Intelligent Design = Creationism?
This is the second in a short series examining the question of whether intelligent design is “creationism.”
Yesterday, I introduced the subject and defined some important terms like “intelligent design,” “evolution,” and “creationism.” Today I look at the first charge of ID opponents concerning this issue.
First, critics of intelligent design often charge that there is no distinction between creationism and intelligent design. Intelligent design has been called “creationism’s Trojan horse,” “creationism in a cheap tuxedo,” and “a slightly sophisticated version of biblical creationism.” Philosopher Barbara Forrest claims that intelligent design is…
… the newest variant of the traditional creationism…
and…
… barely camouflaged creationism.
Is there any reason to believe that the critics are correct? It is certainly true that many Christians are supporters of intelligent design. It is also true that some of those Christians are young-earth creationists. It may even be true that some of those young-earth creationists have misunderstood the intelligent design movement as supporting young-earth creationism. Therefore, it is certainly possible for one to think that creationism and intelligent design are the same thing. This is not, however, the actual case.
Intelligent design scholars do not consider intelligent design to be a form of creationism, despite the insistence of critics to call the movement “intelligent design creationism.” Many intelligent design scholars would not identify themselves as creationists in the sense referred to by the critics (young earth creationists). Some are even agnostic as to the existence of God. Others are non-Christians. Many, although Christian, acknowledge the universe as being approximately 15 billion years old, the earth as 4.5 billion years old, the common ancestry of all complex life, and even the evolution of life from simple to complex. Certainly, it is incorrect to call these individuals “creationists” with the usual connotations of young-earth biblical creationism.
Perhaps more importantly, the two most prominent (young earth) creationist groups, Answers in Genesis (AIG) Ministries and Institute for Creation Research, are highly critical of the intelligent design movement because it does not seek to defend the biblical account of creation. AIG specifically objects to intelligent design because it refuses to identify the designer with the biblical God and because many prominent members in intelligent design reject or are hostile to a recent creation. The fact that not all intelligent design advocates are Christians and not all creationists are intelligent design advocates shows that intelligent design is not identical to creationism. According to a Washington Post article:
University of Wisconsin historian Ronald L. Numbers, an ID opponent and author of “The Creationists,” agrees the creationist label is inaccurate when it comes to the ID movement. But, he adds, it’s “the easiest way to discredit intelligent design.”
Next… another assertion by ID critics.