Leaps of Faith

Russ Pulliam, in a column on the Indianapolis Star web site, weighs in on the debate over what to teach in schools. He makes some good points about the philosophy inherent in Darwinian theory. Although it is not explicit, his reference to "that kind of evolution" gets at the distinction between microevolution and macroevolution noted in my sidebar. Here are some excerpts:

The debate over intelligent design is not just an argument about how to teach science.

When scientists boldly proclaim the Darwinian theory of evolution, they go way beyond scientific expertise into matters of philosophy and theology.

That is why some Indiana Republican lawmakers are working on legislation to require equal time in the classroom for the intelligent design theory of origins along with evolutionary theory.

. . . .

Plenty of scientists have claimed rights to territory they never really conquered with the theory of evolution. They say that faith has no place in matters of science, that science has its rules of evidence and observation, and that any faith-based approach to origins will step outside those rules.

Yet these scientists have brought their own kind of faith to bear in the assumptions behind evolutionary theory. Some big leaps of faith are found in theories about mankind evolving from the animal kingdom and one species gradually changing into another. That kind of evolution can't be observed or tested in the lab.

I hope that the Indiana legislature goes the route of Minnesota, Ohio and Kansas, and mandates teaching scientific evidence that both supports and challenges macroevolutionary theory, and stays away from mandating intelligent design for now. Such a course of action is obviously good public policy, good science and should be immune from Constitutional challenge.