Creation Science Rebuttals

     For the most part, the author of this chapter, Georgia Purdom, presents a reasonable summary of the Intelligent Design movement, although I fear this tends to be a more global response than an American one.  By that, I mean that she portrays ID as free from any specific religion.  In America, the ID movement is clearly tied to Christianity, and its main proponents are indeed Christian.  Although they are Christian, I feel Purdom's summary, in saying that they have a "big tent" approach, is right on.  They try to disguise their true beliefs, in the hope of cracking the stronghold that evolution has upon America.

     She is right in saying that the ID movement does not oppose an old age for the earth.  Although I don't have numbers, I would suspect that most in the ID movement are old earth creationists.  However, it should also be noted that young earth creationists have latched onto the ID movement, seeing it as an possibility to push God back into the classroom.  Thus, on the one had, they support ID, but on the other (such as this article), they stand off from it.  Answers in Genesis has maintained a fairly neutral stance, although secretly I'm certain they would like to see ID succeed.

    Two final points.  First, if you are a creationist, in a broad sense you are also an Intelligent Design advocate.  Obviously, our God designed our world and its contents intelligently.  Second, Sheppard closes this summary with the statement, "God has a dual role of both Creator and Redeemer. An understanding of both these roles can only be accomplished using both general revelation (nature) and special revelation (the Bible)."  She says to use both general and special revelation.  But, when Dr. Hugh Ross (and progressive creationists) use general revelation, they accuse us of lifting it to the equivalent of the Bible.  So, they can use it and we can't?  Makes you think...