In this blog post, we will examine whether the scientific explanation of the origin of humankind is sufficient, or whether it requires the design of a transcendent being.
Humankind has always been curious about its origin. This curiosity about the mysteries of the universe and the meaning of human existence has been constantly raised in various cultures and civilizations. Ancient religions and philosophies have tried to interpret the origin of the world and the creation of life by proposing various hypotheses, and myths and legends have also satisfied this thirst. These early attempts were often explained through faith and symbols rather than concrete evidence, but they have served as an important stepping stone for people to explore the origin of humanity over the years. As civilization gradually developed, and humans became more inclined to understand the world through observation and analysis, various theories were formed.
In particular, for a long time, the “creation theory” was considered the only convincing approach to the origin of humanity. Creationism claims that the birth of humans and the universe was planned and carried out by some transcendent being, and each culture has told stories about this creation in different forms. In ancient Egypt, the sun god Ra was believed to have created the world, while in the Mesopotamian civilization, the gods ruled the world. These creation stories have had a profound impact on people’s way of thinking as they are embedded in religious scriptures and folktales, and they continue to serve as the basis for faith and belief for many people today.
However, the authority of religion began to weaken in the 17th century with the Protestant Reformation and the Enlightenment sweeping across Europe. As critical thinking about religion gradually spread, people intensified their attempts to understand nature and humans through a scientific approach rather than as transcendent beings. At this time, Darwin published “On the Origin of Species,” and the theory of evolution replaced the theory of creationism as the central theory explaining the origin of biology. As the theory of evolution began to be accepted by many people, the theory of creationism, which had long been considered a faith by mankind, lost its power. Nevertheless, the religious “creationism” and the scientific “evolutionism” remain major issues, and people are wondering which is the only theory that can explain the origin of humanity.
A little more about the views of scientists, the theory of evolution explains how species have changed and adapted based on the observation of natural phenomena. When scientists study natural phenomena, they are confronted with mysterious situations and the greatness of natural laws, and they begin to accept the limitations of an empirical approach. They wonder where this orderly world and the laws that explain this order come from. In particular, the question of how the evolution of living organisms has been governed by laws is constantly being explored among scientists. He tried to find the answer to this question in nature itself, and believed that living things have evolved and will continue to evolve according to the laws that govern the natural world. However, this did not explain the origin of the laws themselves. This is still considered to be the limitation of empirical science.
To overcome this limitation, William Dembski proposed the “intelligent design theory.” This theory states that these laws cannot exist without a transcendent being who designed the world. Although “intelligent design theory” cannot explain all the laws contained in science, it is an alternative to the transcendent aspects that evolution cannot explain. One of the reasons supporting Dembski’s “intelligent design theory” is “irreducible complexity.” This means that a system that performs basic functions by combining several parts cannot perform its function without any one part (Behe, 1997). An example is a mousetrap. A mousetrap consists of a support, a hammer, a spring, a latch, and a fixing bar, and if any one of them is missing, it cannot function properly. This contrasts with the concept of gradual evolution in the theory of evolution.
According to the theory of evolution, the current system must have been an imperfect system in the past. However, an imperfect system cannot function properly, so it cannot fully perform the functions of living things. Irreducible complexity has a logical validity in this respect. Another basis for “intelligent design theory” is the “intricately coordinated universe.” It states that current living things cannot exist without the intention of the designer. Many conditions are required for life to exist in the universe, and these conditions are mostly basic physical constants and forces, which have a very narrow range. In other words, the probability of the existence of the Earth’s ecosystem is very low mathematically. Therefore, even a slight change in value makes it impossible for life to exist. It is quite convincing to argue that the designer intentionally made these fine adjustments.
Of course, there are other arguments, such as the “clockmaker argument” and “irreducible complexity,” but they too argue that the origin and development of life cannot be explained without the intention of the designer. “Intelligent design theory” refutes the “evolutionary theory” through these philosophical questions. The “evolutionary theory” based on positivism is also trying to scientifically refute “intelligent design theory.” However, as the theory of evolution has limitations in explaining nature, the persuasiveness of the theory of intelligent design cannot be ignored. William Hopkins also said this about the theory of evolution.
“It is based on a priori considerations without any evidence that can be proven, and it is based on a limited perspective instead of a broad perspective on the actions and phenomena of the physical causes that make up what we call nature.”
Darwin’s ‘On the Origin of Species’ was also a hypothesis test based on observation, and it was not the one that led to all the laws of nature, and it is limited information of a kind of speculation, so it is possible that it is wrong. Due to the limitations of this “evolutionary theory,” the current research direction is focused on finding decisive evidence that can turn these speculations into certainty. It developed into an empirical and agnostic content through the Renaissance and Newtonian era. Agnosticism is a philosophy that states that it is impossible for humans to recognize the true nature of things. Therefore, empirical theories focused on explaining scientific phenomena.
Current science is excellent at applying natural laws to life or explaining the processes of phenomena. However, it has a limitation in that it cannot answer questions about the existence of the laws themselves. In light of this fact, it may be natural to argue that a new science that goes beyond empirical science is needed. The “intelligent design theory” that has emerged in this situation may be a theory that can open up new horizons for science. Although the “intelligent design theory” itself began from a position of doubting the “evolution theory,” it only has logical development or reasoning, and does not claim to be based on practical results. When reading the “intelligent design theory,” it is difficult to distinguish whether it is science or philosophy, or whether it is a religious content with a scientific theory.
Ultimately, the “intelligent design theory” has only logical arguments and inferences, but has not been able to produce any experimental results. This is not enough to win the sympathy of the general public, but it is enough to open up new scientific horizons and can be seen as a fundamentalist science that seeks to explain the nature of things.
