Evolution vs. Intelligent Design

In today’s New York Times, an article was published about Dover, Pennsylvania being divided over a school controversy. The controversy was that some parents wanted the “intelligent design” theory taught in their children’s science classes, while the other half felt that the school had no right implanting religious theories into their child’s mind. The pro-catholic parents felt that their children should learn different theories to the evolution process, in order to give them a motive to question, and thus seek out the real answer. However, the other parents thought the school was imposing unconstitutional ideas during school time. In the end, the school board voted 6 to 3 in having the “intelligent design” theory mentioned to their children while in school. The other parents were outraged and sued the school. The verdict said the act was unconstitutional and forbade it. However, in the end, the school is still pursuing the court in trying to obtain the right to teach different evolutional theories in the classroom.

Knowing that “intelligent design” was believed before evolution ideas, I wondered when evolution was brought up into discussion. It appears that Charles Darwin started the controversy over evolution in 1859 with the publishing of his book On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection". His book suggested that instead of being created by God, humans went through a biological evolution. Many faithful Catholics felt that with this assumption, Darwin had robbed humanity of its dignity. After sometime passed the idea was accepted by a handful of people. Charles Darwin never stopped studying and writing about human evolution, even until his death in 1882. It is said that even on this deathbed, Darwin did not renounce evolution.