Several times in multiple threads member Kelly recommended and/or referred to a book called
What is Creation Science? By Henry M. Morris and Gary E. Parker. After searching my bookshelves I realized that this in one I do not have, so immediately purchased it from Amazon. I had made the promise that I would buy and read the book with as much of an open mind as possible in the hopes of a discussion with Kelly on the book.
Well, I read it from cover to cover. And, as many of you said, it was exactly the same material Morris has presented in other works such as Scientific Creationism. Nowhere in the book does he present a model for how a creation science research program would or should proceed. There is simply none presented, just a long series of supposed refutations of evolution. I am not just making a blanket assertion, I can go into great detail about this. There also is, typical Morris style, a heavy lacing of his favorite quotes (the same ones from the Quote Book and In their own Words). I find these particularly fun as I like to obtain the original sources and do a side by side comparison.
For example, in the very first paragraph of chapter 1 Morris writes:
quote:
Furthermore, all of the facts of science which we can observe seem to contradict the very idea of evolution. As the evolutionist, George Marsden, has admitted (1973) "Evolution...strains popular common sense. It is simply difficult to believe that the amazing order of life on Earth arose out of the original disorder of the universe"
Now, if you take Morris at his word you see that this evolutionist is admitting that the concept of evolution is stretching the bounds of credibility. Even he, as an expert, has a hard time swallowing it, right?
I don't have the original essay by Marsden, although it is (presumably the same) reproduced in a collection of Marsden's essays called "Understanding Fundamentalism and Evangelicism" First of all, George Marsden is not an "evolutionist" (in a professional sense). He is a professor of history and divinity. Second, the essay is called "Why creation science?" and is an attempt to explain why creation science is widely accepted by layman. He is not presenting his beliefs on the subject but presenting how it sounds to people who are not familiar with the underlying sciences. If Morris read that essay, I think he would know what the author was presenting. He would know that Marsden was not admitting some fatal weakness in the science. But Morris knows that it is a safe bet his audience would never go read that source themselves. Even if they tried, he doesn't include this essay in his bibliography but includes another Marsden essay from 19
83. They may be the same (?), if anyone has access to Nature 1983 Vol. 305 pg 572 take a look and see if that quote is included (My school stopped subscribing to archived journals before 1990 or so).
If Kelly is still interested I would be willing to do a one on one discussion of this book chapter by chapter. Is it possible to place this in Book Nook and relocate if Kelly is interested in discussion?
Morris HM and Parker GE (1987) What is Creation Science? 2nd Ed. Revised and expanded. Master Books, El Cajon, California 331 pp.
Doctor Bashir: "Of all the stories you told me, which were true and which weren't?"
Elim Garak: "My dear Doctor, they're all true"
Doctor Bashir: "Even the lies?"
Elim Garak: "Especially the lies"
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