Intelligent Design: William A. Dembski & Michael Ruse in Dialogue

By: Robert B. Stewart

Book Overview

The subject of intelligent design has been much in the news in recent months but is often treated in a piecemeal fashion or one-sidedly. This volume highlights points of agreement and disagreement... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0800662180
• ISBN13: 9780800662189
• Release Date: January 2007
• Publisher: Fortress Press
• Length: 257 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 6.1" x 9.1"

Customer Reviews

All of the diverse essays are respectful in tone and pay meticulous attention to detail.

Editor Robert B. Stewart gathers the insights of leading intellectuals William A. Dembski, Michael Ruse, and others in Intelligent Design, an examination of the hotly contested debate between proponents and deniers of the Intelligent Design theory. Intelligent Design strives to be as objective as humanly possible; essays address the tasks of finding a precise definition for ID, ID's history as an idea and body of thought, the most common objections to and defenses of ID, and much more. All of the diverse essays are respectful in tone and pay meticulous attention to detail. A bibliography and index round out this measured assessment of the standoff between evolution, creationism, and perspectives in between.

This book was banned in Dover

"Intelligent Design: William A. Dembski & Michael Ruse in Dialogue" contains a goldmine of information about the Intelligent Design movement. Included are chapters by Francis Beckwith of Baylor University, Wesley Elsberry, John Lennox of Oxford University, Nicholas Matzke, Alister McGrath of Oxford University, Berkeley PhD Nancy Murphy, Hal Ostrander, Wolfhart Pannenberg, Martinez Hewlett, Sir John Polkinghorne of Cambridge University, Michael Ruse and others. All of the chapters are very useful in understanding this now hotter than ever controversy and most of the authors are well known scholars in their field. Most ironic is the extensive discussion of the Dover case and the fact that this book would not be allowed as a supplemental text in Dover, PA. One way around the judge's decision would be to cut the book up and allow students to read only the chapters opposed to Intelligent Design (ID) and remove those in favor of ID. I would be very interested if some brave soul used this book in a public school in USA and was challenged by the ACLU to see if it would pass constitutional muster in the United States. According to Judge Jones's ruling, as discussed in detail in this book, it would not. If the court ruled that this book would have to be cut up, I wonder what chapters would escape the knife. Many chapters discuss religion, including those against ID, and to be consistent they should also be cut. Fortunately, the public can read this "banned book" and decide for themselves, something the students in Dover are not allowed to do as students.