Term Paper on "Scientific Creationism"

Term Paper 6 pages (1528 words) Sources: 0

[EXCERPT] . . . .

Henry M. Morris' book Scientific Creationism that are controversial, adversarial, enlightening and intriguing. Though the book was written to explain how the beliefs of those who state that the earth was created by a superior being and those who belief in evolution are compatible, instead of explaining that compatibility to the satisfaction of all those involved, it opens up entirely new questions even more complex than those the book is attempting to answer. By approaching the subject in this way, makes the book more interesting and thought provoking to those individuals pondering those very same questions.

For instance, Morris states on pages 8-10 that the Creation model and the Evolution model are the only two models of origin. By making this statement, Morris deigns to consider such factors as an overlapping model such as theistic evolution, or to consider the Hindu model which is that the universe has always existed and has always contained the creatures it currently contains. For the individuals that believe in those particular models, Morris' statements in the book discussing his two 'valid' models would probably not induce those readers to agreement, but may further alienate them from anything else the book may contain.

There are also thousands of additional religions, some ludicrous and some not so ludicrous that have their own special beliefs that do not fit into either of the two model categories as espoused by Morris.

This is just one example of the statements contained in the book that are written on such a broad scope that causes the controversy states above. Another example of the broad statements used by Morris is on page 14. There he states the learning creationism can stimulate mental health. He says that learning creationism accomplishes this stimulation because it is consistent with an individual's inner thoughts, creates joy (that comes from scientific discovery, and helps to sustain an individual's morals. Morris says that all these factors come about because the individual becomes more aware of a Creator, and that with the gained awareness the person must feel a sense of responsibility towards that Creator.

Readers of the book may disagree with Morris' statements by espousing such things as inner peace coming from our own innate sense of fairness and accomplishment, or that certain religions believe that we have no souls at all, or even that we are an ever evolving society of human beings that came about naturally (through evolution for example) and that after we have passed from this earth, we shall be as dust once more (and not in the biblical sense either).

Morris also forgets (or maybe does not have access to) to provide any data supporting this assertion. This leaves the argument open to any opposing broadsides especially from the academic world, which has in the past been vociferous in their attacks on equally as broad a statements as the ones espoused in Morris' book.

Such opponents might question the lack of evidence, but they could also be quick to point out that there are plenty of people who do not accept the creationism theory (or may not even be aware of the theory) who also enjoy good mental health and clear thinking.

Although the book does use a lot of general and broad based assumptions and characterizations, it does not do anything more than what many 'certified' scientists do on a daily basis, and in a far more derisive manner than what is found in Scientific Creationism. Many of the derisive comments made by such scientists are counted as gospel by the local and national media, who may wish to portray themselves as progressive free thinkers. Such comments as "no genuine scientist denies evolution" or "much of the evidence is overwhelmingly in favor of the evolution theory" lead to a certain degree of bias by Creationists against modern media. Such bias is seldom in evidence in Morris' book. While he does make controversial statements throughout the book, and his lack of supporting evidence can be commented upon, it can be said that the way that he has written his beliefs, coupled with the research that he did include would at least cause even the most obstinate of scientists to at least examine his remarks in search of truth. If not, at least Morris' comments can be used for much debate and dialogue.

We find another of these controversial statements by Morris on pages 80-81 concerning the Cambrian Explosion.

Morris states that complex life forms appear suddenly during the Cambrian Explosion with no evidence of ancestral fossils to be found. Many who do not believe in Creationism will spout off that the Cambrian Explosion was 50 million years old, and therefore not a very sudden event at all, as promulgated by Morris. Often these same individuals will say that we have no evidence that there was no complex life before that event took place, so we cannot know for sure if there was complex life forms or not. These same individuals may also bring up the fact that there is very limited data concerning the Cambrian Explosion, what came beforehand, or what came after, and that most of the limited data that is accessible is also very controversial. Such statements then that there were no complex life forms, cannot be either proven or disproven. Many scientists grumble that creationists teach controversial viewpoints, but then do not accept controversial views in regards to findings by scientists. There are many viewpoints regarding the Cambrian Explosion, of which almost all of them are controversial, whether viewed from a Creationist's viewpoint, or the scientific viewpoint. Morris, in this regard, does an excellent job of stating the Creationist's viewpoint.

Much of what Morris writes concerning the Cambrian Explosion (and the book in general) is science interweaved with faith, but Morris does try to justify his statements by producing scientific evidence that supports his assertions.

Such attempts at evidence can be found on page 122 when Morris purports that scientists have found human and dinosaur footprints together at the Glen Rose formation at Paluxy River, Texas.

Many scientists have said that the evidence of human footprints are, in actuality misidentified dinosaur footprints which bear a similarity to human footprints. These same scientists have said that some of the residents of the town of Glen Rose have been known to artificially enhance particular footprints in their search for the almighty tourist dollar, or perceived fame, that such notoriety could bring to them. These types of occurrences are rather ironic, since many times those who believe in Creationism are accused by those in the scientific world of concocting evidence in support of their beliefs.

One of those beliefs found in the book is that creationism as compared to a model such as natural selection or survival of the fittest is (according to Morris) more likely than what has been given credit to. A survival of the fittest model can be described as containing tautologies, or circular thoughts. For example, since the survival of the fittest model says that the fittest individuals are those that procreate more often and bear more offspring, it is also defining those that procreate more often and bear more offspring as being the fittest. The definition fits because it is the definition. With this type of scientific definition being used, then Creationism has no chance whatsoever in being accepted by those who define such characteristics.

It is an impossible attempt at converting these scientists over to a creationism viewpoint, because the definitions are so fixed in their thought process, that it cannot be changed. The book attempts to bridge that gap between what the scientist defines as the methodology but has no way of doing so because the definition itself is the methodology.

What is really intriguing about the book was that it made no… READ MORE

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