The Darwin Myth

American Journal of Physical Anthropology, 1992

Philosophy in Review, 2009

Often fascinating, often frustrating, this is a hefty-and unfortunately unindexed-anthology on evolution and religion, distinguished by its emphasis on process thought, the philosophical-cum-theological approach to metaphysics based on the writings of Whitehead. As Cobb, himself a pioneer of process theology, explains, the purpose of the book (and of the conference on which it was based) is 'to introduce a Whiteheadian voice into the present discussion of evolution and religion' and to indicate 'the way in which a theistic evolutionary theory can be coherently developed from a Whiteheadian point of view' (17-18). Not all of the contributors are invested, or even particularly interested, in process thought, but the volume is editorially shaped in such a way as to present 'one long argument' (to borrow Darwin's phrase) for the importance of process thought for understanding evolution, scientifically as well as theologically. Cobb challenges what he takes to be three dubious claims: that contemporary evolutionary theory is scientifically adequate, that the metaphysics presupposed in contemporary scientific practice is philosophically adequate, and that both of these are theologically adequate for 'a revised formulation of theology' (311)-that is, a formulation along the Whiteheadian lines he favors. In so doing, he is seeking to integrate science and theology in a way that may require revisions not only to theology but also to science; he is thus rejecting, in the familiar typology offered by Ian Barbour, the alternative positions on which science and theology are regarded as in conflict, as independent, and as in dialogue. On none of these points, too, are all the contributors in agreement with Cobb, as he acknowledges, but it is fair to judge the volume's success in terms of the success of his ambitious project. In reacting against contemporary evolutionary theory, Cobb's argument finds a foil in what he calls neo-Darwinism, here represented in person by Francisco Ayala. A student of Dobzhansky and a formidable scientist in his own right, Ayala is also a former Dominican priest with a doctoral degree in theology; he favors the independence position in Barbour's typology. His main contribution to this collection is 'From Paley to Darwin: Design to Natural Selection', but he also furnishes four subsidiary essays on various subjects. In all, about a generous seventh of the book is Ayala's, although anyone wanting to understand his views will probably be better served by reading his Darwin's Gift to Science and Religion (2007). He devotes a few salient pages to the term 'neo-Darwinism', observing that it 'has little currency among evolutionary biologists' and seems to be 'mostly confined to the writings of philosophers and theologians' (53). As if to prove him right, neo-Darwinism turns out to be the philosophical and theological bogey of the volume. David Ray Griffin, for example, identi

F1000Prime Reports, 2015

Darwin is the father of evolutionary theory because he identified evolutionary patterns and, with Natural Selection, he ascertained the exquisitely ecological ultimate processes that lead to evolution. The proximate processes of evolution he proposed, however, predated the discovery of genetics, the backbone of modern evolutionary theory. The later discovery of the laws of inheritance by Mendel and the rediscovery of Mendel in the early 20th century led to two reforms of Darwinism: Neo-Darwinism and the Modern Synthesis (and subsequent refinements). If Darwin's evolutionary thought required much refinement, his ecological insight is still very modern. In the first edition of The Origin of Species, Darwin did not use either the word "evolution" or the word "ecology". "Ecology" was not coined until after the publication of the Origin. Evolution, for him, was the origin of varieties, then species, which he referred to as well-marked varieties, whereas, instead of using ecology, he used "the economy of nature". The Origin contains a high proportion of currently accepted ecological principles. Darwin labelled himself a naturalist. His discipline (natural history) was a blend of ecology and evolution in which he investigated both the patterns and the processes that determine the organization of life. Reductionist approaches, however, often keep the two disciplines separated from each other, undermining a full understanding of natural phenomena that might be favored by blending ecology and evolution through the development of a modern Theory of Natural History based on Darwin's vision of the study of life.

The Review of Communication, 2003

Evolution: Education and Outreach, 2011

Here we address three misconceptions stated by Rice et al. in their observations of our article Paz-y-Miño and Espinosa (Evo Edu Outreach 2:655–675, 2009), published in this journal. The five authors titled their note “The Theory of Evolution is Not an Explanation for the Origin of Life.” First, we argue that it is fallacious to believe that because the formulation of the theory of evolution, as conceived in the 1800s, did not include an explanation for the origin of life, nor of the universe, the concept of evolution would not allow us to hypothesize the possible beginnings of life and its connections to the cosmos. Not only Stanley Miller’s experiments of 1953 led scientists to envision a continuum from the inorganic world to the origin and diversification of life, but also Darwin’s own writings of 1871. Second, to dismiss the notion of Rice et al. that evolution does not provide explanations concerning the universe or the cosmos, we identify compelling scientific discussions on the topics: Zaikowski et al. (Evo Edu Outreach 1:65–73, 2008), Krauss (Evo Edu Outreach 3:193–197, 2010), Peretó et al. (Orig Life Evol Biosph 39:395–406, 2009) and Follmann and Brownson (Naturwissenschaften 96:1265–1292, 2009). Third, although we acknowledge that the term Darwinism may not be inclusive of all new discoveries in evolution, and also that creationists and Intelligent Designers hijack the term to portray evolution as ideology, we demonstrate that there is no statistical evidence suggesting that the word Darwinism interferes with public acceptance of evolution, nor does the inclusion of the origin of life or the universe within the concept of evolution. We examine the epistemological and empirical distinction between the theory of evolution and the concept of evolution and conclude that, although the distinction is important, it should not compromise scientific logic.

Understanding Evolution in Darwin’s “Origin”. The emerging context of evolutionary thinking, 2023

The sixth chapter of Charles Darwin’s Origin of Species is called “Difficulties of the theory”. In that part of his work, Darwin reveals some possible objections to his theory and attempts to provide an answer to all of them. Such a chapter was part of the first edition of the Origin of Species, therefore the difficulties described were not reactions derived from the publication of the book. Some of them have been probably presented by friends, such as Charles Lyell. Others can be found in works published before Darwin’s work, such as Natural Theology by William Paley, which argued for creationism and introduced arguments against any natural explanation of the origin of species. Many other problems dealt with in the sixth chapter were born, however, from Darwin’s own internal dialogue, from his own initial doubts concerning the theory and from this anticipation of criticism, as one can gather from his manuscripts. This paper describes the main difficulties shown in the sixth chapter of the Origin of Species, providing a more detailed exposition of a few topics, and analyzing Darwin’s defense, in those cases. It also discusses some of the weak points in Darwin’s line of reasoning, from a diachronic point of view.

Archives of Natural History, 2012

To speak of evolutionary trees and of the Tree of Life has become routine in evolution studies, despite recurrent objections. Because it is not immediately obvious why a tree is suited to represent evolutionary history – woodland trees do not have their buds in the present and their trunks in the past, for a start – the reason why trees make sense to us is historically and culturally, not scientifically, predicated. To account for the Tree of Life, simultaneously genealogical and cosmological, we must explore the particular context in which Darwin declared the natural order to be analogous to a pedigree, and in which he communicated this vision by recourse to a tree. The name he gave his tree reveals part of the story, as before Darwin's appropriation of it, the Tree of Life grew in Paradise at the heart of God's creation.

We do not live in Darwin's world, 2023

Evolution as a process developing the earth from a dead block of stone to this living, thriving planet through the work of living beings, microbes, plants and animals is a fact that cannot be denied regarding the findings and knowledge of modern science. But it is also evident, if you take a deeper look into the details, that a constructive process of such magnitude could not be accomplished by destructive principles like Darwin’s “war of nature” and “battle of life”. The pivotal element, the secret of success of nature, was and is cooperation – on all levels of being. Darwin’s hypothesis (as he himself called it) starts from a wrong basic assumption, describes a process of species change that is inconsistent with logic and to date still unproven, even if it is always claimed to be. And the Neo-Darwinian view that has replaced Darwin’s original concept is a totally watered-down surrogate of the origin, a deceptive package so to say, be-cause it has dismissed the basic assumptions of the author. And also, it becomes clear for an attentive observer, that the vast variety of beauty, ecological brightness, ingenious inventions and sustainable systems of nature cannot be explained just by random mutations, natural selection, chance and need. There must be assumed an overwhelming creative intelligence behind every component of the universe, from subatomic particles to gigantic galaxy clusters. This was not only advocated by philosophers or theologians but also by prestigious natural scientists like Max Planck and Al-bert Einstein, the latter admitting that he was a supporter of pantheism, meaning that every-thing is out of God and within God as an aspect of the divine. That this view inevitably arises from logical consideration will also be examined in this paper as well as the consequences that arise hereby for our evolutionary contribution to the process of life on earth.

Sacred Web, A Journal of Tradition and Modernity (Volume 46), 2020

Touted as ‘the single best idea that anyone has ever had’, Charles Darwin’s idea — that living organisms have originated and evolved from a common biological ancestor by a mechanism of natural selection acted on by random mutations – has a reputation of being scientifically sound and is regarded as unassailable. This essay aims to debunk that assumption, using arguments against macro‐evolution, from the standpoints of both science and metaphysics.

Archives of Natural History, 1995

Given the number of books written by Charles Darwin and the significance of these spread out over a large natural historical and scientific field, it is surprising that English publishers have not made more of an effort to present a compact selected volume of the kind usually available in the United States. Now, at last, Penguin Books have added such a selection to their standard versions of the Voyage of the Beagle (edited by Janet Browne and Michael Neve) and On the Origin of Species (edited by J. W. Burrow). As one would expect, the Portable Darwin includes a large chunk from both of these. The editors give the first four chapters, and the last, of the first edition of the Origin where Darwin outlined the main points of his argument succinctly, and some well4cnown but always readable passages from the Journal of researches. These extracts are well-chosen for their purpose. It is, however, the material before and after which really shows the variety and excellence of their undertaking. There are extracts from Darwin's geological works, including the papers and books about South America and coral reefs which made his scientific name; the entire text of the joint papers by Darwin and Wallace which were presented to the Linnean Society in July 1858; and crucial passages from the Descent of Man. Everyone will be glad to see these in such an accessible form. In between, there are notes on bees, seeds, primroses and worms, showing just how firmly Darwin's researches rested on laboriously detailed practical investigations into nature. The editors really come into their own, however, with the material chosen to reflect Darwin's working life after the Origin: the fascinating excursion into orchid sexual anatomy, the expression of the emotions, the effects of cross-fertilisation in plants, and the movement of plants, as well as one or two spirited paragraphs on sexual selection (including Ruskin's quip about Darwin's "deep and tender interest" in the hinder parts of monkeys) and the sense of direction shown by horses. They include Darwin's curious theory of pangenesis (inheritance) and useful material on variation. Darwin's private life is well represented too, particularly in his recollections of John Stevens Henslow, his friend and professor at Cambridge University, his memoir on his grandfather Erasmus Darwin, and his sketch of an infant's development, based on his observations on his own growing children. Everything, it should be mentioned, comes from a then-contemporary publication, many of them difficult to find today: there are no private letters or notebook musings here. The editors have rightly decided to show the man that the Victorians saw-the public Darwin as well as the eminently portable one. The whole is as fresh, readable, and interesting as anyone could wish. JANET BROWNE BAUMUNK, BODO-MICHAEL and RIESS, JÜRGEN, (editors). Darwin und Darwinismus. Akademie Verlag, Berlin: 1994. Pp 265 (26 cm x 22 cm), illustrated, paperback. Price DM 48.00.