the Universe
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