Creation vs. Evolution Resources

Though we may not endorse every idea in these resources, we believe they can be useful especially for parents trying to help their children with the creation vs. evolution issue.

 

Return of the God Hypothesis: Three Scientific Discoveries That Reveal the Mind Behind the Universe

By Stephen C. Meyer, Ph.D.

Published by HarperOne, March 2021

ISBN-10: 0062071505

In his newest book, Stephen Meyer discusses three scientific discoveries that challenge the theory of evolution. Dr. Meyer is the author of several previous books advocating for the theory of intelligent design and serves as director of the Discovery Institute’s Center for Science and Culture.

Since Charles Darwin wrote his book On the Origin of Species, proponents of evolution have attacked the belief in God and any proofs of God evidenced in what creation reveals. Dr. Meyer addresses the arguments of today’s scientific materialists Richard Dawkins (The God Delusion) and Carl Sagan (Cosmos). Dr. Meyer devotes 450 pages of logical, fact-driven discussion to repudiate atheistic arguments.

The underpinnings of thought have changed since the time of Newton, Galileo, Copernicus and Kepler. The forefathers of modern science believed in a Creator God and believed their work of investigating the nature of the universe was “to scrutinize the work of God Himself, to behold His creation in ever deeper glory” (“Did History’s Most Famous Scientists Believe in God?” Forbes.com, June 26, 2018). Dr. Meyer notes that in 1600 Johannes Kepler wrote that “God wanted us to recognize” natural laws “by creating us after his own image” (p. 25).  

But the later work of Charles Darwin, Karl Marx and Sigmund Freud moved culture away from God and into materialism. As Dr. Meyer describes it, “Darwin told us where we came from, Marx told us where we are going, and Freud told us about human nature and what to do about our guilt” (p. 63).

Dr. Meyer challenges the materialistic explanation by pointing to three scientific discoveries that provide evidence for God. The first scientific discovery that signals the existence of God grew from the work of Edwin Hubble, Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking. Though working at different times, their combined efforts led to the fact that the universe had a beginning. It came into existence at a specific time and continues to exist through finely tuned constants. Dr. Meyer describes this as anthropic fine-tuning that enables the earth to sustain life.

The second discovery came between 1950 and 1960 with the work of James Watson and Francis Crick that uncovered the structure of DNA. Further work has shown that the DNA molecule is a coded language of amino acids that directs the sequenced unfolding of each cell’s functioning.

The third discovery lies in the layers of sedimentary rock that lack the necessary fossils to support evolution. Darwin believed that life-forms transitioned from simple to complex. He based the proof of his theory on finding supporting evidence in the sedimentary deposits. However, the Cambrian layer and others like it show the sudden, simultaneous appearance of major animal groups, rather than what Darwin predicated.

I found the book worthwhile and challenging. It answers and refutes the current neo-Darwinian narrative. Dr. Meyer has organized recent scientific discoveries in a clear and powerful way.

In addition to his work at the Discovery Institute in Seattle, Dr. Meyer makes frequent appearances as a speaker and lecturer. His previous books are Signature in the Cell (2009) and Darwin’s Doubt (2013).

Reviewed by Jack Hendren

 

ORIGIN: Design, Chance and the First Life on Earth (Video)

Director: Lad Allen

Published by Illustra Media, 2016

46-minute video

With today’s advanced tools of investigation, the evidence for life originating from a superintelligent Designer is more overwhelming than ever. In addition to many good books explaining the reality of what science has discovered inside the cell, there are also video productions that show the staggering complexity of life’s components. One excellent video is ORIGIN, a sequel to Unlocking the Mystery of Life.

The saying “a picture is worth a thousand words” is demonstrated in this video. The reality of the workings of the millions of machines inside a living cell is so incredibly complex that a visual portrayal is extremely helpful. It’s one thing to read about the complex machines inside a living cell. It’s much more impressive to see these machines in action.

The first part of the video shows the awesome complexity involved for even the simplest living cell to form and come to life. Amino acids are complex enough. But many different amino acids must join together perfectly before a functional protein can ever form.

Among the animations is an unforgettable demonstration of the statistical impossibility of a functional protein forming from amino acids on its own. In this portrayal a single amoeba crosses the entire universe, back and forth, multiple times, at the speed of one foot per year. Still, in all that time, statistically no viable protein would yet be formed from random combinations of amino acids.

Animations in this video show transcription machinery that transforms complex DNA instructions into functional proteins, and machines that replicate entire, enormously complex cells.

As with many intelligent design resources, this production does not get into theological discussions. It simply focuses on proving that the origin of life is statistically and scientifically impossible by the theory of evolution.

Here is the producer’s description of this video: “With spectacular computer animation and cutting-edge research, ORIGIN examines a question that has baffled science for centuries: How did life on Earth begin? Today, most researchers insist it arose through simple chemistry that—without direction of plan—transformed inanimate matter into the first living cell. Yet, this explanation is devoid of evidence and unsatisfying, even to its most ardent supporters.”

The explanations contained in this 46-minute video should prove very helpful to students—from elementary- to college-level—and to all of us who are bombarded almost daily with evolutionary biases.

Reviewed by Paul Luecke

 

Undeniable: How Biology Confirms Our Intuition That Life Is Designed

By Douglas Axe

Published by Harper One, 2016

ISBN 978-0062349583

298 pages

Douglas Axe received his doctorate from the California Institute of Technology and has written papers for several prestigious scientific journals such as The Journal of Molecular Biology and The Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

He specialized in studying proteins, and he has found that they are very complex. On page 61 he states: “Bricks and breakfasts are made only if someone makes them. We know of no exceptions. With that assurance, we confidently apply the same intuition to primordial soup—only to be told we’re wrong.”

In other words, if a brick is found in ancient sediment, we automatically assume that it was man-made. Yet when we find out about the incredible complexity of proteins, scientists assert they were made by chance.

On page 19 Dr. Axe quotes psychologist Alison Gopnik: “‘By elementary school-age,’ she wrote, ‘children start to invoke an ultimate God-like designer to explain the complexity of the world around them—even children brought up as atheists.’”

In other words, children must be taught to deny what is obvious. Life was designed!

Dr. Axe conducted extensive research into the function of proteins. On page 81 he states: “To explain how natural proteins, with their exquisite functions, could have appeared by accident is a monumental challenge.”

What is the origin of proteins? On page 57 Dr. Axe describes how his experiments enabled him to “put a number on the actual rarity” of accidentally producing new functional proteins: “only one good protein sequence for every 10⁷⁴ [that’s 1 followed by 74 zeros] bad ones.”

His book reflects the conclusions of someone who has studied in detail the incredible complexity of proteins. Scientists who believe in evolution can’t really explain the existence of the amazing proteins we find in life.

The common idea is that scientists have no bias and only look at the facts. Dr. Axe points out that scientists are human and can be influenced by bias. On page 39 he states: “Oddly enough, I now see how the pursuit of prestige—so evident in my own life—goes a long way toward explaining how science gets stuck on certain wrong ideas.”

Undeniable has many important facts that point to a creator who designed life!

Reviewed by Bill Jahns

 

The Wonder of Water: Water’s Profound Fitness for Life on Earth and Mankind

By Michael Denton

Published by Discovery Institute Press, 2017

ISBN: 978-1936599479

226 pages

Dr. Denton is a British-Australian biochemist and author, with M.D. and Ph.D. degrees from British universities. In many of his writings (including the companion volumes for which he is best-known: his 1985 Evolution: A Theory in Crisis and his 2016 Evolution: Still a Theory in Crisis), he discusses weaknesses in the theory of evolution, and also the evidence in the natural world of a super designing intelligence responsible for it all.

In this volume, he describes the unique properties of water that make advanced life possible.

Dr. Denton describes and comments on the marvelous “unique fitness” of water for life. “The one substance, water, is uniquely fit to serve two utterly different vital ends—ends as different as can be conceived: the erosion of rock and the circulation of the blood. Both are absolutely vital to our existence. No other substance in nature comes close to having the essential set of properties needed to do these two jobs” (p. 12).

But there is much more. Dr. Denton delves into other unique attributes of water that make possible complex life, including human life. Among these are its thermal, chemical and physical properties. Altogether, they point to a causative, designing intelligence—a conclusion quite at odds with the underlying assumption of the neo-Darwinian theory, which is based purely on randomness in an entirely materialistic universe.

Taken together, these unique properties of water “reveal that life on Earth—including humankind—is not mere cosmic happenstance. Through its magic, water sings a universal song of life, and in its special fitness for human physiology it sings a special song of man. The properties of water show that beings with our biology do indeed occupy a special central place in the order of nature, and that the blueprint for life was present in the properties of matter from the moment of creation” (p. 13).

Denton, though not a religious man, concludes that something or someone quite intelligent and purposeful must be behind the wonders of water.

This book is one of a series by the author dealing with the evidence that our planet is “privileged”—specially designed for life—and different from any other place in the universe.

Reviewed by Tom Kirkpatrick

 

More creation vs. evolution resources

Evolution: Still a Theory in Crisis, Michael Denton, 2016.

Debating Darwin’s Doubt, edited by David Klinghoffer, 2015.

Genetic Entropy, J.C. Sanford, 2014.

Darwin’s Doubt, Stephen C. Meyer, 2013.

The Mysterious Epigenome, Thomas E. Woodward and James P. Gills, 2011.

The Myth of Junk DNA, Jonathan Wells, 2011.

Darwin on Trial, Phillip E. Johnson, 2010.

The Deniable Darwin, David Berlinski, 2010.

Darwin’s Black Box, Michael Behe, 2006.

Bones of Contention, Marvin L. Lubenow, 2004.

I Don’t Have Enough Faith to Be an Atheist, Norman L. Geisler and Frank Turek, 2004.

The Case for a Creator, Lee Strobel, 2004.

The Privileged Planet, video, Illustra Media, 2004.

Icons of Evolution: Science or Myth? Jonathan Wells, 2000.