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Charles Darwin's earth-shattering 1859 thesis The Origin of Species has a new challenge in the intriguing 2008 documentary film by Ben Stein, Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed. This film is one of the many voices now challenging Darwin's hypotheses about the evolution of life. In the balance are serious issues. Is there visible evidence of intelligent design (ID) by a divine creator who has a purpose for His creation?
I found the presentation to be captivating. It shows Stein traveling around
the United States, Europe and even the Galapagos Islands where Darwin's
evolutionary theory had its genesis. The travelogue and interviews draw
you into the reality of discrimination. Anyone who believes in any form
of ID or religious explanation of creation is ridiculed or even ostracized.
Stein's use of the Berlin Wall as a metaphor for what is happening in the scientific community is thought-provoking, if not a little dramatic. As the film concludes, the candid interviews and on-the-spot reflections make clear there is a serious war going on to minimize religion and, in particular, the impact of a divine creator.
What I appreciated is the clarity Stein provides. He draws out the tension surrounding this topic during his many interviews. There is an obvious struggle going on, with many in the science field staunchly opposed to ID. The common worldview among strict evolutionists rejects design as incompatible with the undirected process of nature. Many in the academic world resist ideas that focus on "purpose," "intentionality" and "why."
Stein takes on Richard Dawkins, author of many books on Darwinism and proponent of evolution. Toward the end of the presentation, Stein gets Dawkins to agree that some form of ID could have started life, only to hear Dawkins backpedal and muddle his logic thereafter.
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