RE: TEs vs materialism and McGrath vs ID

One very good way to undercut Dawkins is to ask him how science helps him run his personal life.
 
Moorad

________________________________

From: asa-owner@lists.calvin.edu on behalf of Don Nield
Sent: Tue 5/24/2005 8:55 PM
To: Rich Blinne
Cc: Denyse O'Leary; Ted Davis; asa@lists.calvin.edu
Subject: Re: TEs vs materialism and McGrath vs ID

Rich Blinne wrote:

>
>
> On 5/24/05, *Denyse O'Leary* <oleary@sympatico.ca
> <mailto:oleary@sympatico.ca>> wrote:
>
> Yes, McGrath's a great example. In fact, I wrote about him in one
> of my
> science and faith columns for ChristianWeek. If more Christians
> wanted to
> take on people like Dawkins and fewer wanted to fight with each
> other, we'd
> all be miles ahead. - cheers, Denyse
>
>
> What's interesting is McGrath's book was reviewed by Michael Schermer
> (editor of Skeptic magazine) for Nature. While disagreeing it was
> respectful and noted how McGrath's critique of Dawkins mirrored
> Gould's. What this shows how much more powerful a non-wedge critique
> of philosophical naturalism versus Johnson's approach which is simply
> dismissed out of hand. Johnson could do well by emulating McGrath both
> in how critiques are done but more importantly the underlying irenic
> spirit. Note that McGrath not only had a devestating critique of
> Dawkins but also the warfare model of science and religion which
> ironically is shared between Dawkins and ID.

Yes, and there is another way in which, in the process of undercutting
Dawkins, McGrath has simultaneously undercut ID. McGrath has pointed
out that, even before the publication of Darwin's "Origin of the
Species", John Henry Newman had lambasted Paley's "physical theology".
I add that today we see the inadequacy of ID in the fact that it can
bring Antony Flew from atheism to deisism, but not to a faith in Christ.
Don
Received on Wed May 25 10:41:04 2005