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Teleology - A Case for Intelligent Design - Part 2

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Continued from " Teleology - A Case for Intelligent Design - Part 1 " Professor Robbin Collins, highlights three examples, out of over thirty, of evidence for fine-tuning. [1]  First, there is production of oxygen and carbon in the stars. The astrophysicist Sir Fred Hoyle said, “I do not believe that any scientist who examined the evidence would fail to draw the inference that the laws of nuclear physics have been deliberately designed with regard to the consequences they produce inside stars.” [2]  Physicist Heinz Oberhummer and fellow scientists recently discovered that only a one percent change of strong nuclear force would create a thirty-to a thousand-fold influence on the creation of carbon and oxygen in stars. Oberhummer explains, “Stars provide the carbon and oxygen needed for life on planets, if you throw that off balance, conditions in the universe would be much less optimal for the existence of life.” [3] Second is gravity. If the fine tuning of the univers

Teleology - A Case for Intelligent Design

The teleological argument is the case from design. Teleological means “directed towards some goal.”  [1]  Sir Thomas Aquinas believed the fingerprint of God was on nature. Life’s processes and components appeared to have purpose. And their purpose was designed by a creator. According to Aquinas the natural world governed. Aquinas wrote, We see how things, like natural bodies, work for an end even though they have no knowledge. The fact that they nearly always operate in the same way, and so as to achieve the maximum good, makes this obvious, and shows that they attain their end by design, not by chance…There is therefore an intelligent being by whom all natural things are directed to their end [2]    Aquinas posited that nature shows signs of design by its working order. This is seen in natural things as they exist for a purpose with an appearance of design.                  One of the most significant contributors to the teleological argument was William Paley. It was in 1802

Detection of Design

Before I dive into teleology, let me blog briefly on the detection of design to expound on my last blog: The Case for Intelligent Design. It is first important to know what design means, as well as a way for design to be detected. The term “design” means the “purposeful arrangement of parts.” Imagine you were at Grand Central Station in New York. You walked into the main hall and it is very busy. People are rushing to catch their train. Others are stopping to grab coffee.  Over in the corner is a man selling magazines and newspapers. You look down to check the time. You look up and you see a woman motionless, apparently frozen.  You scan the room and see more than a dozen more motionless. This goes on for over a minute. You stare in amazement by this.  Another minute goes by and they all go back to their activities. In an instant they are freed from their paralysis.  Then from the balcony above you hear clapping and a loud “Great job everyone!” You ask a woman who was frozen to exp

Cosmology - A Case for Intelligent Design

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Why is there something rather nothing? How come the universe exists? We does the earth exist? Why are we here? Again, why is there something rather than nothing? This is a question people have been trying to answer for thousands of years. Many today would suggest that the universe is just a brute fact. But a many others suggests it's here because it was intelligently designed. Over the course of three blogs, we'll look at cosmology, the detection  of design, and teleology. Let's begin with cosmology. The first argument for intelligent design is the cosmological argument. Simply put, the cosmological argument is the argument for causation. Professor and apologist, William Lane Craig has championed this defense in three parts: “Whatever begins to exist has a cause. The universe began to exist. Therefore the universe has a cause.” [1] In other words, there must be a first cause.  However, this is Professor of Physics Edward Tryton’s conclusion, “Our universe is simply