Science and Origins

Naturalism

Intelligent Design

Creationism

Three basic types of philosophies are used to evaluate and explain scientific evidence or the results of scientific experiments. None of them are scientific themselves; none can be absolutely proven or disproven, although persons may be persuaded or dissuaded by arguments and appeals to evidence. Basic concepts of these three approaches go back thousands of years, but the detailed forms now accepted by proponents have a recent history. Understanding these three philosophies benefits scientific progress, for bitter, time-wasting disputes between these camps can result from ignorance about them.

One modern definition of the word “Naturalism” is “all things in the universe can be understood in scientific terms, without spiritual or supernatural explanations.” Another is “all phenomena or hypotheses commonly labeled as supernatural, are either false or not inherently different from natural phenomena or hypotheses” [wikipedia.org]. Since the 19th Century, Naturalism, when applied to scientific investigations, has become more popular than in previous centuries. It often includes the assumption of the nonexistence of any supreme God that operates on the observable universe, or  that designed or created the universe.

The official definition is “the theory of intelligent design holds that certain features of the universe and of living things are best explained by an intelligent cause, not an undirected process.” [intelligentdesign.org]. Intelligent Design (or I.D.) is not a version of Biblical Creationism nor is it a Creationist program. In fact, I.D. researchers come from many religious and even nonreligious backgrounds. They do not promote any religion or scriptures as part of their investigations.

 

In April, 2008, the documentary film Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed brought I.D. to public attention. The point was about unjust persecution of I.D. proponents. It is a highly controversial movie.

“Creationism is a belief system which postulates that the universe, Earth, and life on Earth were deliberately created by an intelligent being” [creationwiki.org] When applied to science, belief in Creation by God is sometimes called “creation science.” The most popular form of creationism is found in the United States and is based on the Christian Bible, including literal interpretations of several key points in the Old Testament book of Genesis (the creation of the “heavens and the earth” and the Flood of Noah). One form of Christian Creationism is known as Young Earth (YEC), which holds that all the universe was created a few thousand years ago and that creation occurred in six 24-hour days.