Burgy,
I'll not try to rewrite the definition now, but I would suggest that the
word "materialism" is entirely out of place. Including it makes the common
error of defining a scientific concept in a way that entails the rejection
of any form of theism; Phil Johnson, for instance, defines "Darwinism" in
the same way, thereby ensuring that the title "Christian Darwinists" can be
used to place his Christian opponents at a malodorous disadvantage.
I would suggest two strategies that avoid this problem:
1) identify David Griffin's "minimal naturalism" as the metaphysical basis
for the scientific concept of biological evolution -- thereby leaving the
scientific concept of evolution as something that could be welcomed both by
maximal naturalism and naturalistic theism;
2) adopt the "robust formational economy principle" as descriptive of the
universe's character and leave the door open to more traditional theism as
well as naturalistic theism and maximal naturalism.
Howard Van Till
----------
From: John W Burgeson <burgytwo@juno.com>
On that web site -- they give the following definition of Darwinism. Any
comments? I happen to think it may be somewhat too specific as to
mechanisms. My own variant follows:
Site's definition:
"the scientific theory which, operating under the philosophies of
materialism and naturalism, makes the assertion that life today is the
result of purely natural processes, such as the natural chemical origins of
the first cell, and a mutatation-selection mechanism causing microevolution,
macroevolution, speciation, which account for the origins of all cellular
functions, morphologies, and common ancestry through descent with
modification for all life forms."
My variant:
"the scientific theory which, operating under the philosophies of
materialism and naturalism, makes the assertion that life today is the
result of purely natural processes, such as the natural origins
of the first cell, and natural mechanisms causing microevolution,
macroevolution, speciation, which account for the origins of all cellular
functions, morphologies, and common ancestry through descent with
modification for all life forms.
John Burgeson (Burgy)
http://www.burgy.50megs.com
(science/theology, quantum mechanics, baseball, ethics,
humor, cars, God's intervention into natural causation, etc.)
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