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Without excuse

A vindication of the argument from design

Intelligent design

WITHOUT EXCUSE
A vindication of the argument from design
By David N. Samuel
The Harrison Trust, PO Box 47, Ramsgate CT11 9XB
301 pages. £15.00 (inc. p& p)
ISBN 0 907223 27 3

This scholarly book is certainly not easy reading, but it is important nonetheless and its publication is timely.

Written originally as a PhD thesis in 1983, it follows the ‘argument from design’ from its earliest beginnings through to the 1980s. Its one lack is that it does not complete the picture by describing and appraising the current success of the ‘Intelligent Design’ movement.

David Samuel shows how the argument from design was well established and respected before the publication of Origin of Species, giving much space to an evaluation of the contribution made by William Paley through his book Natural Theology. He demonstrates convincingly that the arguments that Darwin used were not original but were well known to some Victorian thinkers and goes on to explain why he was successful in establishing the theory of evolution when those using similar arguments had failed. An important point is emphasised — that random chance is an essential component of Darwin’s theory of Natural Selection. There is no place for a designer in Darwinism; acceptance of his theory leads to belief in a bleak, purposeless existence, as many realised in the 1860s when evolution was gaining acceptance.

For those interested in the creation/evolution debate, this book contains much valuable material. It shows the design argument to be a powerful one, though not one that could lead anyone directly to a personal knowledge of God. Rather, it is the first step in that process. Once a person is convinced that he or she is not a product of random, meaningless, chance but created by design, that person is then placed under a moral obligation to seek to know the Creator.

After 150 years out in the cold, the argument from design is being re-established through the Intelligent Design Movement and is meeting with success in academic circles. This book has the potential to add to that success.

Sylvia Baker,
Mottram-in-Longdendale