Book Review: Nature Red in Tooth and Claw: Theism and the Problem of Animal Pain by Michael J. Murray

In Nature Red in Tooth and Claw: Theism and the Problem of Animal Pain, Michael J. Murray outlines and assesses the adequacy of various defenses of theism in light of ‘the Darwinian picture’. The Darwinian picture consists, roughly, of the following claim:

For hundreds of millions of years—long before man arrived on the scene—non-human animals capable of experiencing real and morally significant pain have inhabited the earth.

The conflict between the Darwinian picture and theism I shall henceforth call ‘the problem of animal suffering’ (or PAS). PAS is, in Murray’s estimation, worth investigating because it a version of the problem of evil that has been relatively untouched in philosophy, because it makes suffering a central component of the development of life[i], and because he thinks that the standard responses to other versions of the problem of evil are largely impotent when it comes to animal suffering.

Mind and Cosmos: Why the Neo-Darwinian Conception of Nature is Almost Surely False by Thomas Nagel

The central argument of Mind and Cosmos: Why the Neo-Darwinian Conception of Nature is Almost Surely False by Thomas Nagel seems[1] to be as follows.

1. There are three possible and mutually exclusive explanations for the world and its contents: materialistic naturalism[2], theism[3], or teleological naturalism[4].
2. The correct explanation of the world and its contents is not materialistic naturalism.
3. The correct explanation of the world and its contents is not theism.
4. Therefore, the correct explanation is teleological naturalism.

Now, already a possible terminological confusion looms: isn’t it the case that teleological arguments are inevitably arguments for theism? Well, no, as it turns out. It becomes apparent as the book progresses that what Nagel is arguing for is an Aristotelian type of natural teleology: an immanent, this-worldly type of tendency or bias on the part of nature to produce certain ends. Such teleology does not posit any transcendent Mind in which intentions or goals reside.

The argument seems valid, and perhaps the first premise is relatively inoffensive to naturalist and theist alike. Argument will thus center on premises 2 and 3.

Casey Luskin Interview Transcript on Intelligent Design

The following transcript is from an Apologetics 315 interview with Casey Luskin. Original audio here. Transcript index here. If you enjoy transcripts, please consider supporting, which makes this possible.

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BA: Hello, this is Brian Auten, of Apologetics 315. Today’s interview is with Casey Luskin, Research Coordinator for the Center For Science and Culture. He’s an attorney in the Seattle area, with graduate degrees in both science and law. Some listeners may be familiar with Casey, from listening to the “ID the Future” podcast, or from his writing at the “Evolution News and Views” blog. The purpose of this interview is to look a bit more at the idea of Intelligent Design, explore some of the common objections to ID, and see what Casey’s view is about the future of Intelligent Design as a movement. Thanks for joining me for this interview, Casey.

CL: Thanks so much for having me.

BA: Well, first off, Casey, would you mind telling our listeners a bit more about yourself, and what kind of work you’re involved in?

Saddleback's Apologetics Weekend on Creation

The following audio and video resource is from Saddleback's recent Ahmanson Lecture Series on Creation, which took place on November 24 & 25, 2012. The media page has all the content, but quick links are below. Past apologetics weekend archives for 2009, 2010, and 2011 can be found at Saddleback's page here.

Paul A. Nelson: Darwin or Design? MP3 | Video

Lee Strobel: The Case for a Creator MP3 | Video

Craig Hazen: the Intersection of Science and Faith MP3 | Video

Raymond Bohlin: How Biology Points Toward God MP3 | Video

John Bloom: How the Universe Points Toward a Creator MP3 | Video

Enjoy.

Phillip E. Johnson on Darwinian Arguments

"In the final analysis, it is not any specific scientific evidence that convinces me that Darwinism is a pseudoscience that will collapse once it becomes possible for critics to get a fair hearing. It is the way the Darwinists argue their case that makes it apparent that they are afraid to encounter the best arguments against their theory. A real science does not employ propaganda and legal barriers to prevent relevant questions from being asked, nor does it rely on enforcing rules of reasoning that allow no alternative to the official story. If the Darwinists had a good case to make, they would welcome the critics to an academic forum for open debate, and they would want to confront the best critical arguments rather than to caricature them as straw men. Instead they have chosen to rely on the dishonorable methods of power politics."

Phillip E. Johnson

The Wedge of Truth: Splitting the Foundations of Naturalism Intervarsity Press: Downers Grove IL, 2000, p.141

Intelligent Design Interview: Thomas E. Woodward

Today's interview is with Thomas E. Woodward, professor at Trinity College of Florida, and founder and director of the C.S. Lewis Society. Woodward is an historian of the intelligent design movement. He talks about his work and background, the intelligent design movement (its definition, origin, and goals), anti-ID objections and rhetoric, the direction of the ID movement today, the Dover trial, the question of "is ID science?", the approaches of Michael Behe,  William Dembski, and Stephen Meyer, The Mysterious Epigenome: What Lies Beyond DNA, the future of ID research, resources for people learning and teaching ID, and more.

Full Interview MP3 Audio here (47 min)

Books by Thomas Woodward include:
• Doubts About Darwin
• Darwin Strikes Back
• The Mysterious Epigenome: What Lies Beyond DNA

Enjoy.
Subscribe to the Apologetics 315 Interviews podcast here or in iTunes.

Thomas Woodward Interview on Intelligent Design

Today's audio is Hank Hanegraaff's interview with Thomas Woodward, founder and director of the C.S. Lewis Society, and research professor at Trinity College of Florida. He's also the author of a number of books, including Darwin Strikes Back: Defending the Science of Intelligent Design. He talks with Hank Hannagraff about the definition of Intelligent Design, the mechanisms of darwinian theory, the fossil record, the differences between ID and creationsim, the rhetoric of science, comparing human and chimp DNA, common origin vs. common design, the resistance against ID, and more. Original audio found at Equip.org, here and here.

Full MP3 Audio here (75 min)

Other books by Thomas Woodard include:
• Doubts About Darwin: A History of Intelligent Design
• Darwin Strikes Back: Defending the Science of Intelligent Design
• The Mysterious Epigenome: What Lies Beyond DNA

Enjoy.

Darwin or Design: 25 Interviews with Leading Proponents

Darwin or Design (by Jason Rennie) is a collection of audio interviews with 25 people on both sides of the intelligent design question, including PZ Myers, Michael Behe, Guillermo Gonzales, Elliott Sober, Massimo Pigliucci, Henry Schaefer, and more. There are interviews on what evolutionary theory currently thinks, what is intelligent design, the philosophy of science, and others. This is 9 1/2 hours of content in a podcast feed. Originally found at podiobooks.

RSS feed here. Get it in iTunes here.

Enjoy.

[HT: Rob]

Darwin's Surprise MP3 Audio by Dr. Charles Thaxton

Dr. Charles Thaxton presents a lecture on Darwin's Surprise: Why Darwin Wouldn't Write the Origin Were He Alive Today. This lecture suggests what Darwin would think and write about if he were doing research today.

Full MP3 Audio here. (originally found here)

Enjoy.

Kyle Butt vs. Dan Barker Debate MP3 Audio - Does the God of the Bible Exist?

Kyle Butt debates Dan Barker on the topic: Does the God of the Bible Exist? For commentary on the debate, see here.

Full MP3 Audio here.

Various Kyle Butt MP3 audio has also been added here.
A notable review can be found here.

Enjoy.

Is Richard Dawkins Still Evolving? - An Article

Melanie Phillips, writing in the Spectator, offers her thoughts on the second debate between John Lennox and Richard Dawkins; this one held at Oxford University Natural History Museum - Tuesday evening 21st October 2008.

Melanie Phillips asks - Is Richard Dawkins Still Evolving? and makes some pertinent points of her own.

Hear their first debate here.

The Dawkins Letters by David Robertson Online

David Robertson presents his rebuttal to Richard Dawkins' God Delusion in The Dawkins Letters. A good read that is now available for reading online chapter by chapter here.

Also, watch video of David Robertson discussing the book and the reaction it has provoked here.

Enjoy.

Five Questions Evolutionists Would Rather Dodge by William Dembski

Mathematician and philosopher William Dembski presents five questions evolutionists would rather dodge in this quick resource for dealing with evolutionary theory.

This includes the fossil record, natural selection, detecting design, molecular machines, and testability.

Download the PDF here.

Enjoy.

Three Articles on Darwinism from dissentfromdarwin.org

The arguments that ultimately unravel the Darwinian synthesis aren't terribly difficult to grasp. Anyone who remembers the rudiments of logic they learned in freshman composition can follow the essentials of the argument.

Below are three articles to get started:
Fact Sheet: Microevolution vs. Macroevolution
Fact Sheet: The Cambrian Explosion
The Survival of the Fakest

These resources can be found at www.dissentfromdarwin.org.

Doubts About Darwin: MP3 Audio by Dr. Tom Woodward

This MP3 Audio presents the essential material from the book by Dr Woodward of the same title. It focuses not only on the history of Intelligent Design research, but on the specific nature of the arguments advanced by Intelligent Design that the culture has found hard to resist.

MP3 Audio here.

More good stuff from the European Leadership Forum.

Enjoy.

Testing Darwinism Evolution: Random Mutation Generator

Have you ever wanted to do your own Darwinian experiments? Find out how beneficial random mutations can be over time. You can even add in your own natural selection to make the process realistic.

Check out the Random Mutation Generator and do your own Darwinian experiments.

And don't come crying and complaining to me... I didn't make the web site.
But there are some other good resources to check out: Cosmic Fingerprints.

Enjoy.