Man’s Distinction from Animals

Darwinist imagination can never explain Man’s ability for speech, language, writing, and intellectual reasoning as resulting from un-directed natural causes (IE evolution). These abilities could only be granted by a supernatural Creator.

The Biblical text was not intended as a precise scientific document, but it does describe essential facts that Man needs to know, including the two phases of Man’s creation.

These phases correspond to the scientific evidence we have.

Phase I:

“And God formed the man of dust from the ground, and he blew into his nostrils the soul of life, and man became a living being”

(Genesis 2:7)

The term “living being” used in Genesis 2:7 is the same term used in Genesis chapter 1 to describe the animals that God created before Man.

The great rabbinic sage Sforno explains that in phase I primitive Man existed as a higher form of animal, but still an animal similar to all the other animals which are lacking the ability of speech and intellectual reasoning.

We might conclude from this that these animal like humans could have existed for hundreds of thousands of years, but it is evident they left no evidence of language, writing, civilization, or abstract thought.

Line drawings on a cave wall, with no evidence of language or abstract thought, do not really distinguish primitive Man from animals.

Phase II:

“God planted a Garden in Eden, to the East, and placed there Man whom He had formed.” (Genesis 2:8)

The rabbinic sage Sforno explains that the “Garden” is the location where Man received the “image of God” so that higher Man gained the ability for speech and intellectual reasoning that primitive Man and animals are lacking.

This second phase would have occurred less than 6000 years from the present time, IE in the year 5786 according to the Jewish calendar that counts from the creation of higher Man.

Honest scientists will admit that the oldest writing that exists is less than 6000 years old, which was the period when Man was placed in the “Garden” and received the “image of God”.

No amount of Darwinist imagination can explain Man’s ability for speech, language, writing, and intellectual reasoning as resulting from un-directed natural causes (IE evolution). These abilities could only be granted by a supernatural Creator.

Rationalist Judaism Blog Debunked–Science vs Darwin

In various places on Rabbi Natan Slifkin’s “Rationalist Judaism” blog, writers attempt to convince the blog readers of the scientific validity of Darwinist Evolution.NeoDarwinism is undoubtedly a materialist, pseudo-scientific theory that attempts to explain the origin and development of life solely as a result o

Rationalist Judaism Blog Debunked–Science vs Darwin

In various places on Rabbi Natan Slifkin’s “Rationalist Judaism” blog, writers attempt to convince the blog readers of the scientific validity of Darwinist Evolution.

Neo-Darwinism is undoubtedly a materialist, pseudo-scientific theory that attempts to explain the origin and development of life solely as a result of material causes.

According to the theory of Neo-Darwinism, evolution is powered by random DNA mutations within organisms.

In fact there are quite substantial scientific arguments to refute Neo-Darwinism as a valid scientific theory. Neo-Darwinist “scientific” speculations certainly don’t conform to the scientific evidence, and in reality resemble a faith based atheist religion. For example, in the fossil record, all major animal phyla suddenly appeared during the so-called “Cambrian Explosion”, a phenomenon that contradicts Neo-Darwinist theories.

Dr. Stephen Meyer is a great (non-Jewish) philosopher of science whom I believe is much more competent in scientific matters than Natan Slifkin. Dr. Meyer’s intelligent design philosophy is much more consistent with both Torah principles and with scientific evidence than the Neo-Darwinist faith based religion.

I highly recommend Dr. Stephen Meyer’s recent book “Return of the God Hypothesis” that brings powerful scientific evidence that an intelligent “Mind” created and designed the Universe, while thoroughly refuting materialist theories such as Neo-Darwinism .

Rabbi Natan Slifkin, to my knowledge, has never explained how the undirected natural causes of Neo-Darwinism can produce the very large amounts of useful digital information necessary to allow the existence of complex creatures such as man.

In a great video interview with Ben Shapiro, Dr. Meyer explains:
“The foundation of life is information in a digital form…as we think about the origin of information, the one thing we know is that it always arises from an intelligent source…only mind is capable of generating the amount of information needed for these big jumps in biological complexity…Neo-Darwinian thinkers and the New Atheists are the same group of people…Dawkins said that Darwinism makes it possible to be an intellectually fulfilled atheist…Intelligent Design challenges the idea that purely undirected processes can produce the appearance but not the reality of design…most of the major forms of life arise discontinuously…mutation and selection explain the survival, but not the arrival of the fittest…”

Dr Stephen Meyer on Ben Shapiro Show

Rationalist Judaism Blog Debunked–RAMBAM vs Darwin

The Rationalist Judaism blog, administered by Rabbi Natan Slifkin, in my opinion misrepresents the rationalism of the great medieval rabbis and dishonestly attempts to shoehorn their Torah philosophies into radically conflicting, modern, materialist theories such as NeoDarwinism.On the “Rationalist Judaism” blog th

Why the Rationalist Judaism Blog Misrepresents the RAMBAM

The “Rationalist Judaism” blog, administered by Rabbi Natan Slifkin, in my opinion misrepresents the “rationalism” of the great medieval rabbis and dishonestly attempts to shoehorn their Torah philosophies into radically conflicting, modern, materialist theories such as Neo-Darwinism.

On the “Rationalist Judaism” blog there is (or was) a statement: “This website is an exploration into the rationalist approach to Judaism that was most famously presented by Maimonides.” However, if one carefully studies Maimonides’ brilliant “Moreh Nevuchim” sefer, it becomes very clear that the Rambam’s Torah ideas are quite inconsistent with the Neo-Darwinist evolution theories being hyped on the Rationalist Judaism blog!

In Moreh Nevuchim 3:19, the Rambam explains that the complex design of the eye’s mechanism cannot be due to chance, rather “we see here necessarily design in nature”. The Rambam is not referring there to just an “appearance of design”, but rather actual design evident in nature. According to the Rambam, signs of design in the Universe are “the result of the action of an intellectual Being, that endows everything with its natural properties.” Such ideas are completely incompatible with Neo-Darwinism.

Contemporary “rationalists” believe that the physical Universe constitutes ALL of reality, and they deny any immaterial entities or causes such as God, angels, prophecy, Man’s immaterial intellect, etc.

The Rambam’s philosophy cannot be dishonestly shoe-horned into modern “rationalism”. Certainly Rambam did advocate there is a scientific order to the Universe, but that order is produced by the God’s Intellect, NOT by the random, undirected natural forces of Neo-Darwinism. The Rambam advocated the scientific study of the Universe, but that study was only utilized as a stepping stone to the ultimate knowledge, i.e. Metaphysics and knowledge of God. In Moreh Nevuchim 1:34, Rambam explains that in order to obtain human perfection, one must train himself in logic, mathematics, natural sciences, and finally in the “divine science”.

It seems that Rambam would consider Darwinism just a rehash of the ancient philosophy of Epicurus that the Rambam considered “kefirah”, i.e. heresy.

“”Those who have no knowledge of the deity but think that things are subject to generation and passing-away through joining and separation due to chance, and that there is no one who governs and orders being, are Epicurus and those like him…””
(Maimonides, Guide to the Perplexed II:14, 12th Century C.E.)

Wise non-Jews are aware that Darwinism is just a rehash of ancient Greek atheist and materialist theories, theories that the Rambam considered “kefirah”.

Charles Darwin and the Ghost of Epicurus

The Rambam teaches certain metaphysical concepts such as material cause, formal cause, efficient cause, and final cause. In Moreh Nevuchim 1:69, the Rambam teaches that God is the efficient cause, the formal cause, and the final cause of the world. These metaphysical concepts are radically incompatible with Neo-Darwinism that eliminates any Creator, any causes, or any purpose for life or the Universe.

Neo-Darwinism, which attempts to explain the origin and development of life by undirected material causes, is utterly incompatible with the Rambam’s Torah philosophy. Any intellectually honest person would have to conclude that if the Rambam were alive today, he could not possibly accept the validity of the Neo-Darwinist evolution theories advocated on the Rationalist Judaism blog.

The “Rationalist Judaism” blog claims to be exploring the Rambam’s ideas, but in my opinion, it is radically misrepresenting them.

Evolution Group Think

The American academic environment has degenerated into an atmosphere of totalitarian atheist group think where all heresies against the prevailing Darwinist religion are being ruthlessly suppressed.The excellent video documentary (produced several years ago) Expelled: No intelligence allowed contains a great expose of

Evolution Group Think

The American academic environment has degenerated into an atmosphere of totalitarian atheist group think where all heresies against the prevailing Darwinist religion are being ruthlessly suppressed.

The excellent video documentary (produced several years ago) “Expelled: No intelligence allowed” contains a great expose of the totalitarian group think among the university evolution fundamentalists. It also exposes the connection between evolutionary theories and Nazi genocide:
“… educators and scientists are being ridiculed, denied tenure and even fired for the crime of merely believing that there might be evidence of design in nature, and that perhaps life is not just the result of accidental, random chance.”

These same leftist professors who persecute their colleagues who express any heretical ideas against the Darwinist religion are often also virulent enemies of Israel. Evolution is atheist junk science that can in no way explain the origin of life, nor can it explain the origin of a speaking being with intellect such as man. I believe Darwin clearly indicated his motivations for inventing the evolution religion were to minimize the necessity for any supernatural Creator.

For those looking for an antidote to the evolution Kool-Aid, I recommend reading the essays of Dr. Georges Cuvier, a brilliant scientist who is mentioned in the “Drush Or HaChaim” treatise of the Jewish sage Tiferes Yisrael. Unlike today’s dope addled leftist professors who follow the evolution drumbeat like sheep, Dr. Cuvier was a true intellectual with a knowledge of human history and respect for the Bible. Dr. Cuvier’s brilliant discourse provides strong evidence against evolution group think and in favor of an ancient flood, but has been suppressed by the politically Darwinist liberals of recent times.

Evolution is a faith based atheist religion which violates scientific principles (such as the laws of entropy) and for which there is no real evidence in the fossil record. For example, the fossil record clearly shows that species appear suddenly and then later disappear without any significant change. Evolution is at a complete loss to explain the origin of life. Despite numerous experiments, no scientist has ever produced life from non-life in a laboratory.

Most evolution fundamentalists simply gloss over and ignore the massive scientific evidence against Darwinist evolution. The great rabbinic authority Tiferes Yisrael, whose famous “Drush Or HaChaim” sermon argues for an ancient earth, but not evolution, brings opinions of the renowned scientist Dr. Georges Cuvier. Dr. Cuvier firmly opposed evolution and believed that species appeared and disappeared in the fossil record without significant changes.

A very scholarly book released several years ago that powerfully and brilliantly refutes Darwinism is “Darwin’s Doubt: The Explosive Origin of Animal Life and the Case for Intelligent Design” by Dr. Stephen C. Meyer.

Intelligent Design is Consistent with Judaism

The modern concept of Intelligent Design seems to be quite consistent with classical Torah concepts. In contrast, Darwinist evolution theories not only require great leaps of faith to explain the evident complexity in the Universe, but Darwinist evolution also removes any meaning or purpose to the Universe. . The conce

Intelligent Design is Consistent with Judaism

The concept of reflecting on the wisdom evident in the design of the Universe has strong roots in ancient rabbinic thought. Within various rabbinic writings are some concepts that seem quite consistent with the modern Intelligent Design movement. In the famous medieval (11th Century C.E.) Jewish ethics book Chovos HaLevavos, a whole shaar(gate) is devoted to explaining how Jews should examine the created Universe and thus deduce proofs of the existence and wisdom of the Creator.

“One is obligated to reflect on the created things, and deduce from them proofs of the Creator’s wisdom, by the dictates of reason, Scripture, and rabbinic tradition.”

(Chovos HaLevavos, Shaar HaBechina, Chapter Two)

Chovos HaLevavos also explains that the wisdom evident in the design of the Universe offers proof that the Universe was created with the intention of an Intelligent Agent. Thus Chovos HaLevavos is in direct conflict with Darwinist evolution which can only posit an “appearance” of intelligence in the biological order that lacks any actual purpose.

“It is evident to us that for things which come about without the intent of an intender (i.e. an intelligence who designed it with a purpose) — none of them will display any trace of wisdom or ability. Behold and see, that if a man suddenly pours ink on clean paper, it would be impossible for there to be drawn on it orderly writing and legible lines like it would be with a quill, and if a man brought before us orderly writing from what cannot be written without use of a quill, and he would say that ink was spilled on paper, and the form of the writing happened on its own, we would be quick to call him a liar to his face and tell him that it must have been written without an intelligent person’s intent. And since, in our eyes, this is something impossible for mere symbols (the alphabet) that we have agreed on — how could we entertain the notion for something whose engineering is far more fine, and whose assembly is infinitely more deep and beyond our comprehension, to say that it is without intent of an Intender, and without the wisdom of a wise and powerful Being.”

(Chovos HaLevavos, Shaar HaYichud, Chapter Six)

What is Intelligent Design

A basic definition of Intelligent Design” might be the concept that we observe various physical and biological features of the Universe whose existence is best explained as due to the actions of an Intelligent Agent rather than due to the effects of undirected natural processes such as natural selection.In contrast t

What is Intelligent Design

A basic definition of “Intelligent Design” might be the concept that we observe various physical and biological features of the Universe whose existence is best explained as due to the actions of an Intelligent Agent rather than due to the effects of undirected natural processes such as natural selection.

In contrast to Neo-Darwinist (evolution) theory, intelligent design philosophers and scientists argue that the best explanation for the origins of life, and the origins of the many biological forms, is an Intelligent Agent.

Intelligent Design (ID) theory postulates that design is empirically detectable in various physical and biological aspects of the Universe. For example-

the overwhelming scientific evidence that the Universe had a definite beginning, observed since the 1920s in the red-shift and the expansion of the Universe,
the substantial evidence that the physical constants of the Universe have been enormously fine-tuned to allow for the existence of life,
and
the large amounts of functional information present in the DNA of biological organisms.

The three factors mentioned above, among others, all provide convincing evidence that a Superintelligence created the Universe (and continues to maintain its existence), and this Superintelligence must have also created the life forms present on Earth. Materialist scientific theories, citing undirected natural causes, simply cannot provide convincing explanations for the origins of the Universe and the origins and development of life on Earth.

ID theorists may or may not specify that the Intelligent Agent responsible for design in the Universe is God, and ID in general does not attempt to define the exact nature of the Intelligent Agent. ID theorists recognize that our Universe could not have simply popped into existence by itself. ID theory would only be inconsistent with Judaism if it implied a Creator with characteristics contrary to Torah theology. I am not aware that ID does imply any such characteristics. However, its astounding how some Jews can believe that acceptance of atheist Darwinist evolution can be preferable to acceptance of ID.